Dreamchild (1985) User Reviews

Mrs. Hargreaves in Wonderland

[Cineanalyst · 8/10 · 9 August 2020]

I don't put much stock in the central conceit shared in "Dreamchild" that Charles Dodgson was a pedophile in love with Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for his Alice books. Regardless, this theory serves the film well--better than it did in Dennis Potter's prior TV "Alice" (1965). It's one of the more disturbing adaptations or reworkings of the famous children's books, and that includes the grotesque puppetry from Jim Henson's Creature Shop, which otherwise is best known for kiddie fare such as The Muppets franchise. "Dreamchild" is also one of the more interesting cinematic translations to incorporate the historical background into the telling of parts from the books. Others have tended to limit this to a framing narrative, as in the 1949 and 1972 versions. The "reality" and fantasy in "Dreamchild," however, are comparatively well integrated.

The main narrative has Alice Liddell, now the nearly-80-years-old and widowed Mrs. Hargreaves, traveling to New York to receive an honorary degree to mark the centenary of Lewis Carroll's birth. While in the states, she's hounded by the press (the gaggle of fast-talking, cynical Depression-era reporters being an imitation straight out of "The Front Page") and forced to recall her childhood encounters with Mr. Dodgson and selections from the book he wrote for her. Underlying the dreams from book is a competent interpretation of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." Beyond the amusing nonsense, the fictional Alice's physical transformations--alternately growing bigger and smaller--is translated as an allegory for aging, with the movie's Alice changing between her as a child and as an old woman in her interactions with Wonderland's inhabitants. These characters remain partially nasty or threatening to Alice, as per the literary source, which likewise is read as representing one's (originally, a child's) struggle to make sense of the adult world, or, in this case, also the Depression-era modernity of the New World and Alice's reckoning with her past relationship with the author.

All of this is reflected in two plotlines involving older men and their advances towards younger females. In the modern timeline, one of the reporters begins a romantic relationship with Alice's travel companion, Lucy, and, in the past, there's Dodgson's questionable intentions towards young Alice. "Dreamchild" largely reduces the author of the greatest books in the history of children's literature to a stuttering girl lover who seems to repress his sexual desires with photography and telling her stories, disregarding much of his other influences and importance of his work, but it's a more sophisticated interpretation of the Alice books than most other movies I've sought out since reading Carroll's stories, and it's certainly one of the more unsettling and mature reimaginings.

an aging Alice revisits Wonderland

[mjneu59 · 8/10 · 15 November 2010]

The wonderland of memory is revisited by 80-year-old Alice Hargreaves, who as a child was the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's 'Alice In Wonderland'. Spoiled by a lifetime of coddling, the aging Alice arrives with her young ward in New York City to honor, reluctantly, Reverend Charles Dodgeson (aka Carroll), whom she recalls with unflattering cruelty as little more than a pathetic, lovestruck man with an embarrassing stutter. But soon the infirmities of age and the attention lavished on her in the New World begin to invoke the ghosts of her Victorian childhood, bringing to life the stories she once inspired and softening her rigid disposition. Some thematic strands are left dangling at the film's conclusion, but otherwise it's a charming fantasy about the redemptive powers of nostalgia, co-starring the delightfully malevolent Wonderland denizens of Muppet-man Jim Henson.

A gentle Love Story

[Paul-250 · 7/10 · 22 May 1999]

I liked this film very much when I saw it some years ago. It tells the story of an old woman who, as a child, had been the model for Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland journeying to America on a liner and, after her young travelling companion begins to fall in love with a reporter, gradually remembering her childhood, and understanding for the first time the extent to which she had been loved (not physically) by Carroll. Carroll was in real life a tutor at Christchurch College, Oxford, and there are some wonderful remembrances of Oxford, including a charming mad hatter's tea party. The real insight of the film, though, is the way it shows that memories long buried (for whatever reason) have the power, when released, to change our understanding of ourselves and the world as we have known it.

An Obsessive Love and Dark Memories

[timpuckett · 22 February 2004]

"Dreamchild" is a dark yet beautiful tale of an elderly woman haunted by the famous author who adored her as a child. It deals with love and fear, memories and the past, and the final recociliation of the two. Each character is succinctly and sympathetically drawn, from Lucy the young and naieve maid of the elderly Victorian Mrs. Alice Hargreaves (nee Liddell), who, on her first visit to America, cannot understand the intense attention given to her because of her connection to Lewis Carroll/Rev. Dodgson. The movie seamlessly shifts from the present (New York during the Despression) to the past (Victorian England at Oxford University). Real fans of Alice in Wonderland may object to this depiction of Wonderland characters in a harsher, angrier light; such as when the 80 year old Mrs. Hargreaves meets the Mad Hatter. The Reverend Dodgson does not stand accused as Michael Jackson or like some members of the clergy today, but Mrs. Hargreaves does ask "My mother destroyed all his letters. Why would she do that?" But the younger Alice, when asked by her mother, "Why on earth would he say that to you?" answers straighforwardly, "Because he loves me, of course." A thought provoking film worth seeing if you can find it.

