Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" [Archive]

Rococo Fox

05-24-2008, 11:43 AM

Burton's movies are pretty hit-or-miss, but I usually see them anyway. This one will be likely no exception, and it actually looks pretty interesting from the little bit we know about it. Retellings of classic stories are usually enjoyable if the retelling is unique enough, and when it comes to uniqueness at least, Burton usually doesn't have a problem. I hope he goes more of a "Nightmare Before Christmas" route with this than say a "Sweeney Todd" route.

Drew

05-24-2008, 12:28 PM

I can see this working.

The Disney version was pretty tame, and I imagine he will put a darker twist and include drug references.

I'll wait until it's out or I know more information before casting judgment.

billi vanilli

05-24-2008, 04:05 PM

awesome!

Gatorgod

05-24-2008, 04:10 PM

Next to "A Christmas Carol" ..this is ranks high as one of the most adapted to film/performance books ever. I saw a scary looking 1933 version (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Wonderland_%281933_film%29) late one night on TV, and up untill now, is the only one Ive been slightly impressed by. (I've yet to see the dark version "Alice" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_%281988_film%29)1988 by Czech film maker Neco Alenky

Lets face it, Its a difficult book to get right, It reads like, and IS, a morphine nightmare of sorts, very random and ramblingly insane. lots & lots of British love of wordplay (my least favorite/boring part of this book) Everyone who ever attempted this book usually takes what they can handle best. And doing it EXACTLY like the book is a big NO! also.
I Hope Tim Burton gives this complected masterpiece a good BurtonGothic rendering
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/gatorgod/GatorIcons/Happygator1.gif Keeping my fingers crossed!

jase

05-24-2008, 05:24 PM

Yeah, I too could see this working but I really hope he doesn't cast Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, it's become a cliche.

bmac

05-24-2008, 05:41 PM

i don't know, i think depp would actually be perfect as the mad hatter.

Enter The Moleman

05-24-2008, 05:43 PM

I'm surprised it has taken him this long to make this.

anthony

05-24-2008, 06:25 PM

haha those imdb forums are awful

Alice should be the genderbender Chris from 'leave Brittney alone'
who thinks Miley Cyrus should play alice?

The Southern Zombie

05-24-2008, 06:40 PM

I wonder how this will affect the supposed "dark" movie about Alice being a psychologically troubled misfit years after her Wonderland experience that Sarah Michelle Gellar was supposed to star in. I'd rather see one get scrapped than have both come out in the same year. If they came out at the same time, one might just look cheaper than the other and not get a fair chance because of the comparison (i.e. "Capote" and "Infamous" coming out without much distance between releases). Then again, if both are good, I guess it won't matter.

TheSuperiorGerbil

05-24-2008, 06:41 PM

I hope he makes it in a different way than he did Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I was kinda disspointed with that. But this certainly fits his style, I'll definitely see it.

brody

05-24-2008, 08:54 PM

burton is decent and all. but i only really love one of his movies (ed wood), and that doesn't really have his signature style (if you disregard johnny depp. at times i admire his movies more than i actually like them.

oh, and charlie and the chocolate factory is horrendous

SubSane

05-24-2008, 09:01 PM

I was already looking forward to the film based on the game:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0466663/

A Burton version seems like it would be the same thing.

The Southern Zombie

05-24-2008, 09:27 PM

<----- That's what he said.

Moose of Doom!

05-24-2008, 09:37 PM

i'd think it'd be interesting to see how burton handles the 3d.

and with performance capture, depp can play everyone!

Moe Nopoly

05-24-2008, 10:43 PM

A Burton movie adaption of Alice in Wonderland sounds good for me.
The story can be really scary when you think about it, so i think it will work.
Maybe Depp plays the MadHatter

billi vanilli

05-24-2008, 10:49 PM

i just watched the second half of charlie and the chocolate factory last night. it was way better than i remembered it being. not without flaws, but really good.

and wtf are you talking about, harleen? sweeny todd was great. a dark retelling of alice in wonderland would kick ass.

ARMslingerJoshua

05-24-2008, 10:58 PM

The only Burton movies I could watch over and over are Beetlejuice and Pee-Wee. And the latter isn't very Burtonesque aside from Large Marge and a couple things.

Sure AiW is a good story for Burton, doesn't mean I'm not sick tod eath of him and his presence in cinema.

box elder

05-24-2008, 11:47 PM

i'm not a huge burton fan (some of his movies, like planet of the apes, were completely terrible), but big fish is really under rated. shit made me cry. not kidding

anyway, this could go either way

billi vanilli

05-25-2008, 12:00 AM

big fish is the only movie that i can remember that made me cry. talked about it with dns once and he cried too.

great film.

