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Tell Others About This Page By Using This Button "ALICE IN WONDERLAND" (2010) (Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons None Moderate Extreme Heavy Heavy Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Heavy None Extreme None Minor Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Mild Mild Moderate Moderate Heavy QUICK TAKE: Fantasy/Adventure: A 19th century teen returns to a fantastical world from her youth where she must contend with various odd characters and situations as well as being the chosen one to defeat an evil queen and her fierce dragon. PLOT: It's London in the 19th century and Alice Kingsleigh (MIA WASIKOWSKA) is a nineteen-year-old who's been jockeyed into a pending arranged marriage with young but square nobleman, Hamish Ascot (LEO BILL). An imaginative and independent young woman, Alice is hesitant to follow in her older sister's footsteps, especially since Hamish doesn't appreciate her view of the world or creative mindset. Thus, when she spots the White Rabbit (voice of MICHAEL SHEEN), a hare in a waistcoat and carrying a pocket watch, she uses that as an excuse to rush off, not realizing she'll end up falling down a long rabbit hole and into Underland, a recurring place in the one and only dream she's ever experienced since she was a little girl. There, she finds substances that make her both larger and smaller as well as a fantastical array of characters, many of them speaking animals. Among them is the White Rabbit, twins Tweedledee (MATT LUCAS) and Tweedledum (MATT LUCAS), feisty Dormouse Mallymkun (voice of BARBARA WINDSOR), the bodiless and often vanishing Cheshire Cat (voice of STEPHEN FRY), and a hookah smoking caterpillar by the name of Absolem (voice of ALAN RICKMAN). They're all in debate about whether she's the real Alice or not, and imply that she's been there before, although she believes that and this experience are nothing more than dreams. Yet, she discovers that her future fate is to defeat a fierce dragon known as Jabberwocky (voice of CHRISTOPHER LEE) that's under the control of the Red Queen (HELENA BONHAM CARTER). By doing so, she'll thus enable that monarch's younger sister, the White Queen (ANNE HATHAWAY), to return to power and thus makes things right in Underland. Unfortunately, the Red Queen knows of Alice's return, and thus has ordered her eye-patched lieutenant, Stayne, the Knave of Hearts (CRISPIN GLOVER) to find the interloper, and he uses bloodhound Bayard (voice of TIMOTHY SPALL) to try to pick up her scent. Alice finds an unlikely and unusual ally in the form of the Mad Hatter (JOHNNY DEPP) who once made hats for the White Queen, but is now quite crazed apparently from the mercury used in such previous production. He spends much of his time in a perpetual tea party with Dormouse, the equally mad March Hare (voice of PAUL WHITEHOUSE) and occasionally Cheshire Cat, but wants nothing more than the removal of the Red Queen. Considering that's a potentially dangerous stance since the Queen's command for anyone who crosses her path is "Off with their head!" he, Alice and their accomplices must then proceed with all due caution. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? It's a good bet many will, especially if they're fans of the original material or any previous adaptations of that. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For fantasy action/violence involving scary images and situations, and for a smoking caterpillar. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: MIA WASIKOWSKA plays a 19th century 19-year-old with a vivid imagination, no doubt fueled in large part due to her past exposure to Underland, which she now thinks was all just a dream. She has the same reaction when she ends up there again to avoid Hamish's arranged marriage proposal, but must then contend with being the chosen one for slaying the Jabberwocky and thus unseating the Red Queen. In doing so, she must put up with the strange characters and abilities that come along with being present in this strange land. JOHNNY DEPP plays the White Queen's former hat creator who's now unsettling following the Red Queen's ascension to rule. Mad from apparent mercury poisoning from his line of work, he's an odd and eccentric sort, but he becomes Alice's main accomplice in overthrowing the Red Queen. HELENA BONHAM CARTER plays that short-tempered but big-headed despot who wants her minions to find Alice, all while always ordering the beheading of anyone who disappoints or opposes her. ANNE HATHAWAY plays her sister, the good and now exiled queen who needs a warrior to do her bidding in regaining the crown. CRISPIN GLOVER