Eventually emerges as a good movie

[dcorr123 · 7/10 · 12 January 2007]

The central story is excellent. Coral Browne, Amelia Shankley and, of course, Ian Holm are all excellent. Too much time is spent is spent on Alice's assistant, Lucy and reporter Jack Dolan. In my opinion, they're uninteresting and irrelevant. Although many people apparently like the Jim Henson creations for this movie, I find them inferior copies of the Tenniel illustrations and even more poorly "operated". There has been much discussion about the question of Dodgson's feelings for Alice. One thing has been left out of these discussions or perhaps reviewers are not aware of. Even if Dodgson's feelings were sexual, that would not have been regarded as especially inappropriate in Victorian England. The Victorians might have had what we would consider repressed attitudes towards sex, but that did not extend to age differences. The age of legal consent was 12 and men often married girls much younger than themselves. The only real impropriety from the Victorian viewpoint was that Dodgson wasn't considered the social equal of the Liddell family.

A story odder than Wonderland

[LCShackley · 6/10 · 25 December 2004]

What a strange movie this is. Is it supposed to be a cute fantasy (with clever Jim Henson puppets)? Or an expose/biography? The latter doesn't seem to be true, since there is a disclaimer at the end of the credits denying that any of the characters are real. Does anyone know whether ANY of the events of "old Alice's" life have any basis in fact? What I have read about Dodgson does indicate that he may have had an unhealthy obsession with young girls, but no evidence that he was an actual pedophile. I was afraid that Dennis Potter, who has shown in films like BRIMSTONE & TREACLE that he can wallow in the worst forms of human behavior, would turn Dodgson into a Victorian Michael Jackson (Wonderland/Neverland?). But Dodgson is a very sympathetic character, and the movie never descends into the dark side of his relationship to his young students. Portions of the film are charming.

In one respect, Ian Holm was a good choice for Carroll/Dodgson, because he can project charm and innocence. But he's also the movie's biggest flaw. Holm was in his 50s when he acted the part. According to the movie's own chronology, Dodgson was only TWENTY years older than Alice, not FORTY. That extra 20 years makes the relationship with Alice seem even stranger than it already was. A suitable 30-ish actor would have reduced the "dirty old man" factor considerably.

An amazing fictional depiction of Dodgeson & Alice

[drkjedi1-2 · 10/10 · 31 December 2002]

This is a stunning film, there have been all kinds of rumors and stories about the Rev. Charles Dodgeson and just who he was. This film lovingly and sadly portrays a what-if tale about Alice Liddell, the real Alice, of his famous books and what Victorian society did to her memories of this delightful man. I am not a member of the camp that thinks Dodgeson had a unnatural love for little children I find it preposterous and slanderous to say the least. This movie portrays him brilliantly and Ian Holm is such a superb actor you really feel sad for the lonely man with no wife and children of his own who writes these wonderful tales only to be suspected of unacceptable feelings for the little girl. This movie gives us all that with some wonderfully creepy Wonderland sequences by Hensen's creature shop. Simply marvelous!

A pleasant diversion of little nothings (if also unremarkable)

[I_Ailurophile · 6/10 · 2 March 2023]

It's a lovely concept, isn't it - a fictionalized reflection on a person who had an indirect role in the creation of major classics of English literature. It's the type of idea that practically screams "TV movie," so it's a little surprising that it actually found its way to the Silver Screen in 1985. I really didn't know what to expect as I sat to watch, and that feeling rather continued for no small part of the runtime. I think 'Dreamchild' takes a while to begin to gel and find its legs, perhaps one-third its length; there are points where it seems that, even heading into the last third, it's a bit scattered and unsure of itself. Furthermore, the pacing comes off as overly relaxed (incidentally also echoing the sense of a television production), and so even as the digital timer advances it feels a tad as though the feature is just kind of treading water. For whatever value the title has to offer, I'm of a mind that those behind the production aimed a little higher than where it truly would have fit.