BeyondBeyond

05-25-2008, 12:06 AM

(I've yet to see the dark version "Alice" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_%281988_film%29)1988 by Czech film maker Neco Alenky

Švankmajer´s Něco z Alenky is absolutely fabulous!

Josh C

05-25-2008, 01:02 AM

add me to the list of people who cried at big fish.
edward scissorhands was excellent, and that's everything by him i've seen.
this should be pretty great.

jim

05-25-2008, 02:47 AM

Sounds awesome to me! I was only watching the Disney version recently and thinking about how dark it was for a Disney film (such as the Walrus and the Carpenter segment) and how great a live action Tim Burton version could be, and now it might happen.

Like others mentioned, Ive been watching the development of the American McGees Alice In Wonderland, the movie based on the dark, macabre game, which seems lost in development hell. But a Tim Burton movie is even better! Bring it on!

America: Fuck Yea!

05-25-2008, 07:47 AM

I think I am the only person on the planet that hated Big Fish. More like, Big Shit.

and Sleepy Hollow wasn't that great either.

Rococo Fox

05-25-2008, 08:04 AM

and wtf are you talking about, harleen? sweeny todd was great. a dark retelling of alice in wonderland would kick ass.

I agree, "Sweeney Todd" was a good movie and was done almost perfectly for that type of film and for that particular story, but for this story, I think a movie that is still dark, Gothic, bizarre, et cetera, but that also focuses on the whimsical and fantastical aspects of the story would be more effective. The atmosphere of "Sweeney Todd" was certainly surreal, but I felt it lacked the classic Burton "fantasy" element, which I think would be essential to the retelling of "Alice in Wonderland". It would also be nice to see Burton attempt to strike a balance between the blood-and-gore and psychologically-disturbing nature of "Sweeney Todd" and the kid-friendly, quirky darkness of "Nightmare Before Christmas".

billi vanilli

05-25-2008, 01:22 PM

oh, yeah. agreed on all points.

TheSuperiorGerbil

05-25-2008, 03:10 PM

Sweeney todd, to me, was a fairly unbalanced product, since when you are getting the dark/spooky feel of a scene, a song breaks out, or a fantasy sequence straight out of another Burton film (which I like,but doesn't fit well), so it sometimes feels like watching different movies put togheter. I liked it, still.

Rebekah

05-25-2008, 03:18 PM

Tim please don't ruin Alice in Wonderland by making it a 18th century Goth musical..:(
I really enjoyed the cartoon and the one with Whoopi Goldburg in it. This is just going to ruin it!

al_fresco

05-25-2008, 04:23 PM

Sounds like a cool project. I don't know who else could do the film in a dark and unique style except Burton. BTW did anyone see the musical version w/ Dudley Moore and Peter Sellers? It took me three tries to get through the whole thing without feeling like I had been lobotomized.

Enter The Moleman

05-25-2008, 09:29 PM

I keep picturing it being something like this
<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hWHRGQB8eQI&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hWHRGQB8eQI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>

BeyondBeyond

05-25-2008, 09:40 PM

This is a vignette from Svankmajer's Alice.
Seriously, Burton doesn't stand a chance:).

<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MLjqn8qmE80&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MLjqn8qmE80&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>

RJF

05-26-2008, 09:34 AM

wow.That clip was...odd.
Looking forward to Burton's version, though.I haven't seen Sweeney Todd yet, but what I've heard is good and I've liked most of his other film's I've seen (except maybe Willy Wonka which was pretty mediocre).I'm not that keen on motion capture either.I don't really see the point to be honest.Still though, I'm pretty excited.

SubSane

05-26-2008, 11:15 AM

Buttering the clock was amusingly disturbing.

James L. Brookes

05-28-2008, 07:06 AM

It's a terribly unoriginal idea, but we're talking about the man currently planning a two-hour remake of his very own 80's short film.

Tim Burton's last ORIGINAL film was.....um.....let's see...there must be somthing........Pee Wee's Big Adventure, and his FIRST ORIGINAL film was......Pee Wee's Big Adventure!

James L. Brookes

05-28-2008, 07:08 AM

I think I am the only person on the planet that hated Big Fish. More like, Big Shit.

and Sleepy Hollow wasn't that great either.

Sleepy Hollow was his worst movie

America: Fuck Yea!

05-28-2008, 07:25 AM

Tim Burton's last ORIGINAL film was.....um.....let's see...there must be somthing........Pee Wee's Big Adventure, and his FIRST ORIGINAL film was......Pee Wee's Big Adventure!

Well, that film was loosely based on De Sica's "The Bicycle Thieves".

Wouldn't Big Fish or even Beetle Juice be considered 'original'?

Kamerica

05-28-2008, 07:32 AM

i actually liked big fish a lot but cmon guys sweeney todd was not great

James L. Brookes

05-28-2008, 10:12 AM

Wouldn't Big Fish or even Beetle Juice be considered 'original'?

