Review of Alice in Wonderland (1951) by Ryan T — 13 Aug 2013

Alice in Wonderland is one of the hardest stories to adapt to film because of all of the intricacies of its plot. But in the medium of animation, Disney scores big with a charming adaptation that adheres to the original story but also offers its own unique twist.

The animation is some of the darkest and surreal of all Disney films and creates for some strange imagery. The characters are wacky, and the voice acting is one part of that. Ed Wynn and Jerry Colonna as the Mad Hatter and the March Hare respectively are so friendly towards Alice, that it's so hard to tell just how menacing they are underneath.

Sterling Holloway brings his usual brand of stellar vocalization to the Cheshire Cat, while regular Disney cast member Verna Felton displays a grand degree of pomp to the Queen of Hearts. Kathryn Beaumont though leads the cast well as the title character, bringing a total innocence to the role, yet also showing that she will not put up with all the craziness going on that easily.

This film also displays a unique brand of wit and charm only found in a Disney movie. I found that this movie was a great adaptation of the original source material, and I feel it is one of their stronger adaptations.

Far superior to the Tim Burton version, Wonderland pops with a mixture of bright and dark colours and appealing characters. This is one of my favourites.