Be that as it may, it's still fairly well done overall. The production design and art direction are terrific, as well as those modest effects that are employed. Though they fill only a tiny portion of the runtime, the puppets and otherwise special wizardry of the Jim Henson workshop, accordingly choreographed by none other than Gates McFadden, are surely the single most fetching aspect all around. The cast give restrained but commendably heartfelt performances, and I appreciate the tact with which Ian Holm, Nicola Cowper, Peter Gallagher, and Coral Browne, among others, help to bring the tale to life. It's well made from a technical standpoint, with Gavin Millar's gentle but steady direction guiding the proceedings, and though Dennis Potter's screenplay is rather unbothered, there's keen intelligence underlying every last bit of it. Yes, there are echoes of very antiquated values and social norms (mind the notes of racism, homophobia, and sexism, and even a touch of ableism), and Potter also dallies with the notion (of questionable foundation in real life) that Lewis Carroll may have had untoward perspectives on children. Yet while there is no significant spark achieved at any point in these 94 minutes, nonetheless Potter's writing, and for that matter every contribution to follow, are considered only with utmost good-natured earnestness and heart. That sincerity counts for a lot, and the end result is softly charming even if it doesn't really go anywhere.

I can't specifically see myself making a recommendation of this to anyone offhand; if you're a diehard fan of someone involved, or of Carroll, then perhaps there may be especial worth in one's viewership. Blithely enjoyable as 'Dreamchild' is, it just sort of comes and goes, and never strikes me as saying or doing anything of major note. It's a nice idea, just not maybe one that needed the treatment it received. Still, despite being broadly unremarkable, there are also no abject flaws to sully the experience, and it's not a bad way to pass the time. There's no need to go out of one's way for this feature, but it's fine for a lazy day if you happen to come across it. Be aware of its somewhat middling nonchalance, but otherwise just kick back and relax.

Who cares for you? You're nothing but a pack of cards!

[aimless-46 · 9/10 · 15 December 2004]

Let me start by simply saying that the reaction I had viewing this film was unlike any other viewing experience I can recall. Although I found it well written and produced, I was so disappointed by the 2/3's point that I almost stopped watching. Yet by the end I was absolutely embracing the whole thing. So if you are a Lewis Carroll fan keep an open mind and watch the whole thing, you may find the whole much greater than the sum of its parts. And you may even find yourself willing to accept the historical fiction as necessary to better tell the story.

I suppose a large part of my initial negative reaction was due to the film's puzzling failure to capture a fundamental aspect of Alice Liddell's childhood personality. Alice spent much of her time in "Wonderland" being p….d off; at the illogic, the rudeness, and the selfishness of the characters she met there. Both Alice's were proper and confident little Victorian girls who took themselves very seriously. I am sure that this was one of many "Real Alice" personality traits that Carroll transplanted to his "Wonderland" Alice. Often amused by her reactions of irritation and frustration, he constructed many of the story elements with the intention of getting indigent reactions from Alice and her sisters. I had hoped that this connection would be made by the film and was disappointed that it was not explored, although in retrospect you could argue that the older Alice's reactions to the characters she meets in America are identical to Alice's reactions to the characters in Wonderland. That the film does not explore my pet topic was disappointing but ultimately not fatal.

In all other respects the portrayal of young Alice Liddell was excellent. Amelia Shankley turned in a fine performance. She is clearly the best film Alice so far and it is a shame that they did not star her in an actual Alice film right after "Dreamchild" was completed. And Coral Browne was equally excellent as the older Alice.

This film is about how Alice's mother (who felt her daughter could find much better candidates for marriage as she moved into her teens) essentially poisoned her memories of Dodgson, leading her to believe that there was something wrong about his feelings for her (when in fact he was just a childlike personality who loved her more than his other child friends, but always with a shy innocence). It is also about the guilt the older Alice still feels over abandoning him just as she entered her teens, especially after all the innocent kindness he had shown. She is in denial about her affection for Dodgson and irritated because all the attention of his centennial is forcing her to recall those long-suppressed years of her life. And finally she feels that since she was not actually the little heroine who exhibited so much courage in "Wonderland", she does not deserve her sudden celebrity status. In her view she was catapulted into fame "by simply doing nothing". Remember that Wonderland Alice is arguably the bravest literary heroine of all time.

What ultimately redeems the film is the climatic scene in the hall of Columbia University. Alice Liddell flashes back to a scene late in her relationship with Dodgson, a symbolic scene meant to represent the end of their relationship. She had outgrown him at this point in her life and she laughs and humiliates him as he attempts to sing his Lobster Quadrille song to the three Liddell sisters and their male suitors. When her mind returns to the present she hears the Columbia University orchestra and glee club performing the same song. She realizes that the story which she once rejected was in fact his personal tribute to her and that even after all these years each little detail of his creation is admired throughout the world. At this point she finally gets it. She goes back to the symbolic scene as her older sister Lorina reads the final paragraph from the Wonderland book, the one in which Dodgson reveals the reason he made up the story. Then the child Alice walks over, kisses Dodgson in apology, and places her head on his chest (an omission for which she has long felt guilty). Then we are back in the hall and find that in place of her prepared speech she has read this same passage to the now applauding crowd.