Beetle Juice was intensly loosely based on a German tale Beetle Giest.(yet with still some simmilarities) I am pretty sure Big Fish was based upon a book.

Clark Westfall

05-28-2008, 12:48 PM

Likw everyone said, this could be hit or miss, I do kinda like the idea of Burton retelling Alice in Wonderland. It was pretty dark to begin with, I can only imagine what Burton will do with it.

bmac

05-28-2008, 01:06 PM

who cares how original or unoriginal his ideas are anyway.

original stories and ideas are tucked into a small corner of the film industry to begin with.

al_fresco

05-28-2008, 04:32 PM

who cares how original or unoriginal his ideas are anyway.

original stories and ideas are tucked into a small corner of the film industry to begin with.

So very true. It is difficult to find a movie from H-wood that is simply an original idea start to finish. So difficult...I don't even care to try.

Moose of Doom!

05-28-2008, 07:38 PM

edward scissorhands and the nightmare before christmas = two films based on original ideas from burton.

the same criticism could be leveled at spielberg. i can't wait to see how burton'll handle the 3D aspect though.

James L. Brookes

05-29-2008, 07:52 AM

edward scissorhands and the nightmare before christmas = two films based on original ideas from burton.

We are talking about films that Tim Burton Directed not films that people think he directed...so count Nightmare Before Christmas Out. As for Edward Scissorhands you are correct that is original..someone told me it was a story but it turns out they were wrong. Dont get me wrong though, He is creative with his visions and shots but mostly picks others stories to turn into his films.

jim

05-29-2008, 11:37 AM

Even if he didnt actually direct TNBC, Burton is to that movie what Geroge Lucas is to The Empire Strikes Back. He was the main creative force behind it and deserves the most credit for it.

TheSuperiorGerbil

05-29-2008, 12:51 PM

True.

Moose of Doom!

05-29-2008, 02:39 PM

James L. Brookes

05-29-2008, 05:53 PM

and again, if you look at most prolific directors working today, it's the same deal. peter jackson hasnt made a film based on an "original idea" in 13 years. spielberg hasn't made one since E.T., which came out in 1982!

Your absolutly right they havn't made an original film in years...and this is why I no longer like Peter Jackson or Steven Spielberg! Just because others no longer come up with original stories doesn't make it okay! Besides your not listening to me, I admire the works of Tim Burton, Edward Scissor Hands and Beetle Juice are up in my top 20 Films, and some of his others are not far behind! But as far as stories go...there are slim to none that he has come up with!

billi vanilli

05-29-2008, 06:00 PM

you're

jim

05-29-2008, 10:29 PM

James L. Brookes, I dont get what you are saying... How many movies can you name that have a completely original story? If you want to get anal about it, just about everything can be traced back to some fairytale or real life event or something. The Godfather is based on a book, does that make it less of a movie?

Its a moviemakers job to tell story. Doesnt matter whether they invented it or not. So long as the interpretation is new.

ARMslingerJoshua

05-29-2008, 11:13 PM

Your absolutly right they havn't made an original film in years...and this is why I no longer like Peter Jackson or Steven Spielberg! Just because others no longer come up with original stories doesn't make it okay! Besides your not listening to me, I admire the works of Tim Burton, Edward Scissor Hands and Beetle Juice are up in my top 20 Films, and some of his others are not far behind! But as far as stories go...there are slim to none that he has come up with!

I doubt you've ever even seen one of Peter Jackson's "original" movies, talking like that.

Braindead ftw.

morbot

05-30-2008, 12:41 AM

Warning: You should be drunk to follow my reasoning/emotion in the following post:

Beetle Juice was intensly loosely based on a German tale Beetle Giest.(yet with still some simmilarities) I am pretty sure Big Fish was based upon a book.
Yeah... nearly EVERY FUCKING MOVIE is loosely based on something or from a book.

As a matter of fact, every Director who's ever used a script written by a WRITER is a fucking HACK for not making up the movie scene by scene as he filmed & it popped into his head.

Seriously you couldn't have a bigger anti-boner for Tim Burton if you tried... we get it. You can drop it now.

I for one am excited to see Burton take something familiar and present it in a darker, twisted way. As a DIRECTOR it's his job to orchestrate and DIRECT the story... it's not his job to CREATE the story.

fritz

05-30-2008, 12:49 AM

that's pretty much dead on morbo

i wanna see it. i liked todd. i mean it's a musical but it has lots of blood so that made it cool... musical. i'm losing my train of thought

tim burton is a guy who more often than not makes movies i enjoy

James L. Brookes

05-30-2008, 07:58 PM

I doubt you've ever even seen one of Peter Jackson's "original" movies, talking like that.

