Before Tim Burton and Johnny Depp came along and made their version of Alice, Disney first tackled the Alice story in 1951 as the 13th animated feature released. While it was a box office and critical disappointment when Alice was initially released, but in the 60's and 70's gained new popularity. What about this movie made it so unlikable in the 50's yet only a couple of decades later made it so likable? Let's get to the bottom of this in this review.
Background
Walt Disney has had a long history with Alice. His first animated features were his Alice Comedies series of silent shorts. While not directly relating to the works of Lewis Carroll, it was the important first step to beginning of the Disney Animated Legacy. Walt kept playing around with doing a feature-length Alice, eventually releasing it in 1951. After going through several different artistic styles, the Art Direction of Mary Blair brought a modern aspect.
When released, many of the criticisms came from fans of Carroll's, saying how it did not relate to the books. After the disappointment of it's release, it was later shown heavily edited for the second episode of the Disneyland television show. It didn't gain until popularity until the release of the animated feature Yellow Submarine. It's style and story fit in much better with the more psychedelic times, and as been considered a Disney classic ever since.
The Film Itself...
Now what does all this mean for the movie itself? Is Alice a literary disaster, or is it a delightful trip? The plot of Alice, follows our hapless heroine, Alice, as she wishes for a world of nonsense to escape the boredom of reality. But when she ends up chasing a white rabbit, she ends up in a nightmarish wonderland with a cast full of oddballs. The story is where Alice comes up short in most aspects, it is mainly a series of vignettes with Alice running around serving as the thread tying them together. While the various characters Alice runs across are very delightful, Alice does not pop as much. Walt said that one of the main weaknesses of this film was how Alice is a very unsympathetic character, I have to disagree on this point however. The problem is Alice is not very well-developed, especially in the beginning. Alice may only seem unsympathetic because we do not get know her as well. I only started to feel for her in the last third of the movie, so I think Alice should have been more developed earlier on.
The individual scenes themselves are very well-done. They are all delightfully kooky, and they never over-stay their welcome. They are perfectly timed, and can be hilarious at times. The Mad Tea Party being a highlight in this aspect. The songs are also very strong there are no truly weak songs in this movie.
The animation though, is where the true praise goes. It is a marvelous beauty to look at. It is so colorful and full. It looks like a true fantasy-land, as opposed to a dark nightmare. The animation especially pops on Blu-ray, the colors really stand out more and show it's true beauty. It boasts some of the most impressive animation in this time period.
Final Word
Now, I'll admit here, that I've never read the original Lewis Carroll classics, so I can't judge on how close it is to the books. But movies are always a different kind of creature anyways... But the main plot and the main character of Alice are the strongest weaknesses of the movie. However with the strong soundtrack, plot elements and especially the animation: this movie proves itself to be a Disney classic. I would highly recommend this movie to anyone, especially to Disney animation enthusiasts and animation buffs. Those people in the 50's who criticized this movie didn't know what they were talking about!
Alice in Wonderland- BUY
I know it's been a while since I put a review up, but school has basically stolen all my time. Hopefully next time I can review something in a more reasonable time-frame... XO