The point is that she finally understood that the story was a gift to her and to future generations of children, that she had inspired the story and had been the model for his heroine. With this realization came the final gift of knowing that the virtues Mr. Dodgson gave his heroine: innocence, courage, curiosity, wonder, kindness, intelligence, courtesy, humor, dignity, and a sense of justice; were virtues he credited to the real Alice.

It is hard to imagine a better scene (or sequence of scenes) than the climatic one detailed above. Film and video cannot hope to compete with books in communicating thoughts. But with the right players film can visually communicate moments of character realization and transformation to a degree much more subtle and personal than what any author can write. This is the real magic of film and acting for the camera. In the end these climatic moments say everything that needs be said about the relationship between Dodgson and his "dreamchild". A truly great cinematic moment and my all-time favorite.

Wonderland

[safenoe · 6/10 · 6 January 2023]

I remember seeing Dreamchild on a place soon after it was released, so it was at a time when we couldn't select in-flight movies, so everyone had to watch Dreamchild or read a good book.

Perhaps I was too young to appreciate Dreamchild, and I think it's one I would like to watch again to understand the poignancy of the relationship between Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell and the connotations of that.

Perhaps a reboot is in order, with acclaimed British actor Danny Dyer playing the role of Lewis Carroll and one of the Spice Girls playing Alice Liddell as an older lady to spice things up I guess.

Overall an interesting watch

[HellsingGirlyCard · 5/10 · 4 April 2012]

Although this film is almost impossible to get let alone watch I successfully managed to find it. Being a person who has been researching the relationship between Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell this film does provide an interesting view to what I presume if a fictional representation of an older Alice Liddell travelling to New York and recalling her memories of Lewis Carroll. Alas if you are looking for anything with a direct point or opinion as to what was the relationship between Lewis and Alice then I fear you won't get much. A downfall for this film was adding the fictional character Sally to the story and her useless storyline however it was a pleasure to see Coral Browne play a good role as Alice Liddell and Ian Holm's role was well played. Overall an interesting watch.

a brilliant, beautiful film

[An_Hedonic · 10/10 · 9 August 2002]

Dreamchild is a beautiful and tender exploration of the (non-sexual) love of children which prompted the Rev. Charles Dodgson (AKA Lewis Carroll) to write _Alice in Wonderland_. The story begins in 1932 as 80 year old Alice Hargreaves (nee Liddell, the inspiration for the fictional Alice) and her timid personal maid Lucy reach New York City to participate in a centenary celebration of Dogson's birth. Coral Browne is outstanding as Mrs. Hargreaves and Ian Holm plays Dodgson perfectly. Amelia Shankley is also excellent as the young Alice, seen in flashbacks and "dream" sequences involving characters from the book. The puppets, for lack of a better word, created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop (??), are faithful recreations of the original Tenniel drawings and, for the most part, much of their dialog is adapted from the book and wonderfully integrated into the film.

Besides the main plot there are several sub-plots, and the clashes between the upper class British woman and the rude, intrusive press are quite amusing, especially so when one considers how much worse the "news media" have become. The film touches on the plight of Lucy, a docile servant to Mrs. Hargreaves who worries about her future after Mrs. Hargreaves "meets my maker," as she puts it. Luckily for Lucy there is the American reporter Jack, who falls in love with Lucy and eventually convinces her it is not solely his desire for money ("You can tell when he's talking about money. His lips go all wet.") which draws him to the two women.

Through the flashbacks and dream sequences we see little Alice and Mrs. Hargreaves in various situations which shed more light on her friendship with Mr. Dodgson, whom she has almost completely forgotten as an old woman. Many details of the plot are taken directly from Alice in Wonderland and Dodgson's diaries and letters, making it an even greater pleasure for those familiar with his life. Initially Mrs. Hargreaves is terrified of dredging up long-forgotten memories but slowly comes to understand, accept, and express true appreciation for the love Dodgson felt for her, and many other children throughout his life.

This beautiful and moving film didn't receive the recognition it deserves due to the timing of its release, which unfortunately coincided in the USA with the witch-hunts and hysteria of the baseless "child-care Satanic abuse" cases popping up all over the country. Dodgson was, by most standards, an unusual man whose life-long stutter and natural shyness made him uncomfortable with many adults, but with small children he worked magic. He was one of the first amateur photographers and some have interpreted his penchant for taking pictures of children "au naturel" as an indication of pedophilia. Anyone who has read his diaries or letters knows he was most scrupulous about taking these types of pictures and virtually never did so without receiving parental permission, often having a parent present during the session. Charles Dodgson loved children in a pure and non-sexual way and that love gave us two of the world's classics in children's literature. The film makes this perfectly clear and is a tribute to the genius and gentleness of this kind, loving, and brilliant man.

