Alice in Wonderland

After the monster success of Avatar, the next big film in the move to popularize 3D has come in the new Disney film, directed by Tim Burton, Alice in Wonderland. This film is not really based directly on the Alice in Wonderland book, written by Lewis Carroll. Burton instead makes the film kind of a loose sequel, while being an introductory film to Wonderland.

Alice is now 20. She keeps having dreams of a strange world with odd looking creatures, and these visions distract her from her real life, which she finds moving to fast for her own good. Amidst being asked for her hand in marriage, Alice decides to take a walk, and follows a white rabbit. She finds herself in a strange, yet somehow familiar place. The creatures of Wonderland need Alice’s help in taking down the Red Queen from her throne of Wonderland, but before she can, she must rediscover who she really is and figure out if this is some kind of weird dream, or is this place real and why it is so familiar.

Unlike Avatar, Alice in Wonderland was not filmed with 3D cameras, but was converted for 3D. Most of the 3D in this film is things flying at your face, and with Burton’s penchant for atmosphere, this does make for a beautiful looking film. All the set pieces in Wonderland are very creative in design, from the Hatter’s gloomy looking tea party table to the White Queen’s beautiful castle. The atmosphere is lovely on the eyes. I also loved the designs of the Wonderland creatures. The Cheshire Cat looks fantastic, as does the Jabberwhocky, as does the Caterpillar, and so on. Great looking film

As far as acting goes, I want to start by saying the supporting cast are great in their essentially voice acting roles, for the most part. I especially loved Stephen Frey as the Cheshire Cat. Johnny Depp is good as the Mad Hatter, but we’ve seen him play this role before. This is nothing new for the audience. Helena Bonham Carter was entertaining as the bitter and insecure Red Queen. Her childish temper made for some humorous scenes. Anne Hathaway was good as the White Queen, but the role is not spectacular. But, I want to focus on the central character of the film, Alice. Actress Mia Wasikowska doesn’t light up the screen as Alice. The character comes off as bland, and she has limited emotional range. In a world of the fantastic and odd, Alice is boring. She is a bland protagonist, and it is hard to care about her. The writing may have something to do with that, but the performance is noticeably weak.

The story for the film is also not spectacular. The exposition of the film is very brief, and the film rushes Alice into Wonderland. You can’t care about Alice enough before she goes on her journey. Same goes for the resolution. When Alice is in Wonderland, the film is great. The story is nothing new, a character is the chosen one to save a people under tyranny. We’ve seen it many times over. But, the plot is not where Burton attempted to make the film shine. Definitely more thought was put into the Wonderland designs than the script itself. It does make the film pretty, but the lack of plot makes the film not achieve anything more than that.

I am a huge fan of Tim Burton. He is one of my favorite directors. But, Alice in Wonderland is far from his best effort. The film is very much style over substance and is entertaining, yet forgettable. It is worth a theatrical viewing in 3D just for the visuals. It is a good movie, just not a great one.

I give Alice in Wonderland – 3/5

Shutter Island

After being delayed from October 2nd of last year, Martin Scorsese's latest film, Shutter Island which is based on the book by Dennis Lehane, has finally been released. Many times, pushing a movie back from its original release date is a bad sign, but in the case of Shutter Island, that doesn't turn out to be the case. 

Teddy Daniels is a Federal Marshall whom has been sent, along with a new partner from Seattle Chuck, to investigate a mysterious disappearance of a patient named Rachel Solando from the mental rehabilitation clinic on Shutter Island. Run by Dr. Cawley, Shutter Island focuses on the rehabilitation on the worst and most violent of patients that other hospitals cannont manage. While investigating the disappearance, Teddy discovers that all is not as it seems on Shutter Island.

I never read the book, and I am glad I never did. I went into this film blind to the story, and it enhanced the experience for me. I am also not going to go too in depth on the story. Shutter Island should be enjoyed like all great Hitchcock films should be: just sit down and let the story unfold before your eyes. If you do that, you won't be disappointed. The story is very cleverly written and works on every level.

Martin Scorsese is easily one of Hollywood's best directors, and Shutter Island shows this. Scorsese meshes Hitcockian suspense with Kubrick's cerebrally interesting visuals. In doing so, Scorsese manages to get into your head early and he never lets go until the credits roll. The stark transitions, ominous score, and the way scenes are shot make this film really uncomfortable to watch, and that is its goal. While a film like Avatar will get a lot of notice for its visual appeal on the eyes, I think Shutter Island deserves a lot of praise for its appeal on your mind. 

I know some people are going to hate on Scorsese for picking DiCaprio for his film again. However, why is this a problem? Scorsese knows what he wants, and he knows Leo can deliver it to him much like Burton knows Johnny Depp will give him what he wants. If the collaboration isn't broke, don't fix it! Under Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio has gone from the pretty boy in Titanic to one of the best actors in the industry. Shutter Island depends heavily on Leo's performance, and Leonardo DiCaprio goes above and beyond what the film required. He is phenomenal in the role of Teddy Daniels, and it is not an easy role. DiCaprio has to showcase a wide variety of things in this film. 

While DiCaprio should get his due credit, let's not forget the supporting cast! Mark Ruffalo is awesome as Chuck and has great chemistry with DiCaprio. Ben Kingsley and Max Von Sydow both make you uneasy everytime they are on screen. Michelle Williams is haunting in her role. Fans of Watchmen will also love the appearance by Jackie Earl Haley. Scorsese gets what he needs out of everyone, and they work very well off each other. Everyone was making the same film.

Shutter Island may not be one of Scorsese's elite films, but that is not a knock on the film considering he has made Goodfellas, Gangs of New York, Taxi Driver, The Departed, and my personal favorite film of his, The Last Temptation of Christ. I could keep going, but the point is despsite not being his best film, Shutter Island manages to be the year's best film so far, and had it made its original release date on October 2nd, it would have been possibly the best film last year! Mid-level Scorsese films are still better than 90% of a director's best film. Just go in blind, and enjoy the ride!

I give Shutter Island 5/5!