Alice in Wonderland?

[LWatson]

Maybe for us it was because we had just seen Alice on Syfy (and now on DVD!!) the new "upto date" version from them that was really cool and took a new look at things...that could be why we didnt like it as much. There were good parts in it, but it lacked for us something. I dont know exactly what though.

 

[ireland_nicole]

That's so funny because I thought she was SUPPOSED to be one dimensional and flat- the point being that because she was the beautiful, favored child she never developed much of a personality.

One of the things I love best about Tim Burton is his sense of irony.

Fair enough, but she was so annoying- I couldn't find any redeeming qualities that would incite loyalty, particularly to the level of the dog (sorry, can't remember his name) or the hatter. and the whole potion thing, and the mannerisms; just didn't gel for me.

 

[disneydad78]

What was with that STUPID dance the mad hatter did toward the end,THAT WAS THE MOST STUPID THING I HAVE EVER SEEN. did NOT make any since,,I know he is now happy and he didnt do the dance since the white queen was in power,,and now she is,,but that was stupid.

 

[princessmom29]

What was with that STUPID dance the mad hatter did toward the end,THAT WAS THE MOST STUPID THING I HAVE EVER SEEN. did NOT make any since,,I know he is now happy and he didnt do the dance since the white queen was in power,,and now she is,,but that was stupid.

It is wonderland. NOTHING is supposed to make any sense. That was the whole point Lewis Carrol was trying to make. Have you ever read The Walrus and The Carpenter? It made no sense at all either. That is what I think it was getting at, that nonsense perspective on things.

 

[Jamoky]

I really enjoyed the movie. We saw it without the 3D and I am happy we opted out. My DS is 6 and he LOVED it. He didn't get scared at all.

 

[Kat77]

What was with that STUPID dance the mad hatter did toward the end,THAT WAS THE MOST STUPID THING I HAVE EVER SEEN. did NOT make any since,,I know he is now happy and he didnt do the dance since the white queen was in power,,and now she is,,but that was stupid.

Futterwacking! That was my favorite part of the movie!

It is wonderland. NOTHING is supposed to make any sense. That was the whole point Lewis Carrol was trying to make. Have you ever read The Walrus and The Carpenter? It made no sense at all either. That is what I think it was getting at, that nonsense perspective on things.

What she said!
I liked the movie but it was not what I imagined it could be. I was expected something way more outlandish with Burton and Depp involved.

 

[EKW]

personally, I wouldn't take a 3 year old. The beheading of the Jabberwocky alone would take this movie off the table.

On a scale from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to Beatlejuice, this one falls somewhere below Nightmare Before Christmas but above Corpse Bride.

It was worth seeing in the theater, but not worth seeing again.

Oddly, the whole scene at the bottom of the rabbit hole made me think it was an advertisement for a new Haunted Mansion overlay. Did anyone else think the room with the doors looked a lot like the stretching rooms? I could just see a table a' la the one in Minnie's house with the cake, bottle, and key in it...located plum center in the stretching room. Christmas in Wonderland, anyone???

Sometimes Tim Burton forgets that his movies need a compelling storyline. The story in Alice wasn't particularly interesting. I think he's at his worst when he decides to focus on freakishness rather than storyline.

This movie is a case of that. Why did Alice have to slay the Jabberwocky, other than that the scroll said she did. If the Jabberwocky was supposed to be representational of Edwardian morals and virtues, why would slaying him be to the advantage of the White Queen? And, why was the white queen all about death? How would Underland be better off being ruled by the dead? Was she supposed to be a version of Hades??? Was the white queen better than the red queen just because the red queen had a big head...which I guess was supposed to mean self-centered?

And, really, was there anyone else who couldn't watch this movie without replaying Crispin Glover kicking David Letterman over and over and over in their head???

The movie was okay, but, had we not seen it, it would have been no loss.

And, a final question: why did they choose to change the Cheshire cat from pink to blue? Just to be contrary? I dunno....

 

[Sgt Mickey]

We saw it. I liked it. My kis liked it. I could of seen myself bringing them when they were 3 but they didn't scare easy

 

[wideeyes]

The first part was good however then it went all Northen Lights/Golden Compass at the end and lost its way abit and turned into another internal journey of finding ones self. It lost the satire and humour of the book which I did not expect from Burton.

 

[budbeerlady]

I think alot of posters are right, I kinda expected more from this one. It was good, very visually appealing and some parts made me cringe. (Eyeballls and the moat) But nothing seemed developed enough beyond the red witch. I want to know how the red witch and white witch started to hate each other, show me some sister flashbacks! Give me more hatter back ground, how did the little girly mouse tie into it all, more character development.

