Abbas Karimjee's Weblog

Here is our review of the  latest Alice in Wonderland film which is currently showing in theatres. This review particularly disects the portrayal of Alice as well as some key points in the story’s plot.Enjoy the read!

Readers should note that  this  review does contain major spoilers .

In the film  , Alice in Wonderland, Alice is  portrayed well as an imaginative individual who found significance in simple things, a person who underwent a fantastical journey in which she identifies reality and her destiny and it and where she eventually makes decisions regarding the future of her life.

I particularly  found the part  in which  Alice   becomes  frequently easily distracted to be  a realistic portrayal of her   personality. This is because Alice is an imaginative person who even at first believed that her dream was unreal, still tried and noticed elements of it in reality. This is seen by how she suddenly abandons her “soon to be mother- in – law” for the white rabbit in the garden which resembles that of a rabbit from her dreams/   recollection of her last visit to Underland. Her imaginative behaviour which is shown in daily life shows that she does  not only constantly remember/dream of a   magical yet mysterious  visit in Wonderland [ which  is significant towards the plot] but also  appreciates simple things in life and holds great meaning to them.

  - The part of the film  in which Alice does  not remember her initial visit to Wonderland and  where she misinterprets   Abseylum’s   mystical statement  as suggesting that she is the wrong Alice     allows Alice   to be portrayed as a character who is undergoing severe trials. Throughout the film Alice doubts her ability to fulfill the prophecy of her slaying the jabberwocky as   shown by how she tells both the clown and Abselyim that even if she wanted to slay the jabberwocky, she could not.  As well, on several occasions throughout the film attempts to ‘awake” herself  claiming that she is just in a dream. However,  as the film progressed to the point where Absyleum  reminds her of her previous  experience  in Wonderland and advises her of the true meaning  of his initial statement saying that Alice is now more like she was in her visit. I thought that after Alice found this out, she went through an enlightening experience where she realizes that her experience is real and it is her responsibility to ensure that the underland is under the just rule of the white queen. Her sudden realization is  seen by how she finds the courage to fight and defeat the jabberwocky on her own which   allows the   white queen to once again rule the land.

 I found Alice’s behaviour towards the end of the film to be that of a practical person. Even though she was aware that her experience in the Under land was indeed  real, she made the difficult decision of returning home .This is because after surviving her battle with the jabberwocky, she realized that she needed to return to her life in order  reach a basic degree of self fulfillment. This shows that even thought Alice is an imaginative person; she still is concerned about reality and wants to improve her actual life. Her efforts for improvement are seen towards the end of the film when she   rejects Hamish’s engagement proposal and decides to work with his father in expanding her father’s business to China. I  was especially  pleased with the conclusion of the film as it shows  how Alice’s  victory of defeating the jabberwocky  provided her insight  on the life she wanted and the character   ensured this life for her quickly after returning.