Alice In Wonderland

Tim Burton has quite the career going for him in Hollywood, taking beloved childhood classics and then putting his uniquely odd signature touch on them. He's also got quite the working relationship going with Johnny Depp who always seems more then willing to step up to the plate for. Here Depp tackles the role of The Mad Hatter. A part that I don't remember being that big in the original story but of course the audience wants as much Depp as possible. The usual praise is unnecessary, this is someone who is incapable of giving an uninteresting performance at this stage in his career. He's given ample time for laughs as is Helena Bonham Carter, a.k.a Tim Burton's wife. She plays the wonderfully evil Red Queen, but the story really belongs to Alice played by newcomer Mia Wachowski. She posses the kind of youthful exuberance and quirky intelligence very few beautiful girls her age have. She radiates on screen. The success of the film ultimately comes down to her performance and she carries it perfectly.
Filled with excessive amounts of CGI, Alice doesn't feel as warm as the original. You get the feeling that maybe Burton is trying a bit too hard to cater to the audience's tastes instead of his own. Even so, Alice In Wonderland is an adequate family film that will surely satisfy those looking for light hearted entertainment.

C

2010