I hated it. It took characters that were shaped like ones in the original books and put them into a formulaic sword-and-sorcery movie. It took things that were absurdities in the original stories and eliminated the absurdity by making them concrete. For example,
the jabberwocky in the movie is a flying dragon that shoots lightning out of its mouth.
We saw it this afternoon at a “Fork & Screen” presentation (the theater with big cushy seats, tables and waiters with a real, but overpriced menu to order from; but we still stuck with popcorn and soda) because the regular theater was sold out. The tickets cost us $10.00 more (each) but some of that we got back as food vouchers and the only available seats were in the very first row. We thought we were going to hate it, but my daughter and I thought the angle and closeness greatly enhanced the “3-D experience” (my son disagreed) and because of that possibly, we felt the 3-D was much better done and used to better effect than in Avatar.
The story was just okay, IMO but I really did like the characters and thought the Cheshire Cat in particular was so well done that I liked the movie as a whole much better than I expected to. I am going through an overly emotional time right now (which is probably explains a lot of this next part) but I was nearly moved to tears by
the bloodhound being reunited with his wife and puppies.
I guess overall what I am saying is that for me it was the secondary characters that made the movie worthwhile, and the colors…I am still expecting 3-D movies to be washed out looking like they were when I was a kid, so the vibrant colors in a 3-D format still impress me a lot. 
I read something that the dialect was supposed to change based on the character’s mood.
I enjoyed the movie but it was not what I was hoping for. I liked Depp and Carter a lot, and I liked Hathaway too. But the rest was kinda…meh.
One thing that’s been bugging me since I saw the movie last night:
So, right before Alice returns to the real world, Hatter tells her that she won’t remember him. But, why not? She remembered him from her early childhood visit, even if it took some effort to jog her memory. That whole dialogue seemed clunky and I wasn’t sure what emotional tone they were trying to go for…
A question regarding the dialog:
What did the Hatter say to the dog to make the dog go away?
It’s not Great Art, but my wife and I enjoyed it.
I do have to say that I thought it was interesting that Anne Hathaway got second billing after Johnny Depp, despite her limited screen time.
Also, the ending has some rather… unfortunate implications.
The major “trade” between the UK and China in the period the film is set was Opium.
Just saw it. Visually it looks great, but I was disappointed in the story as a whole. The movie was basically ruined for me when:
Johnny Depp does his mad hatter dance. I mean, what was up with that?
It would have been my very first slash in the editing room. Though I did quite enjoy the “vigorously” line from the beginning.
I was wondering that too. I figured that, being a Disney film, They were contractually obligated to provide a clear “Good Has Triumphed Over Evil And Everyone Is Happy” moment, and that’s what that was.
Well the movie’s out now, and I haven’t seen it yet. Were my extrapolations correct? I hope not, but everything I’ve read seems to suggest they were.
Did you see the 1999 version of Alice in Wonderland?
I wish I had seen it with you. My audience cheered at that stupid scene.
I haven’t seen it yet either, but I concede that it does seem you were right.
i think it was “Down with bloody big head” but i’m not entirely sure.
Burton has an habit of taking a work of art, erasing it down to the original sketches, then smearing faeces all over it as though he’s a particularly enthusiastic entrant for the Turner Prize.
This was a less-than-adequate commentary on the Wonderland story and the comparison of the wonder of childhood to the banality of the real world. The dialogue was awful, the performances (with the exception of Stephen Fry as the Cheshire Cat) varied between “uneven” (Helena Bonham Carter) and “godawful” (Wasikokowska), the visual style was inconsistent and unimaginative…
I sat through all of it because I’d hoped that it’d get better. This made me hate myself.
There are better things to spend $20 and an hour and an half of your life on.
I loved it. I thought Mia Wasikowska, in particular, was very engaging, and I look forward to more from her. Nothing about it bothered me overmuch, although the Hatter’s dance was a bit sillier than I’d have liked.
I saw it in 2D, though, on Howard Tayler’s recommendation.
Nobody knows the answer to my question, regarding the Hatter telling Alice that she won’t remember him?
I guess I saw it as kind of a Peter Pan sort of thing- like, you grow up and you forget because you stop believing. In this case, you go back to the real world and you forget Wonderland.
Just like how from her childhood, she remembered bits and pieces, but no one specifically.
Really? I got the impression she remembered most of it after that flashback montage. Oh well. You’re probably right; that’s probably what they were going for. I just didn’t buy it.
Remember how the commentary (the mouse and the rabbit) when she was trying to get the shrinking thing right in the beginning was that she doesn’t remember? And she appeared to literally have zero memory of what she had done before.