ALICE IN WONDERLAND (USA 2010) ****
Directed by Tim Burton

Those familiar with the Lewis Carroll books will be surprised to note when viewing Tim Burton’s ALICE IN WONDERLAND, that quite the few liberties have been taken with the classic tale.  For one Alice (Mia Wasikowska) is now a teenager.  But the tactic works for two reasons – the film is more adult and the fantasy magic is left intact especially with familiar characters like the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), the Cheshire Cat (Alan Rickman) and the White Rabbit (Michael Sheen).

Alice as a little girl has chased the rabbit with the waistcoat and followed him down the rabbit hole to the whole new world of the white and red queens.  All is a dream or rather dreams to her as Alice is re-visited by the same nightly.  She cannot recall the recurring dream causing her to undergo the identical adventure time and time again until….., as the story in the film goes.

All works well in this more adult tale combining 3-D, animation and real characters.

The British cast is more than impressive with the likes of Matt Lucas (the larger half of LITTLE BRITAIN) voicing twins Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the immortal Barbara Windsor (of the CARRY ON series) doing the Dormouse and others like Timothy Spall, Frances de la Tour, Michael Gough and Christopher Lee.  Depp and especially Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen shine in their roles.  20-year-old Australian Mia Wasikowska, looking like a young Cate Blanchett makes a wonderful Alice.

The 3-D effects are used to good advantage especially in the sequence when Alice falls down the rabbit hole.  Lots of stuff are thrown at the audience so one might duck once or twice when caught unawares.  James Cameron’s 3-D AVATAR dispensed with the gimmick, but it is good that Burton did not fall into Cameron’s realm of filmmaking.

Alice’s wonderland by inevitable comparison with AVATAR’s world is different.  While the latter strives on credibility, Burton’s world is one of imagination gone wild.  The wonderland re-visited by Alice is pure magic, aided by the music of faithful collaborator Danny Elfman, like the little door that opens out to another world and the amazing new characters that pop out from all over.  The script cleverly plays with the brain as well, like the riddle “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” popped up at the start and end of the movie.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND, like AVATAR makes the 3-D experience feel normal.  Running at just under two hours, one does not notice the glasses even at the end.  ALICE IN WONDERLAND is quite the adventure especially to be experienced in Tim Burton’s world of 3D.