'I don't like it up here Alice, it's too crowded.'

Rating: 5/10 (3 April 2020)

This beautiful quote in a way is the definitive moment of the film that encapsulates its triumphs aswell as it's flaws. I have a really personal and sensitive connection to the idea of this film rather than the film itself I think. As soon as Sweeney Todd wrapped up production, this was announced and for those 3 years in between I was obsessed with how great Todd was and how amazing this melding Of artistic genius in Alice was going to be. The hype in my own brain killed it in a way and I remember being pretty damn distraught after watching it from the disappointment. Its a perfectly fine film but considering the talent behind it, it falls short. I think ultimately it comes down to a muddled script; it feels too forced particularly in the opening half an hour, to cram as much Carroll references as possible and to be weird for the sake of it instead of capturing the magic of the source material. Then it tries to make sense with a battle-themed plot that undermines the characters richness on their own. I think if it just stayed with the original plot (or lack thereof!) then it could have been a much shinier piece. It almost sickens me to say all this due to how important it was to me beforehand so I'm going to balance it a bit; it's not without it's entertaining moments! Alice (Mia Wasikowska) falling down the rabbit hole gave me chills, The Tea Party where we meet the Hare (Paul Whitehouse) and the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp) is beautifully done and could've stayed in that place with those characters for much longer. The visual effects are impressive and provide shots of real beauty. When there's a lot of action on screen however it can look too artificial and, as the Hatter would say, loses its 'muchness' along the way