We just got back from watching Alice in Wonderland in 3D.
I LOVED THIS MOVIE.
I mean, really, really loved it. But then, I love everything Tim Burton does. I think it's because of the hair. You know, the crazy, wild mop of black. Could it perhaps stem from my passion for The Cure? Robert Smith and Tim Burton have some scary similarities, right?
But it goes beyond just Tim Burton. It's the trio, really, that works for me: Burton, Depp, and Elfman. I was a huge 21 Jump Street fan, and Oingo Boingo. Loved them. So it's only natural I adore Burton's films, right?
And of course Richard Zanuck pictured next to Johnny, who has produced all of Burton's film over the last few years.
My love of Burton started with Pee Wee's Big Adventure. How fun was that? And then Beetlejuice. I fell madly in love with Beetlejuice. I couldn't tell you how many times I've seen that film. Edward Scissorhands. Ed Wood. Big Fish. Love, love, love them.
So what is it about his films that gets to me? For one, there's a timelessness to them. Like in Edward Scissorhands. The neighborhood seems straight out of the 50s, but then there are modern appliances. You can't place the time frame. And of course the stunning visuals. The surrealness. The MOOD created in his films. He always pulls me out of my reality and into his; just what I want a film to do.
(Hmmm... there goes that Robert Smith thing again.)
Critics may not be in love with Burton's version of Alice, but I am. The story moves. It's visually stunning (especially in 3D although my feller disagrees and wants to see it in 2D). The casting is fantastic. And it stays true to Lewis Carroll while still giving a fresh interpretation. I've never heard a theater full of kids remain so quiet through the entire film. They were captivated just as I was.
Only one scene in the film stood out as a bit of a clunker: The dance scene near the end. The music was wrong. The moves clearly special effects. It didn't work for me. But that's it. The rest swept me away.
Keep doing what you're doing, Mr. Burton, and I'll be your fan forever.
