Alice (1988)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Alice |
| Original title | Něco z Alenky |
| Country of production |
Czechoslovakia Switzerland United Kingdom Germany |
| original language | Czech |
| Publishing year | 1988 |
| length | 86 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Jan Švankmajer |
| script | Jan Švankmajer |
| production |
Peter-Christian Fueter Condor Films AG |
| camera | Svatopluk Malý |
| cut | Marie Zemanová |
| occupation | |
| |
| synchronization | |
|
Alice | |
Alice (Original title: Něco z Alenky ) is a Czech, surrealist fantasy film by Jan Švankmajer , which was co-produced by the Swiss Condor Films AG . It is based on Lewis Carroll's book Alice in Wonderland in the unique Švankmajer style . The film is a combination of live action and stop-motion animation. Alice was played by Kristýna Kohoutová and dubbed in the English version by Camilla Power .
Jan Švankmajer orientates himself in the narration of the original story of Alice in Wonderland . However, there are a number of sequences that appear in the film separately from the original story. Individual characters, such as the Queen of Hearts, have also been changed. As in the original, it is not always clear whether the main character Alice acts in an imaginary world or in reality.
action
At the beginning of the film, Alice appears in the nursery with a stuffed rabbit. This comes to life and breaks through the showcase that is supposed to keep it from the children's hands. Alice follows the hare across a stony field. The hunt ends in a desk drawer that turns out to be the entrance to a cave. After Alice has watched the white rabbit scooping sawdust out of a pot, she falls into the depths and ends up in wonderland. The wonderland itself is an irritating mixture of real elements in the film, the time and space conditions of which, however, are completely incongruent and surrealistic.
At the end of the film, Alice wakes up in her children's room - and finds that the rabbit is missing from the showcase.
production
With the exception of Alice, all characters were animated frame by frame using the stop-motion process, such as the stuffed white rabbit, a sock with teeth and glass eyes, or a lizard with a skull.
Reviews
The film is considered a cult film . All 13 reviews of Rotten Tomatoes gave a good result. The film has a total of 7.8 out of 10 rating points.
The film was sometimes described as visually grotesque, perverse, or disturbing after its premiere, but it was also accorded a strangely seductive appeal. The figure of the stuffed white rabbit was praised, which, unlike in the original, constantly loses sawdust due to a crack in the chest, which he has to consume spoon by spoon throughout the story.
Language versions
The film premiered on August 3, 1988 in the United States under the title Alice . Many characters have been renamed and redesigned in the film, but share the same characteristics. For example, the March hare became a wind-up toy rabbit. In Germany it was premiered on February 2, 2011 in Dresden .
Restoration and republication
The original Czech version with English subtitles was not previously available on VHS and DVD. The British Film Institute BFI re-released the original version in 2011 on Blu-ray Disc and on DVD as a restored original version.
Individual evidence
- ↑ AV Club - The New Cult Canon - Alice (English)
- ^ Review by Rotten Tomatoes (accessed on March 11, 2010)
- ↑ First performance in Dresden. Internet Movie Database , accessed August 30, 2018 .
- ^ Michael B .: Alice (Jan Švankmajer, 1988) . In: Blu-ray.com . October 26, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.