 

[deerhart]

The first part was good however then it went all Northen Lights/Golden Compass at the end and lost its way abit and turned into another internal journey of finding ones self. It lost the satire and humour of the book which I did not expect from Burton.

Actually it was this from the very beginning. Not sure if anyone else noticed (I did and mentioned it to my husband). In the first scenes of Alice going to the party her dress is not right. For that time frame, her dress is too short for a woman who is "out" (ie marriageable age) and they had her dressed up to look very young. A woman who is 20 in that time period, her dress would hit the floor and you would NOT be able to see her ankles or shoes (also the gentlemen should have all been wearing gloves but I digress).

After she reemerges from the hole, her dress is longer, covering up her shoes and she has to lift her skirts in order to show off her shoes to do her dance. Which, for that time period the lengthening o the skirt is the transition from a child to an adult.

 

[canabrits2]

I took my 6 year old daughter to see it on Saturday and I'm SOOO glad I did!!

Now, please forgive me for getting too analytical about it, but I think Alice is now the best and brightest, most absolute heroine in the whole Disney library, and here is why I think that:

SPOILER ALERT!





First, I absolutely agree with the poster above about the White Queen's character being flat but there is actually a reason for it, it's because she's meant to be.... it's because both she and the Red Queen represent two ends of the spectrum of feminity...the "good" one is flighty and frilly and somewhat silly and empty-headed and is not powerful and can't/shouldn't hurt a fly on her own (therefore needs a champion). Even Alice asks her, "why don't you slay the Jabberwock yourself?" The "bad" one, the Red Queen, is the complete opposite. She is powerful and can hurt things, "off with her head!" and can't handle real power without it turning her evil and all she really wants is a relationship..... By the way, the Red Queen is also really self-conscious about her body (head).
I think this set-up is part of a larger argument the film is making about how girls can be something different than what is expected or written for them (and which I think it makes very well!). Let's face it, those two examples are not appealing.

Underland is a complete mirror to the "real" world Alice lives. Above ground, she is "expected" to follow a certain "path." She is expected to wear stockings, to wear a corset, to be a wife and say yes to the Lord asking to marry her, simply because that is what everyone expects, it's what is "proper" or normal. It's all these unspoken, unwritten rules that girls have to follw. It would be "impossible" to think of anything else. Importantly, Alice asks her mother, "If everyone decided that proper was to wear a cod-fish on your head, would you do it?" To Alice, everyone is "mad" above ground when it comes to what is "proper." She thinks that "proper" is what you "believe" it is....it's just an idea, not an absolute fact or truth. Proper could be lots of things.

Everyone tries to scare Alice by threatening that she will turn out to be a spinster like her aunt, who tells Alice that she is waiting for her prince....but he never comes.

So, come to Underland....... rules and expectations here aren't unspoken or unwritten, they are written down in the scroll... Here, in her "dream," Alice refuses to let her path be dictated. Alice wants to save the Hatter (a girl saving a man held by a queen in a tower, imagine that!) Bayard is upset and tells Alice she is not following the path set out for her. Alice responds with the best line in the whole move, "I make the path!" This is something she is unable to say in the real world when she wants to go off the path.....

Alice's problem is that even though she has the heart of a hero, she doesn't believe she is a hero...."I"m not that Alice" (the one who is supposed to be an armor-wearing heroine who slays the beast). "I can't slay a beast," "it's impossible." It's the Hatter who finally reminds her of what she already knows, "But it's only impossible if you believe it is." This is just the same as Alice saying that "proper" is only "proper" because everyone believes or says it is....

Low and behold, a little Victorian girl becomes a proper Knight in Shining Armor and saves the kingdom by killing the big dragon.

To go even further, she TURNS DOWN Johnny Depp!!! What?! Alice refuses that boy-and -girl-end-up-happily-ever-after trope as well! The Hatter asks her to stay in Underland and she tells him no, she has things to do.

Alice then returns to "Upland" and turns down her suitor, tells his father that she and he have "business" to discuss, tells her auntie that there IS no prince (so in other words, stop waiting for him and go live your life) and then goes off to become a successful, professional entrepeneur who "makes her own path." She wants to be the first to establish trade with China....her almost-father-in-law thought that would sound mad coming from anyone else.

So....sorry to have spilled a tonne of digital ink but I loved this story so much and thought it was so very important... She is a true heroine and made her own path. I want my daughter to have that belief.

 

[JEFFSWIFE11]

I took both my kids. (DD10 and DS3). We LOVED it!! I thought it was a very good movie. The 3D was very cool.

