Alice in Wonderland Reviews

Como toda película antigua de Walt Disney (la época en que él vivió) Alicia en el país de las maravillas luce muy infantil, a veces muy absurdo, pero para los adultos carga con un peso filosófico, y no dudo que para los niños también conforme vayan creciendo. Sea porque está basado en un cuento inspirado en el mito de Perséfone, o porque verdaderamente se creó con la consciencia de su implicación filosófica (yo creo que es la segunda), Alicia termina tratando muy certeramente un tema de identidad y realidad. No por nada ante el gusano Alicia dice "he cambiado tantas veces que ya no recuerdo quién soy..."

This version on Alice in Wonderland is the best version of the classic book. What impressed me most was the mix of "Wonderland" and "Looking Glass". The animation was the best element of the movie, with a gorgeous sequence in the song "Golden Afternoon", which was the best song in my opinion. Not to mention the watercolour-painting like landscapes of the English countryside. The songs, while not as memorable as later Disney films, were very pleasant to the ear, with an appreciative nostalgic feel. The characters were what make this film, as they are memorable and engaging. However, Alice sometimes was a little bland, but that is the only weakness here, and Kathryn Beaumont did voice her beautifully. The Cheshire Cat and White Rabbit were very well done, likewise with the Mad Hatter and March Hare. In fact The Cheshire Cat is my favourite character, and Sterling Holloway shone voicing him. The best vocal characterisation was the Queen of Hearts, voiced by Disney regular Verna Felton who did a great job. I know they missed the Mock Turtle and the Griffin out, but if they were included, the overall film would've been too long. In conclusion, an imaginative and solid version of a great book! 9/10 Bethany Cox

I already saw this movie, at least, I thought so but, since it was ages ago, I was really eager to check it out again. Well, to be honest, while watching the damned thing, I was surprised by how little I did remember it. Anyway, it is probably one of the best stories ever adapted by Disney, it definitely had some potential and, eventually, the end-result was indeed probably their wildest movie. However, I'm afraid it didn't completely work though. Basically, from the moment Alice went into this rabbit hole, she basically never stopped running. As a result, the action and characters were just relentlessly frenetic and, to be honest, it wore me down at some point. I think this movie should have been slightly longer with some moments for the audience to take a breath and to be able to handle what they just saw. Instead, the only moments when the action slowed down a bit where during the songs which were quite numerous but it is something I never really enjoyed in the Disney animated features and I don't think that any of them was really remarkable. Finally, from a technical point of view, the animation was fine but it was far from being Disney's most gorgeous movie. At least, it remains a wild tale which allowed a massive burst of creativity from the animation studio and Alice was also one of the best female characters delivered by Disney so far, at least, she was something else than the usual helpless princess waiting for a prince to save her. Anyway, to conclude, even it might seem like a missed opportunity, it was still a solid animated feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

(OK) Disney posed with the madness and episodic fantasy of Carroll's is better than telling a tale. The flower concert, the walrus and the oysters, the cards and the queen in the end, the troubling size of Alice breaking a house and a keyhole....

Prior to Tim Burton’s billion dollar grossing live action reimagining, films based on Alice in Wonderland failed to connect with audiences. It didn’t help that the release of this was met with sneers from literary critics, the British press accusing the film of pandering to more American sensibilities, and reaction from the major creators being indifferent about the completed project. Disney’s Alice in Wonderland isn’t that bad, but it’s not great.

As an introduction to the books, it works effectively enough. Many of the major players and sequences from the two Alice novels are present. If something has been lost in the translation, I think the words of Ward Kimball, one of the Nine Old Men, sum it up effectively: “It suffered from too many cooks – directors. Here was a case of five directors each trying to top the other guy…. It had a self-cancelling effect on the final product.”

It’s true, a lot of the sequences and characters are aimed not for individuality and specificity, but an obvious attempt to prove how rubbery, dexterous, and comedic they could push the animation. Tweedledee and Tweedeledum spring immediately to mind, as their really nothing more than bombast and a series of gags that don’t entirely land. A similar thing happens with the caucus race and the Dodo, who strangely feels too sheepish for the surrounding material.

