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 DVD, $9.99 (https://www.zeusdvds.com/alice-in-wonderland-1933-dvd/))
Alice In Wonderland (1933)
Richard Arlen, Roscoe Ates, William Austin
This star-laden version of Lewis Carroll's novel combines elements of both the title novel and Carroll's sequel, Through the Looking Glass. In England of the 19th century, young Alice finds that the mirror over the library fireplace opens into a strange world. She has odd adventures and changes size several times both before and after she follows a time-obsessed White Rabbit (Skeets Gallagher). Soaked after nearly drowning in a pool of tears, Alice is helped to dry off by a Dodo (Polly Moran), and encounters a caterpillar (Ned Sparks), whose mushroom also changes Alice's size. In a noisy home where the Cook (Lillian Harmer) and the Duchess (Alison Skipworth) are always fighting, Alice takes care of the Duchess' baby, but it turns into a pig and runs away. Asking directions of the Cheshire Cat (Richard Arlen) is no help, and a tea party with the Mad Hatter (Edward Everett Horton), the March Hare (Charlie Ruggles) and the Dormouse (Jackie Searl) is confusing and annoying. Alice meets the Queen of Hearts (May Robson), and encounters the Duchess again; while strolling with her, Alice meets the Gryphon (William Austin) and the Mock Turtle (Cary Grant). The twins Tweedledum (Jack Oakie) and Tweedledee (Roscoe Karns) recite a poem about a Walrus and a Carpenter (seen as an animated cartoon), but when they decide to go to battle, they're chased off by a crow. Humpty Dumpty (W.C. Fields) relates the poem "Jabberwocky" to Alice, then falls off a wall and breaks. The mournful White Knight (Gary Cooper), unable to put Humpty Dumpty together again, escorts Alice for a while, but she tumbles down a hill and finds she's become a queen. At a party in Alice's honor, the Red Queen (Edna Mae Oliver) becomes furious at Alice, who then wakes up to find herself in the library, with her kitten Dinah in her lap.
Posted by DEWEY MEE on Apr 24th 2024
Paramount's "all-star" live-action version of Lewis Carroll's "Alice In Wonderland", featuring Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, W.C. Fields, Edward Everett Horton, May Robson, Edna May Oliver and Sterling Holloway, bombed at the box office when it was released in 1933. Today, however, it has achieved "cult status", and is regarded as one of the best film versions of the "Alice" books. Joseph L. Mankiewicz's screenplay puts the major events from the two books together in a way that makes "movie" sense-- and all in a breezy 77 minutes.
This Black and White version begins with "Through The Looking-Glass." On a winter afternoon, Alice (Charlotte Henry) falls asleep in an armchair. She steps through the Looking-Glass, where she encounters several talking chess pieces. As she flies out of the Looking-Glass House, she sees a White Rabbit in the garden. (We can assume the season has magically changed to summer). She follows the Rabbit down the rabbit-hole into Wonderland.
After encounters with a Caterpillar, Cheshire Cat, a Mad Hatter, etc., a Gyphon suddenly transforms into the Red Queen (Edna May Oliver), who sets Alice off on a journey across a large chess board.
Other film versions have tried to give "meaning" to "Alice In Wonderland". This version succeeds because it does not do that at all. Why make sense out of nonsense? This film unfolds as a wacky, wild, often frightening, fever dream. Charlotte Henry is especially enthusiastic and appealing as Alice. She more than holds her own opposite the assorted weirdos of Wonderland.
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