 

[princessmom29]

Actually it was this from the very beginning. Not sure if anyone else noticed (I did and mentioned it to my husband). In the first scenes of Alice going to the party her dress is not right. For that time frame, her dress is too short for a woman who is "out" (ie marriageable age) and they had her dressed up to look very young. A woman who is 20 in that time period, her dress would hit the floor and you would NOT be able to see her ankles or shoes (also the gentlemen should have all been wearing gloves but I digress).

After she reemerges from the hole, her dress is longer, covering up her shoes and she has to lift her skirts in order to show off her shoes to do her dance. Which, for that time period the lengthening o the skirt is the transition from a child to an adult.

I think the dress was not "right" on purpose. She has no interest in being "Out", and wants no part of getting married. I saw it as antoher little rebellion. All of the others in the opening secne have floor length dresses. It shows us that she is different and sets her apart.

 

[moepanz]

I took my 4 yr. old twins and it went like this. My little boy thought it was scary (but he was not freaked out by it) my little girl thought it was good. She thought it was loud. It was way more violent than ever I thought it would be. I am a fan of Tim Burton ( my kids love Nightmare Before Christmas) so I kind knew what I was getting into, but like I had described it to my cousin it was way more Tim Burton than Disney. The moat was gross and I found that the most disturbing part, the Jabberwookie well, you knew what was coming form the beginning. I was disappointed and would not recommend it for the little ones. And one more thing who ever said the dance was stupid, I totally agree! It was just really stupid.

 

[deerhart]

I think the dress was not "right" on purpose. She has no interest in being "Out", and wants no part of getting married. I saw it as antoher little rebellion. All of the others in the opening secne have floor length dresses. It shows us that she is different and sets her apart.

Yes but that rebellion is the director's hint that the movie is about her coming into her adult self, versus her rebellion (mom never would have approved the dress). There is a huge difference between appearing in public without a corset or stockings, which would not be readily noticed and appearing at a public party as a 20 yo woman in school room clothing. Remember that in the regency and victorian era seeing a woman's ankles (even in boots) was considered indecent.

Further, no one remarks about her dress (as her mom remarks about the corset and stockings) which again stands out as its not Alice's rebellion but a statement by the director/storyline. It's not Alice who is choosing to be betrayed as a child in the opening scenes, but rather the push of the story line. That is further supported by her meek and hesitant behaviors before falling into the hole and her more bold behaviors after leaving the hole.

Yes the dress does set her apart as a child in a room full of adults and its purposeful by the director and sets up the idea that this is a story of transformation and finding ones way from the get go of the movie. So its not a theme that suddenly appears at the end of the movie.

 

[wideeyes]

Yes but that rebellion is the director's hint that the movie is about her coming into her adult self, versus her rebellion (mom never would have approved the dress). There is a huge difference between appearing in public without a corset or stockings, which would not be readily noticed and appearing at a public party as a 20 yo woman in school room clothing. Remember that in the regency and victorian era seeing a woman's ankles (even in boots) was considered indecent.

Further, no one remarks about her dress (as her mom remarks about the corset and stockings) which again stands out as its not Alice's rebellion but a statement by the director/storyline. It's not Alice who is choosing to be betrayed as a child in the opening scenes, but rather the push of the story line. That is further supported by her meek and hesitant behaviors before falling into the hole and her more bold behaviors after leaving the hole.

Yes the dress does set her apart as a child in a room full of adults and its purposeful by the director and sets up the idea that this is a story of transformation and finding ones way from the get go of the movie. So its not a theme that suddenly appears at the end of the movie.

ah, yes I would agree with you. I enjoyed the film however was disapointed in the direction they took the story.

 

[-Hope-]

I took my 6 year old daughter to see it on Saturday and I'm SOOO glad I did!!

Now, please forgive me for getting too analytical about it, but I think Alice is now the best and brightest, most absolute heroine in the whole Disney library, and here is why I think that:

SPOILER ALERT!





First, I absolutely agree with the poster above about the White Queen's character being flat but there is actually a reason for it, it's because she's meant to be.... it's because both she and the Red Queen represent two ends of the spectrum of feminity...the "good" one is flighty and frilly and somewhat silly and empty-headed and is not powerful and can't/shouldn't hurt a fly on her own (therefore needs a champion). Even Alice asks her, "why don't you slay the Jabberwock yourself?" The "bad" one, the Red Queen, is the complete opposite. She is powerful and can hurt things, "off with her head!" and can't handle real power without it turning her evil and all she really wants is a relationship..... By the way, the Red Queen is also really self-conscious about her body (head).
I think this set-up is part of a larger argument the film is making about how girls can be something different than what is expected or written for them (and which I think it makes very well!). Let's face it, those two examples are not appealing.

