Seen today it is still a subversive comedy, in which dogmatic and opportunistic bureaucrats are made fun of, with a dictator ruling the town of Maravillas, but it is of course tamed compared to later questioning of Cuban society in films (as "Madagascar", "Guantanamera", "La vida es silbar", "Chamaco", "Nada", "Video de familia", and others). I was living in Cuba (1991) when it opened, in an atmosphere of unrest that was a reflection of changing world affairs that Cubans also wanted to happen in the island. Hard-core Communists rallied against it, they went to the cinemas (probably a few of them for the first time in their lives) to boycott it, and it played only for three days, being replaced by the then-current "Alien" sequel! Knowing Cuba helps a lot to fully enjoy the film, but it still funny, with Reynaldo Miravalles giving one of his usual fine performances as the Maravillas dictator.
Review of Alice in Wondertown
