Friday, September 22, 2017

My Experience With.... Alice in Wonderland (Part 4) -- The OTHER "Disney" Version

GURSHFGHWOJAWIFJD.
Here we go.


The first time I heard about this, everything just seemed... wrong. So wrong.

I was a little excited for a few of the actors, though, namely Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, and Anne "I Was Born to Be a Fairytale Character" Hathaway. So I decided to give it the benefit of the doubt, and figured that this went to the darker side of a dream, the kind of dream that isn't quite a nightmare, but a few more scares will have you seriously re-doubting yourself.

The movie was beyond disappointing for me, at first, mainly because Alice was a grown-up woman, who thought (and understandably so) that Wonderland was a dream. She's involved with all the blandness (no, seriously, look at the scenery) of her reality and it all gets interrupted when -- what else -- a white rabbit catches her eye. Deja vous, right?

Oh, and can someone change the title
to Alice in Underland? Yeah, it's "Underland,"
not "Wonderland." (WHY????)

In the original Disney version of this film (yes, this one IS a Disney version directed by Tim Burton), I mentioned that they combined the best of both of the original novels... here, they take the worst parts, age them in brine, and dress it up in goth clothes.

The whole story centers on Alice's coming of age plus fulfilling a Frabjous Day prophecy. It's that dull. While the concept itself sounds pretty cool, I think that this would be better suited in fan fiction.

I think that seems to be the case with a lot of movies these days, in a world that's dying for original content. If this were a game in a separate franchise, I might think it's cool. It's almost like that Twisted Fairytale spot-the-difference game with Goldilocks and the 3(?) Bears. It creeped me out, but it was a fresh take on a lower playing field. Even the story taking place in "Underland," is not that terrible of a concept, if it were not Disney or Tim Burton. Plus, it seemed very dark and structured for something that was supposed to be like a dreamland.

If you do watch this, try to watch without thinking of the original story, and pretend it's someone's fanfiction that got waaaaaaaaaaay too much funding.


Peace!

Plugging time! YouTube Page.

 What's your take on these revamped classic stories?
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Friday, September 15, 2017

My Experience With.... Alice in Wonderland (Part 3) -- The Disney Version

This week has been crazy for me, but hopefully, you all are doing well.


Alright, we’re week 3 in our Alice series, and this next item I’m reviewing may seem a mite familiar.


If there were any movie adaptation perfect for re-telling the classic tale, it would be the 1980s version. But Disney definitely comes in at a close second. Well, at least the old version does.

I was not one of those kids who grew up watching a whole lot of Disney movies. That definitely came in when I hit my 20s. I watched them to one extent or another, but I wasn’t attached to a whole lot of them. I think my favorites might’ve been Pinocchio, Dumbo, and Bambi. Bambi turned out to be way more dramatic and depressing than I remembered, Dumbo seemed more racist than I remembered (I’ll give it a pass, it was the 50s, and it’s no worse than some cartoons of that era), and Pinocchio – Daddy, I love you, but what were you thinking, letting me watch that? No wonder Mom made me stop watching it. How was I not scarred for life?

Anyway, Alice in Wonderland was definitely not on my Disney list until I was much older. As I grew up, I caught up with my Disney folklore from TV movies and the Library. I think I caught Alice in Wonderland on TV somewhere.

I think that Disney took this story to a very nutty extreme. This really shouldn’t be surprising, since classic Disney movies thrive on insane dynamics. I mean, look at Fantasia! It tells its stories through music and visuals the way an interpreter uses hand gestures and facial expressions. Things are often exaggerated to make a point come across.

By the way, that is not a knock on the deaf / hard-of-hearing community. I
am speaking from experience in watching ASL interpreters for local plays.
It’s fascinating to watch, really.
Even more fun than the actual show sometimes!

One thing I found fascinating about this Disney version of Alice in Wonderland was that they actually blended elements of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Where they didn’t have the mock turtle or the Gryphon (heck, the 1980s version even left him out!), they had the Tweedles, the talking flowers, the poem about the walrus and the chef, and even the Cheshire Cat (voiced by the Winnie-the-Pooh guy) sang the opening/closing of Jabberwocky. And what would a Disney movie be without it’s songs? I still sing the song from the flowerbed sometimes to this day! It’s gorgeous!

So… my opinion of the original Disney version? I love it. It’s a very calming, very zany, very colorful and fun interpretation of the original novel. Would the Queen of Hearts strike fear into a little youngster? Maybe. If that happens, just tell them she’s not real. Then make them act a similar role. Works almost every time.

Next week, you’ll see why I kept saying original Disney version…. ugh.

Plugging time! YouTube Page.

What’s your second-favorite obscure holiday?


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Friday, September 8, 2017

My Experience With.... Alice in Wonderland (Part 2) -- The Novels

If you haven't already, be sure to read these posts. If you have, and you want to re-read them, I don't blame you. ^_^

Alice Series:


Since I've written about the wonderfully surreal 1988 VHS version of the classic story, I may as well tell you about the actual novels!

Trust me, it's not gonna be that long, mainly because everyone knows the story already.

I'm pretty sure I was a teenager when I actually sat down and read the novels. I'd heard of Alice in Wonderland via the 1988 version and the old Disney version, and I heard of the somewhat-sequel from Between the Lions, but I finally got the time to read it for myself. My overall thoughts:


I dunno! I really don't know.

It's okay, I suppose. It sure seemed to reek of insane charm, but maybe it was somewhat lost due to its visual re-tellings.

However, the books are amazing, and you definitely should read them, because books are much better than movies 9.99/10 of the time. Alice trying to figure out capitols was especially hilarious. Maybe Wacko should've taught her.

By the way, I hope you liked the Yakko gif I worked on.

To be fair and honest, I personally prefer Through the Looking-Glass to Alice in Wonderland. This seems to capture more of what a wonderland fever dream / daydream would be. Not to mention, it contains Jabberwocky, which I remember memorizing in 6th grade.

That's it!

Check out my YouTube Page. I put up a video rather recently. ^_^

What sequel did you like better than an original of something?
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My Experience With... Going to a Salon (Natural Hair Journey part 2)

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