Alice in Wonderland

So, how is a raven like a writing desk?  It really doesn’t matter, because by the time this movie is over, you won’t care.  Something I have discovered over the years about Tim Burton and his interesting partnership with Johnny Depp is that you either love the movie or you hate it.  There doesn’t seem to be much in between.  And so in honor of that, I’m going to break it down and try to help you decide if you want to shell out the money to sit through this candy-colored extravaganza.

Alice in Wonderland is full of characters.  As a matter of fact, though it has a solid plot, that’s not the best part of the movie.  The characters are the best part of the movie.  All the classic players return, including Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter.  And he is indeed mad, but so sweetly sincere (and with a random Scottish accent) that he ends up being a favorite.  Alice accidentally returns to Wonderland as an adult and is tasked with defeated the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter) and ending her reign of terror and repression.  Alice is reluctant, but with the help of Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, the  Dormouse, the March Hare, the White Rabbit, the White Queen, and the Mad Hatter, she eventually signs up for action.

I don’t think it’s necessarily worth seeing in 3-D (I didn’t), but I do think it’s worth watching.  It’s funny and visually stunning to look at; this movie is set up for repeat viewings because there is so much going on on-screen at any given moment.  It’s obvious how much Burton cared about this movie just through the obvious attention to detail.  I say that the Mad Hatter will be the favorite of most, but my personal favorite character is the March Hare.  On the fringe of every scene, he was perfect in his twitchy, crazy glory.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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