Much like the books, Alice in Wonderland doesn’t contain much of a narrative, as it’s just a series of vignettes with increasingly strange and erratic denizens, flora and fauna. Alice’s character in the books was more precocious, prone to moments of great wit and challenging authority, and here she’s a bit of a plank. Disney’s version has become the de facto image of what Alice should look like, but her personality got lost in the translation. Where is the glee with which she discovers Wonderland? Or her childish change of emotions? She’s too placid here to resemble the character as described in the books, and this harms the film as the center of it has been deflated.

Yet there’s still much to appreciate about Alice in Wonderland. It’s certainly an improvement over the previous year’s Cinderella, and a few of the images within reminded me of the surreal, borderline frightening work of earlier films like Fantasia and Dumbo. And a handful of characters emerged from Lewis Carroll’s prose to Disney’s animation intact.

The Queen of Hearts bluster, bombastic nature, and aggressive narcissism are a huge jolt of energy in the last few minutes of the film. She doesn’t appear in much of the running time, but her comedic rages and tyranny pack a punch. The Mad Hatter, March Hare, and their corresponding tea party have long been my favorite moment. Here is a sequence in which the delirium and perverse oddity of the Carroll books is given full bloom. If more of the film had been like this, Alice in Wonderland may have been a masterpiece. The White Rabbit is appropriately squeezable and anxious, the talking flowers are charming in their bubble-headed passiveness, and their musical number contains the prettiest harmonies in the film. The best for me has long been the Cheshire Cat. He comes along with a gentle voice that is almost too purring and soft to be consoling, with a grin that is too wide to be normal, and a subtle hint of menace in his actions to make him the tiniest bit creepy. He’s also the most bug-nuts character in the entire thing.

Even better are the backgrounds. Mary Blair, a children’s book illustrator, came into the studio towards the end of Wartime Era, and brought with her a more modern and fresh approach to the films she worked on. Her backgrounds in Cinderella were splendid, but her talents came into fruition in this film and Peter Pan. Her angular, colorful Wonderland is a visual feast, and keeps your eyes engaged even when the film is losing you.

Granted, I am aware that my opinion as anything less than an unimpeachable classic in the Disney canon is not the norm. But I grew up reading Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, so my love for the wordplay and John Tenniel’s illustrations is deeply ingrained into my nature. No film has ever given me 100% satisfaction in its translation, but they are a lot of them that I enjoy. It’s a great introduction to the books, and it is a nice take on the material. Even if the jettisoning of the more obscure Wonderland residents in favor of Disney's newer creations does leave a sour taste in my mouth. Oh, what I would have given to watch the Jabberwocky, Mock Turtle, the chess pieces, the Duchess, and numerous other characters given life. Like many of the Silver Era Disney features, it's pleasing in episodic spurts, but a little disappointing as a whole.

To put it simply, Alice In Wonderland is bizzare. To put it less simply, Alice In Wonderland explores the oddities of a child's imagination, and the utter weirdness of a seemingly mad person to such an extent as to create one of the strangest films I have ever seen.

We all know the story. Alice sees a white rabbit exclaiming "I'm late, I'm late!" over and over, and of course, silly Alice, follows the talking rabbit down a rabbit hole and into the land of...well, wonder.

Like all Disney films, memorable characters abound. Yes, Alice is a little thinly drawn (really, all the characters are a bit one dimensional), but in the same way, they're all so distinct, and unlikely to be forgotten. The strong voice cast only supports this.

Alice In Wonderland is far weirder than I expected. At times, it seems to make no sense whatsoever. This is not a bad thing, mind you.

Curiously enough, I laughed very little during this film. I smiled a lot though, and the utter weirdness of it all was so absurd, I could not help but be entertained, though I retained any laughter. The one primary scene that provoked laughter was the "Tea Time" scene with the Mad Hatter. It's even more outrageous on screen than it is in the book.

Alice In Wonderland certainly does not represent the height of Disney films, or even animated films in general. What it does represent, is a solid film with no real flaws, but not exceedingly entertaining. It serves it's purpose as a weird and enjoyable film, but does not extend it's hand any farther.