The Frighteners is one of my favorite movies by him!

Warning: You should be drunk to follow my reasoning/emotion in the following post:

Yeah... nearly EVERY FUCKING MOVIE is loosely based on something or from a book.

As a matter of fact, every Director who's ever used a script written by a WRITER is a fucking HACK for not making up the movie scene by scene as he filmed & it popped into his head.

Seriously you couldn't have a bigger anti-boner for Tim Burton if you tried... we get it. You can drop it now.

I for one am excited to see Burton take something familiar and present it in a darker, twisted way. As a DIRECTOR it's his job to orchestrate and DIRECT the story... it's not his job to CREATE the story.

You dumbasses just wanna hear what you wanna hear instead of what I am saying!
If you read back in a post I did yesterday I stated that Beetle Juice and Edward Scissorhands are in my top 20 films of all time! I am not saying that Tim Burton is a bad film maker...I am not saying that I hate him, he happens to be one of my favorite directors! Get it through your thick skull that all I was saying was that from a story standpoint he is usually doesn't come up with his own tales...thats it! I didn't say it to attack his character it was just a response to someones comment about this being "unusually unoriginal for him!" or something along those lines.

James L. Brookes, I dont get what you are saying... How many movies can you name that have a completely original story? If you want to get anal about it, just about everything can be traced back to some fairytale or real life event or something. The Godfather is based on a book, does that make it less of a movie?

Its a moviemakers job to tell story. Doesnt matter whether they invented it or not. So long as the interpretation is new.

Good argument, now if only that was based on reality....
I never stated that it makes him any less of a filmmaker! Would I like to see an original story? yes! But all I was saying was that he doesn't make his own stories, that is all! See my post above if your still don't understand...

Tim Burton

06-04-2008, 08:07 AM

I agree with James L. Brookes, I am not original when it comes to the stories on which my movies are based, however I think Im a kick ass film maker, and he should stop opposeing me!

billi vanilli

06-04-2008, 10:35 AM

yo dude

corpse bride sucked

Nerd Groupie

06-04-2008, 12:17 PM

James L Brooks... calm the fuck down. You've been told a couple times and you will not be told again.

I actually dug Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I remember watching some version of Alice in Wonderland in college. And Little Red Riding hood. Both were super creepy and dark. This could be pretty interesting.

LilyVonSchtupp

06-12-2008, 04:13 PM

SICK SICK SICK!!!

Burnin'

09-25-2008, 02:22 PM

mad hatter it is

"Johnny Depp to star in more Disney projects, including "Pirates 4"

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Superstar actor Johnny Depp has signed on to three new Disney projects, including the fourth installment of the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, the entertainment industry newspaper Variety confirmed Thursday.

Along with the reprisal of off-beat pirate Captain Jack Sparrow, Depp will star as the long-suffering Native American sidekick Tonto in a new version of the iconic "Lone Ranger," produced by hit producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

If this wasn't enough for the 45-year-old actor, Depp will also play the Mad Hatter in director Tim Burton's adaptation of the classic "Alice in Wonderland," using a mix of 3D animation and performance capture technology similar to that used for 2007's "Beowulf."

The announcements for "Ranger," "Wonderland" and "an additional role" were made before a crowd of roaring fans in Hollywood Wednesday when Depp appeared at the Walt Disney Showcase, a preview of the studio's productions over the next few years.

The "Pirates 4" confirmation arrived early Thursday through the actor's representatives in Variety.

The franchise has been a worldwide phenomenon since the first installment in 2003, earning more than 2.6 billion dollars at the box office.

Fans are rejoicing the actor's reunion with director Burton, who has created the milestone projects of Depp's career, including his breakout role in the 1990 blockbuster "Edward Scissorhands," and 2005's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

Like many of Depp's roles, the new Disney projects seek to attract as many adult viewers as they do younger fans.

No premiere dates for any of the projects have been announced."

James L. Brookes

09-25-2008, 02:31 PM

they announced he was mad hatter about a month ago if i aint mistaken.

Burnin'

09-25-2008, 02:41 PM

i read through the thread and it wasn't mentioned, my bad... but hey...TONTO!

James L. Brookes

09-25-2008, 02:46 PM

yes, tonto, and that is pretty badass of Depp

Kiyosuki

09-25-2008, 07:10 PM

It's been mentioned already, but this really does keep making me think of this:

http://gamasutra.com/features/20060915/alice.jpg

What a trippy game. Thing is too is that the macabre feel really went well with it oddly. I guess if you think about Alice in Wonderland's premise...it's actually a pretty twisted story in a lot of ways to begin with. I don't think this film will get quite as disturbing as McGee's Alice but if done right even a slightly twisted take on the story won't be too out of place.