plays the Red Queen's main lieutenant who's been ordered to find and capture Alice no matter what it takes. MATT LUCAS plays both of the dimwitted and comic relief twins who end up helping Alice in their own unique way. CHESHIRE CAT is the Mad Hatter's feline associate, a floating cat's head who can vanish at will. WHITE RABBIT is the Red Queen's minion who's secretly working for the White Queen in hopes of finding and returning Alice to Underland. BAYARD is the bloodhound who's working for Stayne in trying to track down Alice only because the dog's wife and pups are being held captive by him. MALLYMKUN is the feisty, small sword wielding field mouse who spends time with the Mad Hatter and March Hare, and helps defend Alice. ABSOLEM is the purple, hookah smoking caterpillar and sage of sorts of Underland who questions whether the outsider is the real Alice. JABBERWOCKY is the menacing and destructive dragon under the Red Queen's control and who does battle with Alice at the end of the film. MARCH HARE is the Mad Hatter's equally deranged rabbit friend who spends tea time with him and Mallymkun and has a penchant for throwing teacups and such at others. LEO BILL plays Alice's arranged and square-peg fiancé who doesn't love or support her or her mindset, but wants to marry her since that's what's expected of him. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: Here's a brief summary of the content found in this fantasy/adventure film that's been rated PG. A lone religious and various colorful phrases are uttered, as is brief and non-explicit, but suggestive dialogue. Due to a sudden growth spurt, an older teen ends up nude behind a tall hedge, but she's only seen from the bare shoulders up. Violence includes a concluding large scale battle scene where a dragon is beheaded, while characters & monsters attack or strike others in various scenes. There are some bloody results from that, while severed human heads are seen floating in a moat (and are used as stepping stones in one scene) and gnarly-looking severed human fingers are used in a potion. Those scenes, the presence of various monsters, and various moments of potential peril could be quite unsettling, suspenseful and/or scary to younger viewers, while the action, stunts and other behavior might be enticing to imitate. Bad attitudes are present, as is tense family material, while a caterpillar is twice seen smoking using a hookah. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, there's a little bit of that from lightning in the second half of the film. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's some bouncy camera movement from time to time, including point of view running footage, and the 3D visual field (if seen that way) might exacerbate that effect. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE None. BLOOD/GORE Hamish blows his nose and then looks into the handkerchief, but we don't see what he does. The White Rabbit complains that animals up in Alice's world do their business (what sounded like "shookum") in public for all to see (but we don't see any of that). The Bandersnatch, a massive, dog-like monster, chases Alice who -- trying to convince herself that this is a dream -- stands her ground as the creature charges at her. It stops just short, with its mouth right there at her, but Mallymkun leaps into action, stabbing a small sword into the beast's eye and then plucking that out (no blood). We see three large and bloody scratch marks on Alice's arm from where the Bandersnatch attacked her. Miniature Alice must cross a moat into the Red Queen's castle by using various severed human heads floating in the water as stepping stones of sorts. During her brief crossing, she briefly ends up in the open mouth of one of those heads (there's no blood, and they somewhat resemble stone heads at this point, but there's no mistaking what they are). There's an aerial view looking down on the moat and its array of floating severed heads. We see Alice's large dried cuts on her arm. The Bandersnatch licks Alice's dried arm cuts with its large tongue. Needing a potion to reduce Alice back to her normal size, the White Queen concocts one, commenting on the ingredients including fat, urine and what sounded like butter fingers (gnarly and severed human fingers). She then tops that off with some of her own spit, stirs it up, and has Alice take a sip. During a battle with the Jabberwocky, Alice is flipped up into the air, but as she's coming down, she severs its head that then bounces down the stairs (no blood right away, but we see the severed stump area). Moments later, the White Queen collects some of the violet colored blood that's dripping down from its teeth as a potion that will send Alice, after she drinks it, wherever she wants. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Alice's future in-laws have a bad and condescending attitude toward her and her mother. Hamish doesn't like Alice's non-traditional ways and tells her she should keep them and her imaginative thoughts to herself. Alice discovers her brother-in-law kissing another woman behind a hedge. Absolem calls Alice a "stupid girl." The Red Queen is a despot who's quick to order "Off with their heads!" about anyone who wrongs or doesn't support her. She also uses/abuses various animals for her own comfort and/or enjoyment. One of the Red Queen's frog servants lies about not having eaten her tarts, but is then discovered in that lie (he says he was hungry, and we can see he and the others are terrified of her). Stayne lies to Bayard about letting his wife and pups go if he helps track down Alice. The Red Queen laughingly refers to Tweedledee and Tweedledum as the "fat boys." After the Red Queen has been mad that Stayne showed some interest in Alice (and he lies that the attention goes the other way), he bursts into a room where the latter is located and orders the guards to "arrest that girl for unlawful seduction." For those concerned about magical qualities, various substances (a liquid, cake and potion) have the ability to shrink or increase Alice's size. Those sensitive to mental illness issues might not like the portrayal of the Mad Hatter, the March Hare and/or phrases such as "Do you think I've gone around the bend?" "Bonkers," "Where's your head?" "You're all mad," "You're entirely bonkers," and "What is the hatter with me?" FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed here and under "Violence" and/or "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. The sight of the various menacing monsters (many with sharp teeth, etc.) could also be unsettling, suspenseful and/or scary for younger viewers, and the 3D visual field (if seen that way) might exacerbate that effect. Following the White Rabbit, Alice ends up falling a long way down a hole toward the Underland. Along the way, she bounces off something and finally hits the floor quite hard. She then realizes she's really on the ceiling and then falls hard from that onto the floor. The Bandersnatch, a massive, dog-like monster with an enormous head and rows of sharp teeth, chases after Alice (scratching her on the arm) and others through the woods. The Red Queen's somewhat anthropomorphic playing cards capture other characters, while Alice -- trying to convince herself that this is a dream -- stands her ground as the Bandersnatch charges at her. It stops just short, with its mouth right there at her, but Mallymkun leaps into action, stabbing a small sword into the beast's eye and then plucking that out (no blood). The Mad Hatter places a shrunken Alice in a teapot to keep her hidden from Stayne. We see a flashback to the Jabberwocky attacking a village and creating panic, firing glowing flames at various characters and structures, catching the latter on fire and instantly incinerating one of the former, leaving just his sword behind (which Stayne then pulls from the ground). The Mad Hatter hears Bayard coming and thus runs and hides, knowing the Red Queen's army of spear-carrying cards will be with the bloodhound. The Mad Hatter then tosses his top hat across a body of water (with miniature Alice holding on) before he's captured (she lands hard, but is okay). Miniature Alice must cross a moat into the Red Queen's castle by using various severed human heads floating in the water as stepping stones of sorts. During her brief crossing, she briefly ends up in the open mouth of one of those heads (there's no blood, and they somewhat resemble stone heads at this point, but there's no mistaking what they are). Alice must enter the Bandersnatch's cage/room to retrieve an important sword, with her gaining some favor by returning its previously removed eye, although the beast still acts half menacing. We see the Mad Hatter being brought out for a public execution via beheading, and then placed down on the chopping block. The executioner then raises his ax and swings down, but the Mad Hatter disappears, with his hat floating off (revealing itself to be Cheshire Cat wearing it). The Red Queen orders the unleashing of a huge bird to attack the masses, causing panic among them, and at least one person is grabbed up and then dropped. The Jabberwocky, a huge and scary dragon, emerges to do battle with Alice who's armed with just a sword. It comes at her and she slices off part of its snake-like tongue, prompting the dragon to knock her aside with its tail. It