Underland is a complete mirror to the "real" world Alice lives. Above ground, she is "expected" to follow a certain "path." She is expected to wear stockings, to wear a corset, to be a wife and say yes to the Lord asking to marry her, simply because that is what everyone expects, it's what is "proper" or normal. It's all these unspoken, unwritten rules that girls have to follw. It would be "impossible" to think of anything else. Importantly, Alice asks her mother, "If everyone decided that proper was to wear a cod-fish on your head, would you do it?" To Alice, everyone is "mad" above ground when it comes to what is "proper." She thinks that "proper" is what you "believe" it is....it's just an idea, not an absolute fact or truth. Proper could be lots of things.

Everyone tries to scare Alice by threatening that she will turn out to be a spinster like her aunt, who tells Alice that she is waiting for her prince....but he never comes.

So, come to Underland....... rules and expectations here aren't unspoken or unwritten, they are written down in the scroll... Here, in her "dream," Alice refuses to let her path be dictated. Alice wants to save the Hatter (a girl saving a man held by a queen in a tower, imagine that!) Bayard is upset and tells Alice she is not following the path set out for her. Alice responds with the best line in the whole move, "I make the path!" This is something she is unable to say in the real world when she wants to go off the path.....

Alice's problem is that even though she has the heart of a hero, she doesn't believe she is a hero...."I"m not that Alice" (the one who is supposed to be an armor-wearing heroine who slays the beast). "I can't slay a beast," "it's impossible." It's the Hatter who finally reminds her of what she already knows, "But it's only impossible if you believe it is." This is just the same as Alice saying that "proper" is only "proper" because everyone believes or says it is....

Low and behold, a little Victorian girl becomes a proper Knight in Shining Armor and saves the kingdom by killing the big dragon.

To go even further, she TURNS DOWN Johnny Depp!!! What?! Alice refuses that boy-and -girl-end-up-happily-ever-after trope as well! The Hatter asks her to stay in Underland and she tells him no, she has things to do.

Alice then returns to "Upland" and turns down her suitor, tells his father that she and he have "business" to discuss, tells her auntie that there IS no prince (so in other words, stop waiting for him and go live your life) and then goes off to become a successful, professional entrepeneur who "makes her own path." She wants to be the first to establish trade with China....her almost-father-in-law thought that would sound mad coming from anyone else.

So....sorry to have spilled a tonne of digital ink but I loved this story so much and thought it was so very important... She is a true heroine and made her own path. I want my daughter to have that belief.

I agree 100%! I'm so glad to be raising my daughter in a time of movies with strong female heroines instead of the princesses waiting to be rescued I grew up with. Don't get me wrong, I love the princesses and my dd did when she was younger but I think it's so important for girls to have stronger messages as they grow up and Alice certainly delivers. We'll be buying the dvd and I'm a tightwad who NEVER buys movies.

 

[canabrits2]

Don't get me wrong, I love the princesses and my dd did when she was younger but I think it's so important for girls to have stronger messages as they grow up and Alice certainly delivers.

Exactly!! I (and DD) love the princesses too but they are only one part of our fantasies and shouldn't be the end-all-be-all. Girls have a right to have multi-faceted personalities. My girl alternates from wanting to be a princess to wanting to be what she calls a "girl-pirate" to wanting to be a cowgirl like Jessie in Toy Story (whom she adores and made me buy her t-shirt). I think Disney should market their Disney Heroines as hard as they do their Disney Princesses. Let's face it, they have a growing number: Alice, Mulan, Pocahontas, Jessie, Lilo, Mary Poppins, Tink etc.

 

[Haganfam5]

I agree 100%! I'm so glad to be raising my daughter in a time of movies with strong female heroines instead of the princesses waiting to be rescued I grew up with. Don't get me wrong, I love the princesses and my dd did when she was younger but I think it's so important for girls to have stronger messages as they grow up and Alice certainly delivers. We'll be buying the dvd and I'm a tightwad who NEVER buys movies.

I agree with the last few posts. The movie was "wonderful" and most of the main characters in the movie are female. I just love that. Disney definitly went in a more modern direction with this one. My youngest is six. She cringed a couple of times but was not overall afraid, in the end she enjoyed the movie very much. At 3, she wouldn't have been able to sit through it. However my other daughter would have been fine. I guess it just depends on the child. Use your best judgement. BTW, all of my children are under 10 and I don't see why they wouldn't have been able to see it.