Alice in Wonderland (1951) - 5 stars out of 10

Alice in Wonderland (1951) - 5 stars out of 10

"Alice in Wonderland" is an interesting component of the Disney Canon.  While it was initially a box office failure, the film boasts some of the most interesting and creative images in Disney's long history of animation.  While I believe that Wonderland should have appeared much stranger, most of the imagery is perfect for this imaginative land.  I love the design of the flowers, featuring subtle human features while still looking like normal flowers.  It's incredibly thoughtful how each flower takes on the literal characteristics of its genus like the blue bonnets, the shy violets, and the dandy pup.  The Disney animators also bring all of the great word-play creatures of Wonderland to life like the bread-and-butterflies, rocking-horseflies, and dog-and-caterpillars.  The voice actors reach the level of goofiness (or insanity) necessary to bring Lewis Carroll's characters to life, particularly Ed Wynn (Uncle Albert from "Mary Poppins") as the Mad Hatter and Sterling Holloway (Winnie the Pooh) as the Cheshire Cat.  Kathryn Beaumont also shines as Alice.  The problem with this film is not its quality of animation, voice acting, or characters.  The problem is that, due to the film's episodic nature, we never really develop a connection with Alice.  Even Walt said that the film failed because Alice had no heart.  There is no cohesiveness, almost as if five directors were hired to create their own individual sequence (oh wait, they were).  The episodic format was the problem with "Saludos Amigos" and "The Three Caballeros," and it causes the same problems for this film.  There is no greater example than the random sequence about the walrus and the carpenter that is only relevant "because the story was told by Tweedledee and Tweedledum in 'Through the Looking Glass.'"  Meanwhile, it has nothing to do with Alice or Wonderland.  I like these twin bozos, but why pull random elements from "Looking Glass" when "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" has plenty of material that was not included in the film?  The other misstep in this production is the inclusion of too many songs.  How are you supposed to remember the music from a 75-minute film that contains over 15 songs, some of which last less than 30 seconds?  Give me five solid show-stopping songs and I will show you an audience that will walk out of the theater singing "The Circle of Life" and getting back in line to learn the second verse of "I Just Can't Wait To Be King."  From a technical analysis, it is easy to find problems with "Alice in Wonderland," but it truly is an enjoyable family film; however, if you are looking for an accurate telling of Lewis Carroll's famous book, you will be disappointed.