ARCHIVE POST: Alice Film Opinion: Hallmark’s Alice in Wonderland (1999)

So this is my re-evaluation of the 1999 adaptation which was a Hallmark production and was shown on channel 4 here in the UK.

I did not like this version at all when I first saw it, but after the catastrophies of 2010 and 2016, it is fair to say it has grown on me a bit more. For one, this is an adaptation of Carroll's books, a very flawed one yes, but 2010 and 2016 aren't even that, so I should be a bit more greatful! 

 So this is me attempting to right a few wrongs.

First off, the opening sequence is really unusual, dark, and I love it. The film opens with a massive metronome swinging back and forth. A very nervous Alice (played by Tina Majorino) appears and begins to sing “Cherry Ripe” a song which actually dates to the Victorian era. Fear overcomes Alice and she sings off key. She suddenly finds herself staring into a mirror as her grandmother is brushing her hair, humming aforementioned song.



After that surprisingly dark opening the moral of the story is introduced. Unfortunately Alice has to sing later in front of strangers at her parents party, something that she is horrified at. So stepping out of the house and in a attempt to run away from everything she inevitably discovers Wonderland. 

It is in the moral that the major flaw of this film sits upon. The novels mocked morals, particularly in the character of the Duchess who thinks that everything has a moral. 

`You’re thinking about something, my dear, and that makes you forget to talk. I can’t tell you just now what the moral of that is, but I shall remember it in a bit.’
`Perhaps it hasn’t one,’ Alice ventured to remark.

Unlike say, the 1985 film which also has a moral, I felt that this one sticks out badly. I would be fine with the moral if it was in the background but unfortunately every so often the film will bring it up. The characters in Wonderland actively tell Alice that they’re there to boost her confidence and to me this feels unnatural. It also takes a bit of the weirdness away because we know that the only reason Wonderland exists in this version is to help a dilemma.

The other major problem with this version is its length. After the mock turtle and gryphon scene the film takes a odd, and in my opinion, unnecessary detour into the second novel, “Through the Looking-Glass” where it goes through several chapters very quickly. I don’t really get the need for this. It just makes the film overly long.

Away from the negatives, there are great, great moments in this film. For example, the scene where Alice falls into wonderland is just stunning. The visual look of it all is gorgeous. There’s also the fantastic moment when Alice crosses into the Queen of Hearts’s garden, she walks through a mirror door and switches places with herself. How amazing is that? Oh did I mention the music? Its just beautiful. Richard Hartley’s score is to die for.

Lets talk about the performances, and first up, I have a bit of a confession to make. I don’t get Tina Majorino’s Alice at all. Maybe its because her interpretation is so far away from Carroll’s Alice, maybe I just don’t like her acting style. I have to like the portrayal of Alice and unfortunately, and although it pains me to say this, I just can’t like this interpretation.




On the positive side, three words: Elizabeth Springs, duchess. “MORE PEPPER!” The duchess in this version is one of the very best interpretations, completely mad and hilarious, the pig and pepper scene is one of the film’s best highlights with Springs and Shelia Hancock as the cook hamming it up like mad. The cook later steals the show in the trial scene with an unexpected Oxford reference!

Martin Short as the Hatter delivers a solid performance, even if I can’t stand the song he sings, “Auntie’s wooden leg”. Miranda Richardson is the Queen of Hearts. Think Queenie from Blackadder 2 doing Carroll and you’re somewhere near the ball park, she’s great, if not very threatening.



If you watch this with a Carrollian eye you will notice several references to things that are in the books. For example when Alice falls down the rabbit hole we see a goldfish in a bowl (possibly a reference to the “incident of the goldfish” a comment made by Carroll in the trial scene in the first book) and chess pieces (referencing the second book). In the opening credits toy versions of Tweedle-Dum and dee stand in front of a looking-glass, a reference to the second novel. There are lots of throwaway references and I love how many they managed to squeeze in.

Overall, this version is an extremely mixed bag that differs between great and questionable attributes. Its one of those films I can admire in places, but due to its flaws, it often feels like a fascinating, if failed, experiment.