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Burton’s Wonderland not-so-wonderful after all

Tim Burton’s take on Alice in Wonderland revisits the magical world created by Lewis Carroll in his literary works Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Unfortunately, the journey isn’t so wonderful.

MAYBE IF I JUST LEAN A LITTLE BIT CLOSER ... Tim Burton’s highly anticipated version of Alice in Wonderland doesn’t quite meet expectations, with an unoriginal performance by Johnny Depp and disappointing plot.

Set 13 years after her first visit to Wonderland, (known as Underland to Burton), Alice Kingsley (Wasikowska) is at a Victorian-era party that she quickly realizes is her engagement party. Having no clue on how to answer the proposal, she runs off and falls down a rabbit hole back to the bizarre, twisted world she dreamt of back when she was six years old.

Here she discovers Iracebeth, the Red Queen (Carter), has stolen the ruling crown from Mirana, the White Queen (Hathaway), and governs Underland with a vicious and macabre ruling. With the help of the Mad Hatter (Depp) and the rest of the colourful cast of Underland, it’s up to Alice to slay the Jabberwocky on the Frabjous Day and free the inhabitants from the Red Queen’s tyrannical grip.

And that’s pretty much how the story goes. There are no extra surprises and it lacks the wonderment and bizarreness that was so crucial in Carroll’s books or to Disney’s take on Alice. If anything, despite the efforts from Carter and Depp, the film screams nothing but ordinary — a shock considering Burton’s resumé.

The film definitely isn’t a reboot of the already famous story of Alice. Newcomers to the themes and elements of Carroll will be confused, so it is best to have read the books. Having said that, fans of the books will likely be confused and possibly angered by parts that are left out and the mixing of Carroll’s plots together in the film.

Wasikowska does a wonderful job of playing the rebellious, free-spirited Alice, but Depp’s performance as the Mad Hatter, although well executed, seems like it has been done before in his previous works —Willy Wonka especially comes to mind. Hathaway seems bored and her attempts to seem fairy-like and graceful do nothing — if anything, it adds to the dullness of the film

The highlight performance was Bonham Carter as the Red Queen. Her enlarged head — the source of many of the jokes in the film — along with her demeanour and shrieking of “Off with their head!” help carry the film past otherwise dull moments.

Having spent $200 million, Burton’s re-imagining of Underland is vast and dark, with many gothic themes and post-apocalyptic landscapes that are breath taking. Burton does a great job intertwining the live action and CGI effects, but falls victim in following other big budget fantasy films, with a stereotypical plot and third act CGI-heavy battle to determine the ruler of the kingdom.

Although a visual treat, the film falls short on providing substance to keep audiences engaged. The lack of major character development and the obvious yet often confusing plot advancement fail to provide the wonder in Wonderland.

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