Alice in Wonderland (Masterpiece Edition)
by Clyde Geronimi, David Hand, Hamilton Luske, Robert Florey, Wilfred Jackson
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Ed Wynn, Jerry Colonna, Kathryn Beaumont, Richard Haydn, Sterling HollowayDirector: Clyde Geronimi, David Hand, Hamilton Luske, Robert Florey, Wilfred Jackson
Brand: Masterpiece
Writer: Aldous Huxley
Writer: Bill Peet
Writer: Bill Walsh
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; French (Original Language), Unknown; Spanish (Original Language), Unknown
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 75 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-01-27
Audience Rating: G (General Audience)
Model: 3322503
Studio: Walt Disney Home Video
Product features:
- Experience the magic, fun, and adventure of ALICE IN WONDERLAND like never before in this new Masterpiece Edition 2-Disc set. Join Alice as she falls into the madcap world of Wonderland and meets extraordinary characters such as Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and the frantically late White Rabbit. And the fun continues with new bonus features including the Virtual
Movie Reviews of Alice in Wonderland (Masterpiece Edition)
Movie Review: Walt Disney's Wonderland
Summary: 5 Stars
Early on in Walt Disney's career, he had wanted to tell the story of Alice in Wonderland. As early as 1923 he had begun a series of short films, which featured a young girl in the role of Alice and integrated her live-action performance with animation. So it's no surprise that he wished to make a full-length film based upon Lewis Carroll's classic stories. What is a surprise is that, in 1951 when the film was finally released, Walt Disney was extremely disappointed. He felt that the film lacked an emotional center and that the characters were weak and unmemorable. Perhaps his discontentment was caused by his high expectations or maybe Walt simply didn't understand that the film was a masterpiece, but whatever the reason for his disliking the film, it has gone on to become a classic (of all of the films made while Walt Disney was alive this, Fantasia, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and 101 Dalmatians are my favorites).
The story, which combines elements from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Saw There, was unfairly criticized for deviating from Lewis Carroll's original text. But of all the film adaptations inspired by the Alice books, this is one of the most faithful to the spirit and essence of the books despite the many changes to chronology and the deletion of many sequences. Disney's Alice in Wonderland is a delightful, song-filled and beautifully animated adventure into a world of nonsense and absurdity.
The story begins with Alice, who's grown tired of her lessons in history, daydreaming of a world of her own; a world where flowers talk, where animals behave like people and people behave like fools, a world where the laws of physics wouldn't apply. Suddenly her fantasy is intruded upon by a white rabbit, dressed in his finest and carrying an umbrella and pocket watch, who frantically intones, "I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!" Intrigued, for she has never met a talking rabbit before, Alice runs after the White Rabbit and crawls into his rabbit hole. Within the dark confines of the hole, Alice blindly progresses until she finds herself plummeting into a dark abyss. She falls and falls and falls, all the while taking notice of her strange surroundings. When she finally lands she continues her pursuit of the White Rabbit until she comes to a door. The Doorknob insists that Alice is much too big to fit through such a tiny door, so he suggests that she drink from the bottle on the table, which appears out of nowhere, and then will change size. Alice drinks from the bottle and shrinks until she's just the right height to fit through the door when the Doorknob tells her that he is locked and that the key is on the table far above them. This is remedied when a box of cookies magically appear and when Alice takes a bite she grows taller than ever before. Though she can now reach the key, she's no longer able to fit through the door and thus she begins to cry. Soon her tears form an ocean and when Alice drinks from the bottle and shrinks again, she lands in this ocean where she is eventually carried to shore. Now her adventures really begin as she meets one bizarre character after another. First she meets the sea captain, Dodo Bird and then the mischievous brothers Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Soon she catches up to the White Rabbit only to face greater obstacles. She encounters talking flowers who think she's a common weed, an erudite caterpillar that gives her lessons in grammar, and she meets the mysterious Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and the March Hare. She discovers a kingdom of playing cards that are ruled over by the cruel Queen of Hearts, who demands obedience or else threatens beheading. Alice's Wonderland becomes a surreal nightmare and she barely manages to escape the only way she knows how, by waking up.
This DVD contains a glorious restoration of the film as well as numerous bonus features including a Virtual Wonderland Party, two Sing Along Songs, Adventures in Wonderland set-top game, a newly discovered Cheshire Cat song, and the classic Mickey Mouse cartoon, Thru the Mirror. Also included is Walt Disney's first televised program One Hour in Wonderland, two theatrical trailers, two television introductions by Walt Disney, a behind the scenes featurette, an excerpt from the Fred Waring Show, deleted songs and storyboard sequence, and an art gallery.
With all of these features this DVD deserves a place on your shelf of Disney favorites. However Walt Disney Home Entertainment has discontinued this wonderful 2-disc Masterpiece Edition of Alice in Wonderland so if you are fortunate enough to come across a copy, I would urge you to buy it as this will in all likelihood be the final DVD release of the film. The future versions will be in the Blu-ray format.
Summary of Alice in Wonderland (Masterpiece Edition)
Experience the magic, fun, and adventure of Alice in Wonderland like never before in this new Masterpiece Edition 2-Disc set. Join Alice as she falls into the madcap world of Wonderland and meets extraordinary characters such as Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and the frantically late White Rabbit. And the fun continues with new bonus features including the Virtual Wonderland Party, the newly discovered Cheshire Cat song "I'm Odd," Mickey's "Thru the Mirror" animated short, plus sing-along songs and all-new games. Your family will want to experience this timeless Disney masterpiece again and again!Walt Disney seems to have had a special affection for Lewis Carroll's "Alice" stories. "Alice's Wonderland" (1923), a short about a live-action little girl in a cartoon world, led to his first successful series, the "Alice" comedies (collected on Walt Disney Treasures: Disney Rarities--Celebrated Shorts, 1920s -1960s). During the early '30s, he talked about making an animation/live-action feature of "Alice in Wonderland" with Mary Pickford in the title role. But almost two decades would elapse before Disney released his Alice. It's the most uneven of the classic Disney features, juxtaposing brilliant and dull sequences. The Mad Tea Party, the Queen of Hearts' Croquet Game, and Alice's encounters with the Caterpillar and Cheshire Cat fuse the spirit of Carroll's words, the vitality of the polished animation, and the stylized look and brilliant palette of designer Mary Blair. But the song "I Give Myself Very Good Advice" and the unsatisfying adaptation of "The Walrus and Carpenter" bring the story to a halt. Disney's Alice in Wonderland remains a beloved film, and its better moments are truly magical. (Rated G: cartoon violence, some scary moments, tobacco use) --Charles Solomon
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