then tries to stomp down on her, blast her with glowing flames (she uses her shield to block those) and bite her. When it knocks her sword aside, the Mad Hatter stabs its tale to distract it and allow Alice to rearm herself. During this, the armies of the two queens battle (lots of hitting and struggling), with Tweedledee and Tweedledum getting into the act. The Red Queen's massive bird goes on the attack, but Mallymkun stabs it in the eye, followed by a huge rock/boulder landing on the bird's head. Also during this, the Mad Hatter and Stayne battle, with the Mad Hatter eventually hitting Stayne in the eye, knocking him to the ground, and raising his sword to finish him off. But that doesn't happen as Alice, who's ascending a stairwell of ruins up to the exposed top (high in the air) avoids the Jabberwocky trying to bite her and lands on its neck. It then flips her off, but as she's coming down, she severs its head that then bounces down the stairs (no blood right away, but we see the severed stump area). GUNS/WEAPONS Swords/Spears: Carried and/or used to threaten, battle or attempt to kill others (and behead a dragon). See "Violence" for details. We see a sketch-like drawing of Alice with a sword to battle the Jabberwocky. The Red Queen's somewhat anthropomorphic playing cards carry spears as do the White Queen's somewhat anthropomorphic chess pieces (the former seen in various scenes). We see a flashback to the Jabberwocky attacking a village and instantly incinerating a person, leaving just his sword behind (which Stayne then pulls from the ground). Stayne uses a sword to cut the Mad Hatter's wrist shackles (so that he can work for the Red Queen). IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Do you think I've gone around the bend?" "Bonkers," "Where's your head?" "Yes you ought, stupid girl," "Off with their heads!" "Off with his head!" "Down with the bloody big head," "You're all mad," "I need a pig here!" "Fat boys," "Idiot," "Moron," "It's a pimple of a head," "You're entirely bonkers," "What is the hatter with me?" "Arrest that girl for unlawful seduction" and "You dog." The action, stunts and such might be enticing for some kids to try to imitate. Kids might similarly be enticed to imitate the Mad Hatter's peculiar mannerisms, sayings, and a wild celebratory jig he does at the end of the film. Alice finds a small bottle labeled "Drink me" and then a cake labeled "Eat me" and she does both without knowing what they are. Some kids, if they know others are gullible or will blindly follow directions, might try the same on friends, younger siblings and the like with substances that could potentially be harmful. After Alice's pinching herself doesn't wake her from what she thinks is a dream, Mallymkun stabs her in the foot with a tiny sword (to try to wake her). The Mad Hatter walks across a row of tables to get to Alice and then walks her back across them. The March Hare often throws teacups and such at pretty much anyone. The Red Queen uses a flamingo as her mallet and a hedgehog as her ball to play croquet, thus whacking the latter across the grounds. The Red Queen uses a pig as a footstool. Tweedledee and Tweedledum kick and whack each other, playfully, as they exit a room. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) An extreme amount of suspenseful, ominous, and heavily dramatic music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 1 use of "Good Lord." SEX/NUDITY To put two young adult sisters in their place, Alice wonders if their mother knows they swim naked in a person's pond (not seen). Alice discovers her brother-in-law kissing another woman behind a hedge. While not overtly sexual or sensual, Alice (age 19) ends up wearing an off the shoulder top for part of the film. Alice ends up growing much larger than desired, thus leaving her nude behind a tall hedge (we only see her from the shoulders up -- and this is played as comedy as the Red Queen wonders why she's naked). We briefly see some miscellaneous cleavage from several women. After the Red Queen has been mad that Stayne showed some interest in Alice (and he lies that the attention goes the other way), he bursts into a room where the latter is located and orders the guards to "arrest that girl for unlawful seduction." SMOKING Absolem smokes from a hookah in two scenes, with lots of resultant smoke wafting in the air. TENSE FAMILY SCENES It's heavily suggested that 19-year-old Alice's father is dead, but we don't know how or for how long. We hear that Bayard is working for Stayne only because that man has Bayard's wife and pups held captive as incentive for the bloodhound to comply. The Red Queen and the White Queen don't get along, and