Alice in Wonderland (1999) (TV)

Director:

Nick Willing

Writers (WGA):

Lewis Carroll (novel)
Peter Barnes (teleplay)

Release Date:

28 February 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

A Masterpiece of Imagination. . .

Plot:

The wizards behind "Merlin" and "The Odyssey" combine Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" into a three-hour special that just gets curiouser and curiouser.

Plot Keywords:

Rabbit | Cheshire Cat | White Rabbit | Cat | Cards

Awards:

Won 4 Primetime Emmys. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Robbie Coltrane	...	Ned Tweedledum
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Cheshire Cat
Ben Kingsley	...	Major Caterpillar
Christopher Lloyd	...	White Knight
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Carpenter
Miranda Richardson	...	Queen of Hearts / Society Woman
Martin Short	...	Mad Hatter / Chinless Idiot
Peter Ustinov	...	Walrus
George Wendt	...	Fred Tweedledee
Gene Wilder	...	Mock Turtle
Tina Majorino	...	Alice
Ken Dodd	...	Mr. Mouse
Jason Flemyng	...	Sir Jack, the Knave of Hearts / Cad
Sheila Hancock	...	Cook
Simon Russell Beale	...	King Cedric of Hearts / Society Man
Liz Smith	...	Miss Lory
Elizabeth Spriggs	...	Duchess
Donald Sinden	...	The Gryphon (voice)
Joanna Lumley	...	Tiger Lily (voice)
Richard Coombs	...	The White Rabbit (voice)
Kiran Shah	...	The White Rabbit
Francis Wright	...	The March Hare
Adrian Getley	...	March Hare / Gryphon
Robert Tygner	...	March Hare / Gryphon
Nigel Plaskitt	...	Dormouse
David Alan Barclay	...	Dormouse / Gryphon (as Dave Barclay)
Peter Bayliss	...	Mr Dodo
Heathcote Williams	...	Mr Eaglet
Ken Campbell	...	Mr Duck
Jason Byrne	...	Pat The Gardener
Paddy Joyce	...	Bill The Gardener
Murray Melvin	...	Chief Executioner
Janine Eser	...	Mother
Jeremy Brudenell	...	Father
Mary Healey	...	Nanny
Dilys Laye	...	Governess
Tim Potter	...	Three Of Hearts
Angus Barnett	...	Four Of Hearts
Richard Strange	...	Six Of Hearts
Toby Ross-Bryant	...	Eight Of Hearts
Jonathan Broadbent	...	Royal Gardener #1
Matthew Sim	...	Royal Gardener #2
Christopher Ryan	...	Royal Gardener #3 (as Chris Ryan)
Peter Eyre	...	Frogface Footman
Hugh Lloyd	...	Fishface Footman
John Owens	...	Red Bishop
Christopher Greet	...	White Castle
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gerard Naprous	...	Red Knight (uncredited)

Directed by
Nick Willing

Writing credits (WGA)
Lewis Carroll		(novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland")
Peter Barnes		(teleplay)

Produced by
Robert Halmi Jr.	....	executive producer
Robert Halmi Sr.	....	executive producer
Dyson Lovell	....	producer
Chris Thompson	....	line producer

Original Music by
Richard Hartley

Cinematography by
Giles Nuttgens		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Alex Mackie

Production Design by
Roger Hall

Art Direction by
Rosalind Shingleton
Alan Tomkins		(supervising art director)

Set Decoration by
Karen Brookes

Costume Design by
Charles Knode

Makeup Department
Nuala Conway	....	hair artist (as Nula Conway)
Nuala Conway	....	makeup artist (as Nula Conway)
Gemma Curran	....	assistant makeup artist
Louise Fisher	....	hair artist
Louise Fisher	....	makeup artist
James Kell	....	hair artist
James Kell	....	makeup artist
Chris Lyons	....	special effects teeth
Anne Spiers	....	hair designer
Anne Spiers	....	makeup designer
Caitlin Tanner	....	special makeup effects artist
Julie Wright	....	prosthetic make up artist
Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou	....	hair artist (as Elizabeth Yianni-Georgio)
Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou	....	makeup artist (as Elizabeth Yianni-Georgio)
Stuart Bray	....	prosthetic makeup artist (uncredited)
Mark Coulier	....	special makeup designer (uncredited)
Neill Gorton	....	prosthetic makeup designer (uncredited)
Barrie Gower	....	prosthetic makeup artist (uncredited)
Duncan Jarman	....	prosthetic makeup artist (uncredited)
Ian Morse	....	special makeup effects artist (uncredited)
Sandra Shepherd	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Anne Spiers	....	prosthetic designer (uncredited)

Production Management
Dee D'Orazio	....	post-production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tamana Bleasdale	....	third assistant director
Matthew Cope	....	second unit director
Fiona Gosden	....	third assistant director: second unit
Toby Hefferman	....	first assistant director: second unit
Gareth Tandy	....	first assistant director
Rebecca Wright	....	second assistant director (as Rebecca Tucker)
Simon Emanuel	....	second assistant director: action unit (uncredited)

Art Department
Edward Ambrose	....	draughtperson
Ken Barley	....	supervising plasterer
Adam Brockbank	....	storyboard artist
Julian Caldow	....	storyboard artist
Steve Challis	....	stand-by construction (as Steven Challis)
Stan Cook	....	props department (as Stanley Cook)
Bob Devine	....	assistant construction manager (as Robert Devine)
Peter Duffy	....	supervising carpenter (as Peter Duffey)
Gary Freeman	....	assistant art director
James Gemmill	....	scenic artist
Michael Hersey	....	stand-by construction
Arthur Holland	....	supervising carpenter
Margaret Horspool	....	draughtperson
Rachael Jones	....	assistant sculptor
Geoff Kingsley	....	construction manager (as Geoffrey Kingsley)
Sonja Klaus	....	assistant set decorator
Kate Lovejoy	....	art department assistant
Graham Lupton	....	props department (as Graham 'Gus' Lupton)
John Mills	....	property master
Micky Mills	....	props department (as Michael Mills)
Ron Newvell	....	supervising rigger (as Ronald Newvell)
Dave Philpott	....	stand-by construction (as David Philpott)
Dermot Power	....	conceptual artist
Len Serpant	....	stand-by construction
Mike Sotheran	....	supervising painter (as Michael Sotheran)
Micky Swift	....	props department (as Mickey Swift)
Bob Walker	....	decor artist (as Robert Walker)
Terry Woods	....	props department
Tony Marks	....	carpenter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Nick Adams	....	supervising sound editor
Gethin Aldous	....	sound maintenance
Jason Canovas	....	dialogue editor
Jonathan Cronin	....	dialogue editor
Richard Finney	....	boom operator (as Richie Finney)
Diane Greaves	....	foley artist (as Dianne Greaves)
Mark Holding	....	production sound mixer
Mike Prestwood Smith	....	sound re-recording mixer
Adrian Rhodes	....	sound re-recording mixer
Zivi Ronen	....	sound effects editor
Paul Schwartz	....	sound trainee
Jason Swanscott	....	foley artist
Paul Wrightson	....	foley editor
Gordon Brown	....	dialogue & adr editor (uncredited)
Mark DeSimone	....	adr engineer (uncredited)
Peter Gleaves	....	adr mixer (uncredited)
Srdjan Kurpjel	....	sound effects editor (uncredited)
Dave Tinsley	....	sound engineer (uncredited)
Paul Wrightson	....	sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Terry Bridle	....	special effects technician
Richard Conway	....	special effects supervisor
Jamie Courtier	....	model maker: Jim Henson's Creature Shop
Piers Hampton	....	project manager: Jim Henson's Creature Shop
Bob Hollow	....	special effects supervisor
Stephen Paton	....	special effects technician
Ray Scott	....	creative supervisor: Jim Henson's Creature Shop
David Watson	....	special effects technician (as Dave Watson)
Mark White	....	special effects
Mark Hunter	....	animatronic designer (uncredited)
Tez Palmer	....	special effects technician (uncredited)
Karen Purvis	....	animatronic skin technician: The Jim Henson Creature Shop (uncredited)
Paul Stephenson	....	special effects modeller (uncredited)
Nigel Wilkinson	....	special effects technician (uncredited)
Simon Williams	....	animatronic engineer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Avtar Bains	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
William Bartlett	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
William Bartlett	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Nick Bennett	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Oliver Bersey	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Oliver Bersey	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
David Booth	....	visual effects supervisor
William Burdis	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
William Burdis	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Murray Butler	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Murray Butler	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Ben Cronin	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Ben Cronin	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Adam Gascoyne	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Jamie Isles	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Jamie Isles	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Linda Johnson	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Lucy Killick	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Andy Lomas	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Martin Parsons	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Steffan Perry	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
George Roper	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Pedro Sabrosa	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Asa Shoul	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Fiona Walkinshaw	....	visual effects producer
Angus Wilson	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Will Yarrow	....	digital video effects: Framestore (London )
Will Yarrow	....	digital video effects: Framestore [London]
Nigel Blake	....	model workshop supervisor (uncredited)
Dan Glass	....	visual effects designer (uncredited)
Christian Manz	....	visual effects artist (uncredited)
Alex Parkinson	....	research and development (uncredited)

Stunts
Crystal Dalman	....	stunt player
Terry Walsh	....	stunt coordinator
Bradley Farmer	....	stunt double: Martin Short (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Sam Bloor	....	electrician
Bob Bridges	....	video operator
Ian Coffey	....	clapper loader
Jim Crowther	....	grip
Merritt Gold	....	focus puller: second unit
Steven Hall	....	camera operator (as Stephen Hall)
Aleksander Kaufmann	....	focus puller (as Aleks Kaufman)
Paul Kemp	....	electrician
Stefan Lange	....	lighting camera: second unit
Wayne Leach	....	electrician
Peter Myslowski	....	grip
Dave Ridout	....	best boy (as David Ridout)
Ed Rutherford	....	clapper loader: second unit
David Smith	....	gaffer
Terry Townsend	....	electrician
Alf Tramontin	....	Steadicam operator
Oliver Upton	....	still photographer
Stuart Bridges	....	video assistant (uncredited)
Lilia Sellami	....	camera trainee (uncredited)
John Ward	....	key Steadicam operator (uncredited)

Casting Department
Joyce Gallie	....	casting: U.K.
Lynn Kressel	....	casting
Oded Levy	....	casting assistant
Sally Osoba	....	casting coordinator: U.K.

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jill Avery	....	wardrobe mistress
Graham Churchyard	....	wardrobe supervisor
Joe Kowalewski	....	wardrobe assistant (as Joseph Kowalewski)
Adrian Simmons	....	wardrobe master
John Cowell	....	costume painter (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Anya Dillon	....	trainee assistant editor
Bryon Fear	....	post-production coordinator
Dominic Strevens	....	first assistant editor

Music Department
Howard Ball	....	orchestra contractor
John Bell	....	music orchestrator
Chris Dibble	....	music recordist
Andrew Glen	....	music editor (as Andy Glen)
Arthur Kempel	....	music orchestrator (as Arthur Kemple)

