According to Wikipedia, they’ve got an interesting take on the original plots from the novels Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass –
An extension on Lewis Carroll’s original story, Alice, now 19,[2] attends a party at a Victorian estate only to find she is about to be proposed to by a rich suitor in front of hundreds of snooty society types. She runs off, following a white rabbit into a hole and ending up in Wonderland, a place she visited many years before, yet she doesn’t remember. The White Rabbit claims to have come back for Alice because she is the only one who can slay the Jabberwock, the beast who guards the Red Queen’s empire.[3] Alice remains completely unaware of why she is in Wonderland, and is confused about the fact that she had once visited Wonderland years before.[3] She then embarks on an adventure of self discovery to save Wonderland from the Red Queen’s reign of terror with the help of her Wonderland friends.
I like this idea – it allows them to revisit the iconic characters and scenes as Alice struggles to remember her previous visits, and it allows for some kickarse new developments as well. I love the CGI work on Helena Bonham Carter’s Red Queen.
Finally, because it’s me, here’s a minor nitpick on the proposal in the gazebo scene – since Alice is wearing a calf-length dress, that indicates that she has not officially Come Out as a debutante (ie is not yet officially eligible for marriage), and that means it would be an enormous social gaffe for a Victorian gentleman to propose to her, hardly something that would be done at a garden party in front of a large approving crowd. I understand and approve of the sensible hemline length for the scenes in Wonderland, but in that case why have the proposal backstory at all?
Nevermind, it’s a very minor nitpick. She’s running away from the social conventions, I get it. And I’m looking forward to seeing the rest of it.
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That’s a marvellous nitpick. They seem to have her in the dress Tenniel devised in his illustrations for Alice. I wonder what they will make of the White Knight. I am a bit of a fan of Ralph Steadman’s illustrations in which he dispensed with any pretense and made the Knight a portrait of Dodgson.
I just adore you for knowing about out/not out Victorian hem lengths and proposal ettiquette.
Hmm. The plot summary reminds me of the American McGee game.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_McGee%27s_Alice
Hadn’t realized QHearts and the Red Queen were such evil types as these productions make them out to be.
[Moderator note: this commentor
is morphing their identity here.]
RE: hemlines – i presume floor-length was the post-Coming Out hemline?
Yes. Only snips of girls still in the schoolroom wore skirts that revealed their ankles (in the propertied classes, at least).
[Moderator note: this commentor
is morphing their identity here.]
As an aside: How often have they gone for younger people to play Alice?
most actresses in Alice films seem to be in their teens or twenties even though the Alice of the books is pre-pubescent
At least Alice being older in this version makes sense with the idea that she’s returning to Wonderland after forgetting her earlier adventures there.
OMG!!! This movie cannot come soon enough!!!
I’ve been trying to scout out whether or not I’ll be able to see this in 3D, because it seems like it would be worth it. I’ve concluded that I should be able to see the movie, even if I can’t see the 3D, so I’ll give it a shot.
I feel quite a deal smarter after reading your (p)review, nice nitpick.
Given Tim Burton’s movies have a dreamlike quality to them, I could explain Alice’s hem length as follows: what we’re seeing is not exactly what she’s wearing, but a representation of how she feels emotionally – she’s clearly not ready to be A Grown Up. The suitor’s appearance and size of the audience could also reflect Alice’s feelings more than actual events. (That’s entirely based on the trailer – the movie could blow my notion to smithereens.)
Ooh, I like that interpretation.
The more I think about it, the more it’s a great explanation – it could cover all kinds of nitpicks provided nothing actually post-Victorian appears.
Now, how do I get my icon to appear with my comments?
.-= Aqua of the Questioners´s last blog ..Declaration of Intent: Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland =-.
Just register a GRavatar (Globally Recognised avatar) image of your choice at gravatar.com – it will attach to the email address you use for comments, and it will work on a whole heap of sites (but it won’t over-ride your user icons over at Dreamwidth/LJ).
Aha – I see you have a gravatar now, Aqua of the Questioners – very nice!