“I’m late; I’m late for a very important date.” The infamous rabbit from Alice and Wonderland once said that unforgettable line years ago, when we were all too young to understand the background and meaning of the creative story of Lewis Carroll’s original classic.
Tim Burton remade the film using well-known actors and special effects. It only seemed accurate and complete perfection to cast Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, alongside with Mia Wasikowska as Alice and Anne Hathaway as the White Queen. The film has received mixed reviews.
Many waited for the premier with hesitation and excitement, only to be left with disappointments and semi-satisfying experiences. “In my opinion it was kind of a disappointment, because I thought it was going to be a trippy version of the Disney movie, but it was exactly like the book. But in a way it was still done well,” Julian Maliszewski, senior philosophy major, said.
Although the film presents a more mature view and came alive with modern approaches and flares, it was nothing to really talk or rave about. The look of the film certainly deserves credit and recognition, but the other details such as the script did not do justice to the potential it was spoken about.
Burton executed the weird and so called “out there” concept, but was it really appropriate and understandable for all ages? Although considered a very high budget film, many feared that it was a waste and only left the audience with a mediocre performance.
“I don’t think my girls really understood the context of the movie. It was just a bit too out there for the younger audience,” Anna Santos, mother and moviegoer, said.
Burton’s film follows the basic story that readers are familiar with, involving Alice attending a party after her father’s death, where she is bombarded with the news of her marrying into the Ascot family. Alice desperately runs away and follows the mystical white rabbit and accidently falls down the rabbit hole also known as underland. To her surprise she visited this land when she was a child but yet has no recollection of this occurrence. During the film it is understood that the Red Queen stole the crown and rule from her sister, the White Queen. In the mist of all this mess Alice is determined to slay her guardian with the Vorpal sword.
“It was a really good movie. My favorite character was the Red Queen, she definitely made the movie,” Holly Prendergast, sophomore communication major, said.
Currently “Alice in Wonderland” holds the biggest opening since “New Moon,” which premiered back in November. Many critics found on Rotten Tomatoes only rated the film up to about 50 percent. Out of 5 stars Burton’s film only received a total of 3.
Whether a diehard Disney fan or into mystical and ultimately mind-twisting creations, this is one film that cannot go unseen. Despite the mixed reviews, no one is ever too old for Alice in Wonderland.
