Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 American dark fantasy adventure film directed by Tim Burton from a screenplay written by Linda Woolverton. The film stars Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Crispin Glover, Matt Lucas and Mia Wasikowska, and features the voices of Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen, and Timothy Spall. Loosely inspired by Lewis Carroll's fantasy novels, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, the film tells the story of a nineteen-year-old Alice Kingsleigh, who is told that she can restore the White Queen to her throne, with the help of the Mad Hatter. She is the only one who can slay the Jabberwock, a dragon-like creature that is controlled by the Red Queen and terrorizes Underland's inhabitants.
Alice in Wonderland | |
---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Tim Burton |
Produced by |
|
Screenplay by | Linda Woolverton |
Based on | Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll |
Starring |
|
Music by | Danny Elfman |
Cinematography | Dariusz Wolski |
Edited by | Chris Lebenzon |
Production company |
|
Distributed by | Walt Disney Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 108 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $150–$200 million |
Box office | $1.025 billion |
The film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and shot in the United Kingdom and the United States. The film premiered in London at the Odeon Leicester Square on February 25, 2010, and was released in Australia on March 4, 2010, and the following day in the United Kingdom and the United States through the Disney Digital 3D, RealD 3D, and IMAX 3D formats as well as in conventional theaters. It is also the second-highest-grossing film of 2010.
Alice in Wonderland received mixed reviews upon release; although praised for its visual style and special effects, the film was criticized for its lack of narrative coherence and overuse of computer-generated imagery (CGI). The film received three nominations at the 68th Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. At the 83rd Academy Awards, Alice in Wonderland won Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design, and was also nominated for Best Visual Effects. The film generated over $1 billion in ticket sales and became the fifth-highest-grossing film of all time during its theatrical run.
The film started a trend of live-action fairy tale and fantasy films being green-lit, particularly from Walt Disney Studios.
A sequel, titled Alice Through the Looking Glass, was released on May 27, 2016.
Screenplay
Troubled by a strange recurring dream and mourning the loss of her father, 19-year-old Alice Kingsleigh attends a garden party at Lord Ascot's estate. There, she is confronted by an unwanted marriage proposal to Lord Ascot's son, Hamish, and the stifling expectations of the society in which she lives. Unsure of how to proceed, she pursues a rabbit wearing a blue waistcoat and accidentally falls into a large rabbit hole under a tree. She emerges in a forest where she is greeted by the White Rabbit, the Dormouse, the Dodo, the Talking Flowers, and Tweedledum and Tweedledee. They argue over whether Alice is "the right Alice" who must slay the Red Queen's Jabberwocky and restore the White Queen to power, as foretold by Absolem the Caterpillar and his prophetic scroll. The group is then ambushed by the Bandersnatch and a group of playing-card soldiers led by the Knave of Hearts. Alice, Tweedledum and Tweedledee escape into the woods. The Knave steals the Caterpillar's scroll. The Dormouse leaves the others behind with one of the Bandersnatch's eyes in her possession. Tweedledum and Tweedledee are then captured by the Red Queen's Jubjub bird.
The Knave informs the Red Queen that Alice threatens her reign, and the soldiers and Bayard the Bloodhound are ordered to find Alice immediately. Meanwhile, the Cheshire Cat guides Alice to the March Hare and the Mad Hatter. The Hatter helps Alice avoid capture by allowing himself to be seized instead. Later, Alice is found by the Bloodhound, but Alice insists upon helping the Hatter. At the Red Queen's citadel and palace, the Red Queen is unaware of Alice's true identity and therefore welcomes her as a guest. Alice learns that the vorpal sword, the only weapon capable of killing the Jabberwocky, is locked inside the den of the Bandersnatch. The Knave attempts to seduce Alice, but she rebuffs him, causing a jealous Red Queen to order that Alice be beheaded. Alice obtains the sword and befriends the Bandersnatch by returning its eye. She then escapes on the back of the grateful Bandersnatch and delivers the sword to the White Queen. The Cheshire Cat saves the Hatter from the executioner, and the Hatter calls for rebellion against the Red Queen. The rebellion is quickly put down by the Jubjub bird, but the resistance flees to the White Queen's castle, and both armies prepare for battle. Absolem advises Alice to fight the Jabberwocky just before completing his transformation into a pupa.
On the appointed day, the White Queen and the Red Queen gather their armies on a chessboard-like battlefield and send Alice and the Jabberwocky to decide the battle in single combat. Encouraged by the advice of her late father, Alice fights the Jabberwocky among the ruins surrounding the battlefield and finally jumps from the remains of a spiral staircase onto the Jabberwocky's neck and beheads it. During this fight, a catapult stone kills the Jubjub bird. As punishment for their crimes, the White Queen banishes the Red Queen and the Knave into exile together. The Knave attempts to kill the Red Queen, yet the Hatter protects the Red Queen from his attack. After the Hatter performs a celebration dance called Futterwacken, the White Queen gives Alice a vial of the Jabberwocky's purple blood whose power will bring her whatever she wishes. She decides to rejoin the everyday world after saying farewell to her friends. Back in England, Alice impresses Lord Ascot with her idea of establishing oceanic trade routes to Hong Kong, inspiring him to take her as his apprentice. As the story closes, Alice prepares to set off on a trading ship. A light-blue butterfly with dark vein markings lands on her shoulder, and Alice recognizes him as Absolem.