Interesting movie

[sparkgary · 7/10 · 20 May 2017]

A darker view of the book than I had imagined. The Henson puppets are so out of date they detracted from the rest of the story. I was surprised by the sexual overtones between Carrol and Lucy. And Lucy's mother threw all of Alice's letters from Carrol in the fire. Why? She seemed to suspect something also. But overall an interesting movie that gave a different look than Alice in Wonderland.

Don't waste your time - go read the books.

[kergillian · 3/10 · 19 May 2002]

This is one of the worst films I've seen in a long time, not helped by the fact that I'm quite a rabid Alice in Wonderland fan. Three specifics goaded my curiosity - Ian Holm is a wonderful actor and I've rarely seen a film with him that wasn't excellent, Jim Henson puppets always make a movie better, and hey, it's Alice in Wonderland, how could it go wrong??

Well, here's the answer: let's start with the utter lack of a point. Alice Hargreaves is elderly and visits the New World for the first time to give a talk about Charles Dodgeson aka Lewis Carroll on his centenary. This is where the plot ends. She has visions of her past with the Rev. Dodgson (fabulously played by Ian Holm, and the only worthwhile parts of the film), nightmarish dreams/fantasies with eerie Wonderland-muppets (not Jim Henson's finest hour - some of them were kind of cool, but they're rather overdone. In the end, the puppets and puppet scenes are nothing but irritating - and the voices are all basically the same. The biggest problem with the puppets was that they lacked identity; there was no sense of their essence - their sense of 'character' from the book...) all mixed in with her road trip to New York. She's accompanied by Lucy, supposedly an orphan under the care of Mrs. Hargreaves, whose only purpose in the film is to create a love story with the conniving and pestering former reporter, Jack Dolan, played by Peter Gallagher.

I can't *stand* Peter Gallagher to begin with, and this character doesn't do anything to assuage that dislike. The character serves little purpose; there's no real reason for his existence. He cons his way in to speak to Hargreaves, though he's no longer a reporter and never uses his 'scoops' to regain his position, then he gets under Alice's wing and becomes her agent, helping her to make money by using her 'name'. This goes against Alice's character, who doesn't really care much about money or fame -she's not exactly poorly off and she never saw the reason for her fame anyhow, yet she succumbs to Gallagher's persuasion. And underneath all of this, Jack Dolan somehow seduces young Lucy and they fall in love, yet Dolan has absolutely no redeeming qualities and is obviously out for himself only, yet suddenly he becomes a charismatic and kind-hearted guy? I don't buy it, and can't see how Lucy could possibly fall for him, even by Hollywood standards.

The film is pointless, unbelievable and poorly paced. It's too dark (visually, not in nature) and lacks any of the 'Alice' character and spirit. The fun fantasy is gone, as are the puns and humour. The only bright and light-hearted moments are the scenes in the past with Alice and the Rev. The point of this is to showcase how Alice 'now' is a bitter and lonely old woman and yearns for Alice 'then' who was young and naive and happy. But without the wonderful and fantastic qualities of the Alice stories to back it up, the movie has little to stand on.

My suggestion is to go read Stephanie Bolster's 'White Stone', play the Alice video game, watch the Alice in Wonderland animated video, watch Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland, read the two Lewis Carroll novels! ANYTHING but this film, you WILL be disappointed. 3/10.

Wishing for the DVD

[jim-1490 · 10/10 · 31 December 2005]

This is both a beautiful and disturbing film. Ian Holm (recently playing Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy) plays the Reverend Dodgson whom the world better knows as Lewis Carroll. Holm expertly dances on the razor's edge of Dodgson's obsession with the youngest of the three Liddle sisters. This is all experienced in recollections of the elderly Alice as she crosses the Atlantic to attend a 100th Birthday Celebration of Lewis Carroll. As she nears the end of her voyage, her dreams start to bleed into her realities. The Wonderland characters are perfectly grotesque Muppet versions performed by Jim Hemson's Creature Shop (we're not talking Kermit nor Miss Piggy here). This is based on the true people and is lovingly interwoven into a fictional account of the true voyage Alice Liddle Hargraves made to Oxford University in 1932. If you're lucky to have the VHS tape, guard it with your life, mine was destroyed and I can only pray this film will be transfered to DVD. Though we're talking Alice in Wonderland and Muppets, this is not a film for those under 17.

