Alice in Wonderland (1999) (TV)

Director:

Nick Willing

Writers (WGA):

Lewis Carroll (novel)
Peter Barnes (teleplay)

Release Date:

28 February 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Adventure | Fantasy

Plot:

The wizards behind "Merlin" and "The Odyssey" combine Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" into a three-hour special that just gets curiouser and curiouser.

Plot Keywords:

Fantasy | Alternate Dimension | Fantasy Life | Cat | Talking Animal

Awards:

Won 4 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Robbie Coltrane	...	Ned Tweedledum
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Cheshire Cat
Ben Kingsley	...	Major Caterpillar
Christopher Lloyd	...	White Knight
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Carpenter
Miranda Richardson	...	Queen of Hearts / Society Woman
Martin Short	...	Mad Hatter / Chinless Idiot
Peter Ustinov	...	Walrus
George Wendt	...	Fred Tweedledee
Gene Wilder	...	Mock Turtle
Tina Majorino	...	Alice
Ken Dodd	...	Mr. Mouse
Jason Flemyng	...	Sir Jack, the Knave of Hearts / Cad
Sheila Hancock	...	Cook
Simon Russell Beale	...	King of Hearts / Society Man

Also Known As:

Alice im Wunderland (Germany)

Runtime:

Finland:131 min (TV) (2 parts) | USA:150 min | 65 min (2 episodes) | USA:129 min (VHS version)

Country:

UK | USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:G | Singapore:PG | UK:U | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Babelsberg International Film Produktion

Trivia:

Martin Short's head was digitally enlarged to three times its normal size, so to better replicate the Mad Hatter in the Tennil illustrations.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of the movie when Alice is singing, in between shots her hair changes from being behind her shoulders on both sides to being in front on one side.

Quotes:

Alice: If you drink too much from a bottle marked "poison," it's almost certain to disagree with you sooner or later.

Movie Connections:

Version of Neco z Alenky (1988)

Great cast, but the film moves too fast in order to fit them all in.

This is a /relatively/ faithful adaptation of Carroll's classic; a few scenes from 'Through the Looking Glass' are inserted near the end, but up to that point each scene from the book takes place in the right order, and few liberties are taken with the characters (except Ken Dodd's bizarrely different mouse). Perhaps too much care is taken to include everything, as the film often feels rushed. The cast is packed with famous faces, and it seems that some of them are bundled off screen to make way for the next. Although some of Wonderland's denizens are less well realised as a consequence, they are brought to life convincingly by Henson's Creature Workshop and a great cast, who all pull their weight. But what really holds the film together is an endearing and surprisingly mature performance from Tina Majorino (then 14) as Alice, at turns amused, bemused, attracted and perturbed by curiouser and curiouser events. Overall, 8 out of 10.