Alice Through the Looking Glass 2016 6 out of 10
Looking at the box office results I wonder whether anyone really asked for a Sequel to Alice in Wonderland from 2010? The first Alice was pretty much a complete story. The fact that the movie made over a Billion dollars worldwide I'm sure Disney thought there was a calling for a second trip to Wonderland.
Wonderland itself is an amazing place that is a visual delight to explore so why not return to this magical place. Apparently in 6 years everyone forgot about Alice and Wonderland. After 4 huge blockbuster films in a row that included The Force Awakens (over 2 Billion) Captain America (1.1 Billion so far) and both The Jungle Book and Zootopia surprisingly nearly a Billion as well---I'm sure when Alice staked out Memorial Weekend release date --they thought it was a sure thing. So where did it go wrong????
Maybe that is a question for a later date---because from even though I didn't see it as a must see sequel or even necessary for that matter the numbers from the first one would say otherwise.
James Cameron maybe you should be worried about your Avatar sequels???
The movie itself
I had mentioned when I saw the sneak peek that this was one of the first films that the sneak peek in the parks didn't make me excited to see. My stepdaughter wanted to go so off to the movies we went. Something was different on this trip to Wonderland.
Tim Burton didn't actually direct this one and maybe that had something to do with it. It felt like Jaws 2 when compared to the original Jaws. All the same actors were back --but it just didn't click this time.
It definitely wasn't the visuals. Wonderland looked amazing on the big screen was again. I think the problem was in the story. The original Alice did a clever job of making it Alice's returning to Wonderland as a 19 year old girl. It touched on many of the elements that made the books and the Disney animated feature so great with a Tim Burton twist. The sequel to me was lacking in a story that made good use of Wonderland as a setting. This time around we literally get a story about Time (played by Sasha Baron Cohen). Alice returns to Wonderland again and gets involved in a Time Travel story searching for the Mad Hatter's family.
It was just and odd choice and felt at times like it was more suited for a Spy Kids movies instead of Alice in Wonderland.
The best scene of the movie was probably when Time was questioning The Hatter at the Tea Party about where Alice was.
The movie was okay --but it just wasn't magically like the first one.
Alice in Wonderland 2010 8+ out of 10
My stepdaughter wanted to watch the original Alice (from 2010) later that night, because she was too young to remember seeing it.
In comparison to its under performing sequel this Alice was magical. From the moment Alice runs away from her engagement party and follows the White Rabbit down the rabbit hole you are transported to the fun and amazing world of Wonderland. Tim Burton was the perfect director to capture Wonderland on screen. The strangeness of this universe perfectly matched his visual style. Sure this Wonderland was a little different than the animated version since it ends with Alice battling the dreaded Jabberwocky. This version of Wonderland was both familiar and fresh at the same time.
The sequel just seemed like maybe they didn't really have a good idea to make returning to Wonderland worthwhile ---but did it anyway because it seemed like a sure thing box office wise..... Maybe Disney can learn from this before jumping into Maleficent 2 and Jungle Book 2 which both seem unnecessary.
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