Blockbuster-ified Fairy Tale

Rating: 6/10 (5 March 2010)

I adore fairy tales. Fantastical stories that take you to other worlds and have no rhyme or reason, they simply are and exist, without any complex explanation. Of course, now there are blockbuster-ified fairy tales. If that's what you want, then director Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is for you.
This is not your ordinary Alice in Wonderland, it's actually a vague sequel to the original story, but rather than being an adaptation of the legitimate sequel penned by Lewis Carroll (Through the Looking Glass), it is an odd jumble of a story that seems as if it was dreamed up in a board room. Alice has been to Wonderland before, but cannot remember it. When she is 19 and faced with the horrible decision as to whether or not to marry her horrible suitor, Alice falls down the rabbit hole once more, rediscovers Wonderland, and learns that she is the only one who can usurp the Red Queen by slaying her all powerful dragon in a Lord of the Rings-esquire climax.
It isn't fair to say Alice in Wonderland is a bad film, just cliché where it could have been so much more. One would think the marriage of bizarre director Tim Burton with the Lewis Carroll classic would be a perfect pairing, but the film was bogged down into the realm of cliché action/adventure. The film kind of plays out like a Lord of the Rings light. We must get this ancient sword, take it to the White Queen, and then Alice must challenge the Red Queen's dragon and slay it to save Wonderland. Am I the only one who finds something wrong with this? Alice in Wonderland is a fantasy, and not an action/adventure epic, but more of a fantasy that is more about the characters and not the epic backdrop. Speaking of fantasy, time was never taken to drink in the fantastical, to truly experience Wonderland, we would just hop on over to the next piece of the Hollywood puzzle. Still, there is a good amount to enjoy in the film.
Unlike most Tim Burton films, this isn't a macabre film that is simply macabre for no other reason than to be macabre. It is actually a kid-friendly film, and for Burton, is not weird at all, it is just true to the spirit of Lewis Carroll's story. The film is strikingly the most commercial friendly Burton film since the original Batman in 1989, and even though I was disappointed that the film was more of a big blockbuster than a straight up fantasy (like the books), the action/adventure elements were played well. While it was all a touch cliché, the dueling the dragon and the big epic battle at the end, was at least entertaining, even if it didn't feel like Alice in Wonderland. Not to mention, the characters are exceedingly charming. Johnny Depp is fascinating as the Mad Hatter, as well, Mia Wasikowska, who plays Alice, shines and is definitely a star in the making.
I think my greatest disappointment came with this film in seeing that the cast was all pitch perfect and the design of Wonderland was fantastic, not to mention a great many moments within the film showed promise of being one of those unforgettable movie moments, but none of that ever came to fruition and was just bogged down by the mechanics of the studio system. Really, the film is entertaining enough to watch, but repeat viewings really aren't desired, and by this film's favoring of cliché Hollywood blockbuster story over originality and straight up fantasy, it keeps the film from being something more memorable down the road.
I give Alice in Wonderland a 6 out of 10!