Amazing film with an amazing story

[kaaber-2 · 10/10 · 15 May 2001]

I absolutely fell in love with this film when I saw it in Denmark in 1988. I can add nothing to the praise already given on this board, but the story behind the film is equally amazing. Apparently, the producers, Thorn-EMI, shelved this gem due to a palace revolution in the company. It was tied up in a package with some films nobody would buy, to the mortification of director Gavin Millar, writer Dennis Potter, and star Coral Browne. It ran for a very short time in Shaftesbury Av., London, where Danish Carsten Brandt from Posthusteatret in Copenhagen saw it, secured a copy - upon which the film ran for four straight years, every evening in his theatre.

I saw it some ten times during that run, and I suppose I shall never tire of it.

It's alarming how easy it is to keep a good film down for years if it's not promoted properly. Luckily, it has found its way to both movie theatres and TV since.

Dreaming down the days

[alicespiral · 5 November 2004]

In order to fully appreciate this movie a knowledge of both Alice Liddell and Lewis Carroll is recommended. For a film associared with Dennis Potter--who'd previously written an Alice in the 60s...you might expect smut but there's none here. Its all done very tastefully so it would disappoint anyone looking for titillation. Jane Asher has a minor role as Mrs.Liddell,shown as a chaperone on the famous river outing.She played Alice herself in the early 60s for a couple of studio casts. Though its artistic license to suggest Mrs.Hargreaves took along her maid in reality there were two others,one of which was her granddaughter. I liked the scene where Mrs.Hargeaves read out a commercial---for which they'd pay her 1000s of dollars: ""once when I was a little girl I fell down a rabbit hole then picked up a bottle with a label on which said DRINK ME.But today I look for a bottle which says CHARDONAY"

"Something, or someone, was walking on my grave..."

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 1 April 2011]

In 1932, 79-year-old Alice Hargreaves, a no-nonsense sort from England traveling with her timid female assistant, sails for New York City to receive an honorary degree from Columbia University; the school is celebrating the centenary of author Charles L. Dodgson, aka Lewis Carroll, whose literary masterpiece "Alice in Wonderland" was inspired by Hargreaves when she was but a precocious child. Impeccably-produced and designed on a limited budget, this curious drama mixes fact and fiction with a light hand...and yet, it rarely takes off emotionally. Coral Browne's adult Alice reexamines her lazy childhood days--as well as her past and present states of mind while interacting with Carroll's nonsensical creations (courtesy Jim Henson's Creature Shop)--but screenwriter Dennis Potter includes no poetry of his own in the dialogue. There are lovely moments (particularly the finale at Columbia and its tag), strong performances from Browne and Ian Holm (as the stammering Reverend Dodgson), and the film does improve slowly after a very creaky start. ** from ****

One of those truly beautiful films nobody has ever seen.

[sylvain-14 · 10/10 · 29 November 2014]

The fate of movies is a mystery.

Why should it be that certain mediocre films draw crowds large enough to wrap twice around the block, only to be just as soon forgotten, while others, marvelous films, never catch on at all, and end up lost through decades, waiting only to be rediscovered one day, when a DVD edition suddenly blesses them with a second life?

DreamChild is a monumental work of art that rests on another monumental work. Of course, it helps that as a kid, I was fascinated by Lewis Carrol's famous adventures of Alice in Wonderland and Thru the Looking Glass, as well as the wild and often creepy, psychedelic universe beautifully rendered by artist Sir John Tenniel. It's worth noting that, to this day, we owe Tenniel most of the representations we have of the worlds and characters described by Carrol.

DreamChild a beautiful film in so many respects. Deeply moving and inviting us, the viewer, to reflect upon the true forces that guide the murky, and sometimes tortuous process from which art is born.

The screenplay by Dennis Potter is airtight, witty, often funny, but also dark and complex. Ian Holm as the Reverend Dodgson delivers one of the two best performances of his life (The Sweet Hereafter being the other). Curiously, both deal with the agonizing pain of holding back.

Even little Amelia Shankley, who plays young Alice Lydell, the muse throughout the film, is deeply haunting and complex, juggling the tricky emotions that carry the entire picture through to its resolution.

This was a fairly low budget production, shot entirely in the UK, but Roger Hall's masterful art direction can convince even a savvy movie buff that he is watching a pricey period picture set in New York City's Great Depression era. Gavin Millar, the director, is mature enough to let his camera witness a powerful story without artifice.

There is not one bad choice in this picture, right down to a gorgeous musical score by Stanley Myers. Finally, Jim Henson and his team of artists recreated the wildest and most beloved characters of Alice in Wonderland as animatronic puppets which, thirty years on, hold up perfectly and allow the film to soar with its unique, organic, and at times theatrical charm.

I saw this picture in New York City, in 1986, when it received a limited release, and I recall being instantly enchanted by it. I had to accept a poor videotape copy for years and years, until one of the film's crew members in the UK was kind enough to obtain a better copy for me, which I have cherished. But now, a DVD-R has been released in the film's original 1:85/1 ratio and I was recently able to watch it all again, at last in a perfect presentation.

