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Pop quiz: What is possibly the only film in movie history to include a smoking caterpillar on its list of reasons for being rated PG?
The answer is Tim Burton’s latest film, “Alice in Wonderland.”
The film centers on Alice, played by fresh face Mia Wasikowska.
Alice is 19 years old, who has spent her whole life dreaming of a place where dodo birds chase her around, blue caterpillars crawl and a purple evaoprating cat.
She’s been having these “dreams” for the past 13 years and wonders aloud to her mother if it’s “normal.”
The answer is no.
After a dweeby-looking man proposes to Alice, she leaves him to chase a white rabbit wearing a waistcoat down the rabbit hole.
Once in Wonderland, Alice meets a plethora of interesting characters.
There’s the Mad Hatter, played in an almost psychotically brilliant fashion by the great Johnny Depp; the Red Queen, played by Burton’s real life fiancé, Helena Bonham Carter; the White Queen, played by Academy Award nominee Anne Hathaway; two short, chubby twins, Tweedledee and Tweedledu; and many more outlandish creatures.
This definitely isn’t the same “Alice in Wonderland.”
Burton spends most of his time filling up the screen with gorgeous eye-candy, striking visuals and a wonderful colorful palette.
In addition to the feast for the eyes, the film’s two biggest strengths are found in Depp and Bonham Carter.
Depp is almost always superb in any role he’s given, and his portrayal of the Mad Hatter is no exception.
In one minute, Depp’s speaking with a slight lisp and an infectious grin, to a Scottish accent and acting like Jack Sparrow on hallucinogens. Depp steals the show in almost every scene he’s in which unfortunately, makes scenes without him seem rather dull in comparison.
Bonham Carter is also fantastic as the villainous Red Queen with a head three times larger than normal. Whether she’s using a warm pig belly to aid her aching feet or shouting “off with his head!” at the top of her lungs, Bonham Carter seems to be so good at being bad.
The problem with “Alice in Wonderland” is that Burton forgot to give his audience a reason to care about almost anything that goes on in the picture.
Yes, it all looks fantastic, but there is hardly any interesting plot or character developments to support the visuals on screen.
The film moves along at a fine pace but once it reaches the all too familiar “showdown” of a climax, everything feels very “been there, done that, which is almost unheard of in a Burton film.
It’s strange that in “Alice in Wonderland,” a film about a girl’s bizarre and confounding journey, the movie itself may have viewers asking themselves questions they may find puzzling.
Why is Anne Hathaway playing the White Queen as if this were a sketch on SNL?
Are Johnny Depp’s CGI dance moves actually funny?
Is it logical to explain how England ended up starting trade with the East in a film that has something called a Jabberwock?
Maybe you could provide the answers to these questions.
Until then, I’ll just be asleep, dreaming of my own personal Wonderland, where movies can provide amazing visuals with an incredible and engaging story as well.
Final rating: 2 out of 4 stars
Reach Aaron Fenn at: lifestyle@thepolypost.com
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