Review: Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland

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Title: Alice in Wonderland
Released: 2010
Origin: United States
Genre: Fantasy/Adventure
Publisher: Walt Disney Pictures
Directed by: Tim Burton

Lead Cast:
Mia Wasikowska - Alice
Johnny Depp - Mad Hatter
Helena Bonham Carter - Red Queen
Anne Hathaway - White Queen
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SPOILER ALERT: PLOT

19-year-old Alice returns to the magical world from her childhood adventure, where she reunites with her old friends and learns of her true destiny: to end the Red Queen's reign of terror.

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Many might go watch the movie hoping to revive what they once lived in their childhood without taking into consideration that this film was directed by none other than Tim Burton. This brilliant man has directed many other works of art such as "The Nightmare before Christmas", "Corpse Bride" and more recently "9". Alice in Wonderland is not the exception to his fascinating style of eccentricity and 'Halloween-like" settings. Be warned, Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is nowhere near Disney's 1951 version of this twisted world: last time, it was not twisted at all.

I was impressed once more by Tim Burton's ability to break with my personal mania of trying to figure out what comes next in the movie. I like predicting a movie's ending before it's revealed to the audience; yet, I was unable to do so. Unpredictable would be a suitable adjective to categorize this movie, down to every single minute of it. I was amazed as in one scene of the movie I thought "It's weird how Alice is the main character but doesn't seem to lead the plot, the plot seems to be leading her." Seconds after that, Alice herself said she was tired of being pushed by the other characters in the story, and took control of her own 'destiny'. I don't mean to spoil the movie, but it's like the movie is reading your mind the whole time and reacting to every instant you might think "maybe it's not as good as they say it is."

Speaking of the plot, I'm completely sure I made my point clear when I said this is most definitely NOT the happy cartoon Alice with tea parties and songs. It is gloomy and dark, it has war and violence; and it has a hint of humor, perhaps a little too crude for the younger audiences. Perhaps it's just me, but I wouldn't rate the movie "Todo Publico/PG", I would set it to PG-13, as younger audiences might not find it amusing or entertaining at all. In fact, one of the only things I would negatively remark about this movie is the need for the audience to be familiarized with the Alice in Wonderland Universe/Lore, as it takes place after the events in both books. It's not enough, in fact I wouldn't recommend it either, having watched the other Alice in Wonderland movie; it has nothing to do with this one and it will only kill the real universe Lewis Carroll meant to portray in his 1865 novel "Alice's Aventures in Wonderland" and its 1871 sequel "Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There". I regret not having read these novels before, but after watching the movie, I'd like to read them to know what certain aspects of the setting meant. It is important to note the movie IS NOT based on neither one of the novels, it is a made-up 'sequel' to the events which happen in them, another reason to praise the brilliant work of Tim Burton, his team and the cast.

Last but not least, a brief note on the cast. While many tend to focus on the cast as 'actors' and the pop-culture they entail, I rather focus on whether or not they are able to effectively portray their role in the movie. I had never watched Wasikovska (Alice) before, much less on a lead role and I must say I am satisfied with her role. She managed to convey Alice's mildly crazy yet rational mind to the audience throughout the entire film. It was surely not an easy task, especially next to prominent actors such as Johnny Depp. Once more he has amused us with one of his odd characters. If we thought Willy Wonka would be the most colorful and crazy character we'd get out of him, we were wrong. I would say no one else would play the Mad Hatter better than him, and 99% of the people, sane or insane, would agree with me. The only bit in the film where I thought "Please, don't ruin the movie" was towards the end, a creepy and unnecessary dance scene, but thankfully it wasn't the typical "Disney Musical Happy Ending" we were all expecting. Thank you Mr Burton, I'm sure it was hard to convince the Disney executives, but you did us all a favor. I won't bother describing Hathaway and Bonham Carter, they were hilarious, that should do it. I laughed almost as much at the White Queens inner desire to end her gracefulness charade as the Red Queens obsession with Head-Chopping and her Large-Head complex. Excellent cast choice and excellent cast performance.

And finally, the rating summary:

SCORE BASIS:
Cast Performance: 9.6
Brilliant. Couldn't have chosen any other cast. Extra points for the Snape-Carterpillar.

Script and Plot: 8.9
It was a bit rusty in both the beginning and the end. It still attained a likable element of surprise, but a bit too unlikely despite the "Possibility of the Impossible".

Special Effects: 9.0
I know we're meant to be objective, but after watching Avatar, reaching that "Oh my God!" level is a little harder. Nice graphics, awesome technology; not Avatar,but a 9.0 is good, not God.

Genre Attainment: 7.4
The 'low' of this movie. Yes, making a film based on an imaginary continuation of two novels is hard. Too much happened in too little time. It's confusing. Entertaining, but confusing.

Originallity: 9.6
Yes, it's "Tim Burton all over again" but that's his style. A whole universe redefined into a Tim Burton universe? That requires a huge creative mind. It's original alright.

MOVIE RATING: 8.9 Worth Watching.

ADJUSTED RATING: 9.3 Editor's Choice.
The idea of this movie was clearly to turn the cute and colorful Alice cartoon into a world of eccentricity and political turmoil caused by the characters' madness. I would say it managed to do that.

ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 8.9 Worth Watching.
It's a good movie. I loved it but it's not the best I've seen. I would agree with a rating that indicates that I was entertained 89% of the time. That 1% needed for Editor's Choice would be a movie I'd watch two days in a row. Maybe next week, just not tomorrow. Sorry Alice! It was a bit too Wonderful.

Still doubting if it's Worth Watching like we say it is? Here's the trailer, it might finish the job: