Trailer: Alice in Wonderland

Link to trailer

Another year, another Tim Burton film. How many more can this guy make? Wait, that didn’t start right, let’s try it again.

Tim Burton’s working with Disney now? Maybe someone will tie him down to a script. Damn, no, again.

Oh boy! A new Tim Burton film! It looks great!

Of course, Tim Burton films always look great, don’t they? That’s what gets us in the theatre, right? That’s what makes him great. And frustrating. One of these days we’ll express both our feelings for Burton in a review of “Edward Scissorhands,” but today I need to talk about this.

This is a cool trailer. It makes me want to see the movie, but I have the same reservations I always have about Burton. He’s a master of his own unique visual style, which he’ll cram into almost any film whether the film likes it or not. Ironically, Burton’s best movie, “Ed Wood,” was his least Burton-esque. Strange. But Burton’s usual downfall of preferring visuals over scripts has gotten better in the past few years. We both liked “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Corpse Bride,” and “Sweeney Todd.” Two of those movies (and “Ed Wood”) came from strong source material that demanded a strong narrative to work. “Alice in Wonderland” has the opportunity to actually blend a story with Burton’s visual style. It could be great; if he lets it.