prepare to do battle via their chosen warriors (the Jabberwocky and Alice respectively). TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Alice being a dreamer and non-conformist, especially as a young woman in her day and age (19th century London). Arranged marriages. How this adaptation of the original work compares to others. VIOLENCE Following the White Rabbit, Alice ends up falling a long way down a hole toward the Underland. Along the way, she bounces off something and finally hits the floor quite hard. She then realizes she's really on the ceiling and then falls hard from that onto the floor. After Alice's pinching herself doesn't wake her from what she thinks is a dream, Mallymkun stabs her in the foot with a tiny sword (to try to wake her). The Bandersnatch, a massive, dog-like monster with an enormous head and rows of sharp teeth, chases after Alice (scratching her on the arm) and others through the woods. The Red Queen's somewhat anthropomorphic playing cards capture other characters, while Alice -- trying to convince herself that this is a dream -- stands her ground as the creature charges at her. It stops just short, with its mouth right there at her, but Mallymkun leaps into action, stabbing a small sword into the beast's eye and then plucking that out (no blood). A massive and scary looking bird snatches up Tweedledee and Tweedledum and then flies off with them dangling upside down and bashing through various low bushes, etc. March Hare throws a teacup at Stayne who ducks out of the way, and it hits one of the playing cards behind him. Stayne then grabs the Mad Hatter around the neck and lower head in a headlock sort of way. March Hare throws a teacup at the Mad Hatter who ducks out of the way. We see a flashback to the Jabberwocky attacking a village and creating panic, firing glowing flames at various characters and structures, catching the latter on fire and instantly incinerating one of the former, leaving just his sword behind (which Stayne then pulls from the ground). Miniature Alice must cross a moat into the Red Queen's castle by using various severed human heads floating in the water as stepping stones of sorts (the implication being they're from previous beheadings ordered by the Red Queen - none of which are seen). The Red Queen uses a flamingo as her mallet and a hedgehog as her ball to play croquet, thus whacking the latter across the grounds. Tweedledee and Tweedledum kick and whack each other, playfully, as they exit a room. The Mad Hatter thrashes some stuff about in anger. Stayne and the Red Queen's armed guards enter a room to arrest Alice, but the Mad Hatter throws two bolts of fabric that hit some of the guards, as well as something at Stayne who then comes at him with his sword. When it looks like Stayne will get Alice, the Bandersnatch races in and knocks guards aside to rescue her. The Red Queen slaps Stayne, backhands him, and then slaps him again for not realizing Alice is the girl they've been looking for. March Hare throws things at the White Queen and Alice. The Red Queen orders the unleashing of a huge bird to attack the masses, causing panic among them, and at least one person is grabbed up and then dropped. The Jabberwocky, a huge and scary dragon, emerges to do battle with Alice who's armed with just a sword. It comes at her and she slices off part of its snake-like tongue, prompting the dragon to knock her aside with its tail. It then tries to stomp down on her, blast her with glowing flames (she uses her shield to block those) and bite her. When it knocks her sword aside, the Mad Hatter stabs its tale to distract it and allow Alice to rearm herself. During this, the armies of the two queens battle (lots of hitting and struggling), with Tweedledee and Tweedledum getting into the act. The Red Queen's massive bird goes on the attack, but Mallymkun stabs it in the eye, followed by a huge rock/boulder landing on the bird's head. Also during this, the Mad Hatter and Stayne battle, with the Mad Hatter eventually hitting Stayne in the eye, knocking him to the ground, and raising his sword to finish him off. But that doesn't happen as Alice, who's ascending a stairwell of ruins up to the exposed top (high in the air) avoids the Jabberwocky trying to bite her and lands on its neck. It then flips her off, but as she's coming down, she severs its head that then bounces down the stairs (no blood right away, but we see the severed stump area). After being shackled to the Red Queen, Stayne raises a dagger to kill her, but the Mad Hatter throws something that hits him on the hand, disarming him. Reviewed March 2, 2010 / Posted March 5, 2010

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