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Was anyone else disturbed by the characters?

posted 9 years ago by Freddyfan951
5 replies | jump to latest

I have always loved Alice as one of my favorite books. I can understand why some people find parts of it creepy in a surreal, existential way, but was never bothered by it at all.
I just saw the film, and liked it very much. The makeup/puppetry of the Wonderland characters was incredibly realistic, same company that did the 1999 version's effects too. But even with the accuracies in book illustration and dialogue, the creatures seemed so grotesque and vaguely threatening. The Mad Tea party is one of my favorite scenes, but i the scene in this film unnerved me, especially with the Hatter's violent outbursts and telling Alice that she should be dead.
Very thought provoking and memorable film. Just wondering if anyone else found parts of the film unsettling, even with the beloved subject matter.

[–] PenTheater 9 years ago

yes, that is on supposed to be the effect, Alice herself looking back on the characters, not necessarily as a casual (is there such a person?) reader of the stories. The possible seediness of the whole thing, even though they were all innocently created in a nonsensical way to amuse Alice and her sisters. The characters almost mocking her, when in reality she just had to come to the realization that she was now famous because of all this, and he did in fact love her dearly.

[–] whereismikeyfl 8 years ago

While not as disturbing as Jan Švankmajer's versions of Alice characters, these were unsettling and threatening. The whole Victorian and fantasy sections of the film seem to be on the verge of some kind of violence. Alice's spash, the mother's tearing of the letters, and the sweet end of the film which morphs into gothic darkness all point toward meanings beyond the bright surfaces.

Really a terrific film.

[–] Blueghost 8 years ago

I saw this on HBO when they first aired it, but never really understood all of the subtext to it, though I got a lot of the general gist of what it was about.

I just wasn't sure why they just didn't come out and say Lewis Carroll was a creep, or had creepy friends, or may have had behavior that was creepy if not downright abusive towards little girls.

It seemed more speculative than a concrete assertion. And I think that bothered me more than the dream sequences. It's like hinting that one of your favorite authors is an abuser, but you don't come out and just say it.

The dream sequences I thought were ... just bizarre or strange in the extreme. I didn't get them.

[–] Freddyfan951 8 years ago

Was there any evidence that he did anything more than photograph the girls? I know that he asked Alice's mother if he could marry her, and he lost completely lost interest in her as she got older.

It is a strange thing to come to terms with, but I do believe he was probably a pedophile. I'm just uncertain if he ever acted on any urges he had.

[–] 8 years ago

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