DreamChild is a great big film which only had a small life, but it is worth discovering on DVD. It's a picture that could well stay with you for the rest of your life.

It did with me.

Choice acting, meandering plot

[irish23 · 3/10 · 12 November 2007]

A gentle film. Loved starchy elder Alice and mouthy younger one. Ian Holms is, of course, perfect at expressing a range of delicate emotions through relatively few lines.

The storyline is unnecessarily complicated by a "modern-day" (1932) love interest. Also, the issues from Alice's past are never actually resolved. They are for her personally, but the viewers are left in the dark. Was there pedophilia going on here, in thought if not in deed? It's extremely uncomfortable to know how to interpret Holms' "adoring" glances when we're not given more of an answer.

It would be interesting to see this film re-made today as a Masterpiece Theatre presentation. I know little about the historical people upon whose lives this tale was based, so I viewed this solely as a film standing on its own. MP would bring all the lushness, subtlety, wonder, and poignancy of the film but tie up the ends a bit more and make the overall story more compelling.

The Viewer in Wonderland

[j_eyon · 9/10 · 10 August 2003]

Very moody and stylish movie - whose plot switches between three venues - the 1860s when Lewis Carroll introduced the Wonderland tales to young Alice and her sisters - the 1930s when the aged Alice visited the U.S. months before her death - and the surreal world of the Alice in Wonderland stories with story characters portrayed by wickedly designed Jim Henson puppets

Four actresses stand out in my memory - Coral Browne as the starchy old Alice - Amelia Shankley as the young selfcentered Alice - Nicola Cowper as old Alices companion and love interest to the young American reporter played by Peter Gallagher - and - in a small role - Caris Corfman as a wistful newspaper reporter - in addition to many fine British and American actors

My only gripe is Ian Holm's age - Holm was in his early 50s when he portrayed Lewis Carroll - who was closer to 30 when he first told the stories - there were concerns in his time about the purity of his interest in his child friends and photography subjects - such as Alice - Ian Holm brings that frightfully to life

This film took great care in evoking the respective time periods - using beautiful set designs and photography - as a result - the movie is itself an exotic journey into other times and places - with Alice still as protagonist

A Very Nice Biopic

[iwantsofia · 9/10 · 15 September 2008]

The relationship between 10-year-old Alice Liddell, the young girl for whom "Alice's Adventures In Wonderland" was written, and Rev. Charles Dodgson a.k.a. Lweis Carroll, the book's author, is explored in this thought-provoking film.

The former Alice Liddell, now Alice Hargreaves, is invited by Columbia University to give a speech on the centennial of Dodgson's / Carroll's birth. She meets a reporter who becomes her agent and romances her assistant. Meanwhile, she is haunted by childhood memories of her time spent with Mr. Dodgson.

A mostly good script by Dennis Potter only disappoints when focusing on the romance. The excellent cast makes up for the few shortcomings. Amelia Shankley debuts as the young Alice Liddell, and gives a fine performance. She later appeared in a three part adaptation of A Little Princess (1986) and Red Riding Hood (1988). Imogen Boorman, who plays older sister Lorina, went on to co-star in Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988).

Wonderland Creatures Grow Old, Bitter, Mangy

[wfaze · 10/10 · 12 March 2006]

I had sought out a DVD copy of this wonderful film on Amazon, and was informed that it was un-released; therefore I was surprised one Saturday evening a couple weeks ago, while rooting through a bin of budget DVDs at a local supermarket, to find a copy of "Dreamchild" -- and for $1, no less! The reproduction quality is very poor, but the gist of this remarkable film is still there.

One can read the plot synopsis on other postings -- in 1932, the aged Mrs. Alice Hargreaves (nee Alice Liddell)(played by Coral Browne), has been invited from England to Columbia University to participate in the celebration of the centenary of a friend from her childhood, Rev. Charles Dodgson (AKA Lewis Carroll). She doesn't quite understand why all the fuss about "Queer Mr. Dodgson, who told such amusing tales," nor is she comfortable with the New World of New York, and the New Age of the twentieth century, and the threat they present to her Victorain mind and morality. (The use of names here is very important: she insists on being referred to as Mrs. Hargreaves, and he as Mr. Dodgson, while the world at large thinks on them as Alice and Lewis Carroll.) As she contemplate the passing of her world, and her own impending mortality, we are given flashbacks to her youth -- boating parties on the Thames with her family and their friends, including Lewis Carroll, who regales them with the stories and poems that will become "Alice in Wonderland" -- and dreams and hallucinations that take the form of scenes from that book.

There is a sub-plot which consists of Mrs. Hargreaves relations and attitudes towards her traveling companion, a young woman named Lucy (Nicola Cowper), and her budding romance with a pushy New York reporter (Peter Gallagher).