Transportation Department
Gerry Gore	....	transport captain

Other crew
Chris Allies	....	titles
Patricia Barr	....	unit nurse (as Pat Barr)
Erica Bensly	....	production coordinator
Chris Brock	....	location manager
Scott Brooker	....	puppet fabricator
Sue Dacre	....	additional puppeteer (as Susan Dacre)
Ben Fogg	....	assistant: Dyson Lovell
Pat Garrett	....	choreographer
Louise Gold	....	additional puppeteer
Andy Hennigan	....	financial controller
Nathan Holmes	....	floor runner
Amanda Kernot	....	utility stand-in
Rita Kozma	....	assistant accountant
Joe Lacey	....	utility stand-in
Sarah Lester	....	utility stand-in
Eth Ibrahim Maynard	....	continuity: second unit (as Eth Ibrahim-Maynard)
Tina McConnell	....	assistant accountant
Caroline Moore	....	production assistant
Debbie Moseley	....	production runner
Rebecca Nagan	....	additional puppeteer (as Rebecca Negan)
Gerard Naprous	....	horse master
Joanne Palmer	....	utility stand-in
Annie Penn	....	script supervisor (as Annie Wotton)
Jonathan Pilcher	....	assistant: Nick Willing
Nick Waldron	....	location assistant
Victoria Willing	....	additional puppeteer
Tina Ellis	....	assistant accountant (uncredited)
Bernadette Lee	....	production coordinator: New York special effects (uncredited)
Rob Mayor	....	technician (uncredited)
Neil Morphew	....	stand-in (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Babelsberg International Film Produktion (produced for) (as Babelsberg International Filmproduktion)
• Hallmark Entertainment
• NBC Studios

Distributors

• Sonar Entertainment (II) (1999-) (USA) (all media)
• Alpha Filmes (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Artisan Entertainment
• Elephant Films (2000) (France) (all media)
• Hallmark Entertainment
• NBC Home Video
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1999) (USA) (TV)
• SAV (1999) (Spain) (VHS)

Special Effects

• Jim Henson's Creature Shop (creature effects)
• Framestore (uncredited)
• Snow Business International (snow effects) (uncredited)

Other Companies

• BBVC/Kelly's Eye  video assist equipment (uncredited)
• Corporation of London, The  thanks
• Lee Lighting  lighting (uncredited)
• Motion Control Cameras  visual effects (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

USA:150 min | 65 min (2 episodes) | USA:129 min (VHS version) | Finland:131 min (TV) (2 parts)

Country:

UK | USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:U | USA:PG | Singapore:PG | Australia:G | USA:Not Rated (DVD)

Filming Locations:

Burnham Beeches, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Babelsberg International Film Produktion

Trivia:

The scene where Alice finds herself growing bigger as she walks down a corridor was shot on a corridor that was constructed to get smaller, which reinforced the illusion on camera.

Goofs:

Plot holes: When the Queen of Hearts decides to decapitate the cards who were painting the roses red, Alice hides them in her skirt to save them. However, they are never seen getting out, and no further reference is made to them in the film.

Quotes:

White Knight:[to Alice] You look worried. You're too young to worry.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in What the Bleep!?: Down the Rabbit Hole (2006)

Visionary

Lewis Carroll is a difficult author to adapt satisfactorily to the screen. Worse yet, most versions try to add some sort of lesson to the story that was never there to begin with. This, too uses a version that simply doesn't work. Alice does not want to have to sing "Cheery Ripe" so the whole film becomes about the importance of performing for an audience. That fails to really hold the film together. Despite this, this is probably the best-looking version of the two books yet. It does neither what the Children's Theatre Company did in 1982, and try to exactly mimic Tenniel's illustrations, nor that of the Harry Harris production, in which the actors had to be recognizable so they wore simple costumes with pig ears or rabbit ears, etc. Here there is a mix of puppetry and mere suggestion. Many of the minor anthropomorphics simply bear resemblance to whatever animal they were supposed to be, such as there was the use (again) of an all-star cast. It frequently makes fun of the fact that many of the cast do not speak in an English accent, though the American actor playing Alice does. The film, however, has beautiful cinematography and visionary effects. The early sequence in the library seems like the Halmis are trying to out-Gulliver their adaptation of Book III of Gulliver's Travels. The extreme visuals begin with the giant metronome at the beginning and carry all sorts of wonderful metaphor. Odd jump cuts and strange reflections don't look like goofs, but contribute to weirdness. A storm like _The Neverending Story_'s Nothing forces her to move on in her dream world to escape. The sped-up photography for the White Rabbit seems a nod to _El Gatto con Botas_, and of course, it's tied together like MGM's version of _The Wizard of Oz_. Like all films of these books, it has good elements and poorly handled elements, and certainly there is no definitive version, but this is one of the more interesting ones.