Alice in Wonderland 2010: A Necessary Sojourn of Restoration and Transformation

Tim Burton and Linda Woolverton's Alice in Wonderland would get a pleasing nod from author, logician, mathematician, photographer and scholar of Christ Church at Oxford University, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, (pen name), Lewis Carroll. Alice played by Mia Wasikowska finds herself on the cusp of the Victorian Era steeped in tradition for marriageable young women and the hint of something more to come. Alice must make a choice and to do so she needs to gather her thoughts by returning to the underworld of her childhood via the rabbit hole.

Tim Burton directs this marvel of the cinema in 2D or 3D formats. Linda Woolverton's screenplay adaptation captures the essence of Lewis Carroll's Alice and presents a magical gentle hand in weaving the transformation of a girl into a woman. Alice has vague recollections of her previous adventure in wonderland. The vividness of her dream and reality is twisted about by virtue of time.

Alice's present adventure in the underworld is disturbing because she finds that in her absence the narcissistic Red Queen, played to the hilt by Helen Bonham Carter, and has enslaved the inhabitants of the underworld. She has exiled her sister the White Queen, played by Anne Hathaway, to a life of seclusion outside the kingdom. A climactic event is necessary to unleash the "muchness" of Alice to restore the kindness and equilibrium of the underworld.

Doubt is cast about as to whether Alice is the true heroine to save the underworld. The animated Dormouse, voice over by Barbara Windsor, is quite sure Alice isn't the same Alice of the previous adventure. She needles the White Rabbit, voice over by Martin Sheen and Tweedledum and Tweedledee voice over by Matt Lucas that they botched the find and brought the wrong Alice. At first, even the hookah smoking Blue Caterpillar, voice over by Alan Rickman refers to her as "Almost Alice."

On the other hand, Alice knows who she is in the outer world, but the task at hand requires her to muster up the words of her possibility thinking father and reconcile the darkness of harmful traditions. Thus the story of Alice begins. Hatter, played divinely by Johnny Depp, is weary due to his lone battle with the evil Red Queen. His wit, cleverness and wackiness has saved his head during the interim of Alice's last visit

Woolverton's words and Depp's depiction of the Mad Hatter is exceptionally noteworthy. Their Hatter is soulful. The Hatter in previous versions did not possess a sense of love toward Alice. Depp loves Alice and he is there to remind her that she is the "Absolute Alice". Their lives entwined in the underworld to fight evil and show a human connection that nurtures both, but must be left in Wonderland where it can be revisited at any time.

The cinematography, sound, animation and color technology is superb. I recommend Alice in Wonderland 2010 to anyone who appreciates Lewis Carroll, Charles Dickens and L. Frank Baum. Most of all, I recommend the film to anyone who believes, "Life what is it. but a dream" and today Burton and Company did a fine job in creating a funny and enjoyable two-hours at the movies.

I leave you with the poem by Lewis Carroll located on the last page of Alice's Adventure in Wonderland: The first letter of each of the lines spell out Carroll's inspiration for the book, Alice Pleasance Liddell.

A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky

A BOAT beneath a sunny sky,

Lingering onward dreamily

In an evening of July-

Children three that nestle near,

Eager eye and willing ear,

Pleased a simple tale to hear-

Long has paled that sunny sky

Echoes fade and memories die

Autumn frost have slain July

Still she haunts me, phantomwise,

Alice moving under skies

Never seen by waking eyes

Children yet, the tale to hear,

Eager eye and willing ear

Lovingly shall nestle near

In a Wonderland they lie.

Dreaming as the days go by

Dreaming as the Summer dies

Ever drifting down the stream,

Lingering in the golden dream

Life, what is it but a dream?*

Carroll's words have inspired song writers, poets and innovations in the arts and science.