However, it's the memory and dream scenes that really propel this movie forwards. The subject of the adult Carroll's relationship with pre-pubescent girls is a tricky one -- whether it was pure platonic friendship or sexual paedophilia, repressed or expressed, is a question whose answer is lost in the discrete mists of history, and is less important in the long run than the great and enduring work of literature which it produced. This film treats the matter with a subtlety unmatched by any other film on so delicate a topic. The charisma between Ian Holm's besmitten, uncomfortable, stuttering Carroll, and Amelia Shankley's almost unconsciously flirtatious Child Alice, is astounding.

In the "Wonderland" hallucination scenes, the various characters Alice (represented by the adult Mrs. Hargreaves) meets -- the March-hare, the Mad Hatter, et al. -- are created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop; but get all notion of cute, funny muppets out of your head: these are horrific apparitions, having aged like Alice herself, and grown mangy, snaggle-toothed, and surly (or surlier: they're pretty surly in Carroll's original story) -- in fact, the manifestations of those emotions and memories from her youth which Mrs. Hargreaves has so long repressed, and which, at the touching final scenes of the film, she learns to acknowledge and accept.

A delightfully unique film

[rgshanks · 22 November 2000]

A delightfully unique film which explores a historically researched image of Lewis Carroll as a man with a fixation (albeit merely platonic) on young girls, and expands the premise to consider the effect that his obsessions may have had on the later life of his model for Alice. Holm's impersonation of Carroll is of a gentle but, at times, pathetic figure whose passion for the company of Alice Liddell is matched only by that for the development of his characters and narrative that were to become the "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" classics, for which Alice Liddell was his model. The young Alice is sweetly and endearingly played by Amelia Shankley in the flashback sequences with Holm, but the film is also centred around the attendance at a celebration of the centenary of Carroll's birth of the now 70-year old Alice, portrayed by Coral Browne. This older Alice is shown as a woman who has been shackled by her long celebrity as the role-model for the famous literary character and who has lived her life in a way which ensured that she was always seen to live up to that pure public image of her. As she travels to and arrives in America for the celebrations, various factors conspire to force her to acknowledge her symbolic insularity - the contrast between the brashness of the New World and the strictures of a society in which she has lived - the love affair which breaks out between her travelling companion and one of the reporters who meets her ship on arrival, an affair which initially brings to the surface strong but automatic emotions of aversion and disapproval. Gradually, she starts to question and, ultimately, to reject her past and all the values implicit in it. This is symbolised most vividly in the dream sequences in which she interacts with some of the characters from the "Alice" stories. Whilst created by Jim Henson's Muppet workshop, these images of Carroll's creations are not the cuddly, friendly visions reminiscent of, for instance, the Disney adaptation or other mainstream productions, but are much more darkly drawn, much more foreboding, much more, in fact, like the original illustrations of Carroll's work by John Tenniel. Rather than in the interests of authenticity, it seems that this depiction is chosen in order to represent the powerful hold of constriction in which these characters have held Alice. In the dream sequences, the creatures begin by continuing their overbearing influence over Alice but she gradually comes to question their power and their very existence as the circumstances unfold which cause her to evaluate her own life, until, in the final dream sequence, she ultimately rejects them completely, thus releasing herself to live out the rest of her days free of their restrictions and of the constraints of her whole past life. Throughout all these tribulations and inner examinations, Corale exudes a haunting and ever-calm aura in one of the most subtle examples of underacting it is possible to imagine.

A film of great power and astonishing depth

[Marta · 10/10 · 22 February 1999]

The Rev. Charles Dodgson must have been an enigmatic figure. Quiet and withdrawn when in the company of adults, he metamorphosed into a riveting teller of stories, riddles and anecdotes when a child was listening. "Dreamchild" addresses this remarkable facet of his personality in a way that leaves the viewer truly in awe.

Augmented by Jim Henson's Creatures, which are fantastic and amazing, they are the perfect foil for the delicate nuances of the Rev. Dodgson's love for Alice. Coral Brown should have gotten the Oscar for this role; she is devastating as the dying, repressed but ultimately enlightened Alice. Her realization that Dodgson truly loved her in a pure, reverent way is a masterpiece of acting. The film resonates with the power of Brown's performance, Amelia Shankley's bravura acting as the young Alice, and Ian Holm's as Dodgson. I couldn't imagine another actor in any of these roles, and that's as high a tribute as I can give. Watching Holm's face as he listens to Alice sing, without her knowledge, almost breaks your heart.

In a movie this fine, I can only find one drawback, and that's the subplot of the modern love story between the reporter and her maid. But it's a small quibble. This film deserves to be seen again and again, as I've watched it.