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Alice in Wonderland - Hit or Miss?
Here at Be Fabulous, we understand that a night at the cinema comes with its own set of politics. To help overcome those, we’ve asked Faith Brotherston and Andrew Sheldrick to give us a his ‘n’ hers perspective on the latest blockbusters in the name of compromise…
Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland has just hit UK cinemas. Matt Lucas, Barbara Windsor, Stephen Fry, Anne Hathaway, Alan Rickman and Paul Whitehouse support Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska and Helena Bonham Carter. In Burton’s version, a 19-year-old Alice finds herself in distress and flees back down the rabbit hole to rediscover her ‘muchness’.
Faith says:
This was always going to be a winner for me. A lifelong lover of the Lewis Carroll classic, and with pathological crushes on Johnny Depp, Stephen Fry and Alan Rickman (all for very different reasons), I couldn’t wait to see it in all of its contrary Technicolor 3D glory. I wasn’t disappointed.
Like the Chronicles of Narnia, Alice is adventurous, a little frightening and visually spectacular – Windsor’s Dormouse, once so sleepy, certainly gives CS Lewis’s swashbuckling Reepicheap a run for his money. The 13-year time lapse allows Burton to flex his imaginative fingers without fear of retribution from the die-hard Carroll conformists for deviating from the plot a little.
I don’t know whether it’s because she was the underdog, or because she seemed to be channelling Blackadder II’s Queenie, but Bonham Carter’s portrayal of the Red Queen knocked spots off Hathaway’s goody-two-shoes White Queen. (Mad) Hats off, though, to Wasikowska, who did justice to our heroine; developing her from a teenager hiding her light beneath a bushel into a strong, assertive woman.
Unsurprisingly it was Depp’s almost bipolar Hatter who made the movie for me – once again, grotesque make-up renders him almost unrecognisable – Why, Johnny? Why? – but his portrayal brought a sensitivity to the otherwise comedic role that I wouldn’t have predicted. As always, Depp’s accent is faultless, veering (intentionally) between calm, quiet and understated Oxford English and angry, vengeful thick Scottish.
With excellent morals – ultimately; never let anyone tell you who are and where your limitations end, this is a sure-fire success in my eyes.
Andrew says:
Lewis Carroll, Tim Burton, Johnny Depp; a potent mix if ever there was. With Carroll’s ethereal story at its core, Burton’s wonderfully gothic visual style and the tour de force that is Johnny Depp playing the infamous Mad Hatter what could possibly be better? As it turns out, lots.
You have to admire Tim Burton for stamping his own authority on such a beloved tale, however; brave and daring as he is visually with Carroll’s characters, his insistence on sticking so religiously to the original story (albeit with creative license regarding Alice’s age) was for me the film’s greatest failing. For anyone with even a passing knowledge of the book it soon descends into a predictable series of set pieces, with many characters being simply introduced but never truly expanded on. Peter Jackson successfully demonstrated with the Lords of the Rings trilogy that deviating from the page can reap rich rewards, it’s a shame Burton didn’t follow suit.
It should also be noted that following the subtle and often jaw-dropping 3D used in Avatar, Alice favours the more traditional approach of having characters take every opportunity to poke or throw something at the audience. While novel at first, it soon becomes tedious and in no way beneficial to the story. 3D has great potential, but it shouldn’t be used as a tool to disguise other failings, it should be used to enhance the experience.
In a film packed full of British luvvies and Hollywood royalty it was Wasikowska’s Alice that stood out for me. Growing in confidence throughout, her often understated acting perfectly complemented the more outlandish performances; step forward Mr Depp. I’d consider Johnny Depp to be one of the finest and most compelling actors working today, however on the odd occasion his exuberance needs to be reined in. His Maddening Hatter was inspired and irritating in often equal measures and for me at least sits alongside his creepy take on Willy Wonka as recent missteps. It’s definitely a Marmite performance.
So a visual treat for the eyes no doubt, but for those seeking a more memorable experience prepare to leave the foyer feeling like you’ve consumed too many candies and yet still feeling oddly malnourished.
Faith says: You’re wrong.
Next week: Shutter Island
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Name: Faith Brotherston
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