Alice in Wonderland (1999)

This is an impressive-looking version of Lewis Carroll's story originally produced for NBC-TV. Dreading a singing recital at her parents' lavish home, Alice falls into a strange world in pursuit of a large White Rabbit. The talented child actor Tina Majorino (Corrina, Corrina) plays Alice with all the good graces but mostly wanders through the story unquestioningly. Carroll's tale of whimsical, illogical adventures is a field day for designers Roger Hall and Alan Tomkins, costumer Charles Knode, Jim Henson's Creature Shop, and director Nick Willing (Photographing Fairies. Influenced by Time Bandits and Labyrinth (the latter also designed by the Henson company), the film has a splendid array of effects, many dealing with multiple perspectives as Alice constantly changes sizes. The highlight is Whoopi Goldberg as the Cheshire Cat, a seamless mix of cat and comic. Martin Short as the Hatter and Mirandra Richardson as the Queen of Hearts seem to be having the times of their lives. This is not the definitive version of Carroll's tale, and, like the popular Disney animated version, combines some elements of Carroll's sequel, Through the Looking Glass. It is perhaps better viewing for the fan that has seen another version of the tale or read the book. --Doug Thomas Amazon.com

my favorite Alice

A in W has never been my favorite story. But we watched this on TV and I was captivated by it in a way I never have been before. It has a few longueurs, but these performers and their take on the White Knight, the Cheshire Cat, the Red Queen, and the Mad Hatter are the ones I'll remember. There is a poignancy to this version's Alice - an emerging personality struggling toward greater self-confidence- and a sweetness to the advice some of the characters give. Gene Wilder's Mock Turtle and his duet with the Griffin are especially wonderful.
Probably not for purists, but I'd give it a try. January 2, 2009

A modernized version

This movie is a modernized version of an old classic. It has great special effects,and has a cast of very imaginitive actors,(robin williams would have been great in this movie). The storyline remains true to the original,and all in all it is just an extremely fun movie to watch. If you are looking for an entertaining movie that you can watch with your children,then this is it. December 24, 2008

Great movie for children

This moving is well portrayed by all characters. It is ideal for children of all ages. Alice in wonderland is a strange adventure and all actors gave a great performance and kept the movie flowing at a fast rate. August 31, 2008

Very Satisfied with Purchase

COmpletely satisfied with purchase of the Movie "ALice In WOnderland" on VHS.The transaction was completed smoothly and received my order quickly and efficiently.Very satisifed! June 8, 2008

The film makers did not understand Lewis Carroll or his fans

From a special effects standpoint, this is the best rendition I've seen. From every other standpoint, it's the worst. I barely made it through the whole movie. Far too much of Lewis Carroll's dialog was changed to "Americanize" it, and the beautiful, nonsensical dialog was what made the book.

It was a mixture of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. There was plenty of wonderful content in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to make a whole movie, so I'm not sure why they chose to mix in elements from the other book. They added scenes that weren't from the book, and changed some of the best dialog on the scenes they included.

I've been a Lewis Carroll fan for 35 years, and I have every video version of this movie, and all his books, including his non-fiction, so I'm probably a little more aware of all the mistakes in this movie than some would be. I will say that it's a nice movie for kids or anyone else who has never read and loved the books like I do. But, to me, it was very disappointing. April 24, 2008

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