I first encountered this version of ALICE IN WONDERLAND back in the early 1960s when I was home from school recovering from a bad cold. In those days your local TV station would show morning movies before the game shows started. I only saw it that one time until many years later but I never forgot some of the imagery. It may not be Lewis Carroll’s ALICE (no movie ever is) but it does create a world of its own which is its strongest selling point. It actually plays better today than in 1933.
With a few exceptions (W.C. Fields, Cary Grant, Gary Cooper), no one remembers the other stars (aside from Charlotte Henry best known as Bo-Peep in Laurel & Hardy’s BABES IN TOYLAND) and so they can be viewed as characters not stars under heavy make-up. The adaptation by Joseph L. Mankiewicz retains most of Carroll’s original dialogue and is more THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS than ALICE. It flows very nicely between the two books and at 77 minutes seems just right. As has been noted elsewhere the film was originally 90 minutes but the missing footage deals with the real world so it probably isn’t missed too badly. The question is why was it cut.
For reasons that have never been fully explained or understood, the film has been out of circulation for years (even from TV showings) and was never officially released until now to cash in on the Tim Burton adaptation (just as Sherlock Holmes movies have reappeared in time for Robert Downey Jr’s version). That’s how the game is played. The cover has even been colorized to hide the fact from most people that the film is in black & white. The production design by the legendary William Cameron Menzies uses black and white to good advantage as does Bert Glennon’s photography so fortunately no attempt was made to colorize the film for this release.
In fact Universal, who now owns the rights to the film, has made no attempt to do much of anything with this release which is a real shame. I’m sure there are copyright issues involved but it would have been nice to have the Betty Boop cartoon BETTY IN BLUNDERLAND as an added bonus as well as production stills or commentary from someone who admires the film. Although not a perfect transfer, it is light years away from the bootleg and gray market copies available until now and for that I am thankful. Maybe someday it will get the royal treatment it deserves.
The Capsule Critic 