Alice in Wonderland (1933)

In Victorian England a bored young girl dreams that she has entered a fantasy world called Wonderland populated by even more fantastic characters.

Director:

Norman Z. McLeod (as Norman Mc Leod)

Writers:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz (screen play), William Cameron Menzies (screen play)

Stars:

Richard Arlen, Roscoe Ates, William Austin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Arlen	...	Cheshire Cat
Roscoe Ates	...	Fish
William Austin	...	Gryphon
Gary Cooper	...	White Knight
Leon Errol	...	Uncle Gilbert
Louise Fazenda	...	White Queen
W.C. Fields	...	Humpty-Dumpty
Alec B. Francis	...	King of Hearts
Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher	...	Rabbit (as Skeets Gallagher)
Cary Grant	...	Mock Turtle
Lillian Harmer	...	Cook
Raymond Hatton	...	Mouse
Charlotte Henry	...	Alice
Sterling Holloway	...	Frog
Edward Everett Horton	...	Mad Hatter

Storyline

On a boring winter afternoon, Alice dreams, that she's visiting the land behind the mirror. This turns out to be a surrealistic nightmare, with all sorts of strange things happening to her, like changing her size or playing croquet with flamingos.

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Plot Keywords:

dream | mirror | flamingo | croquet | female protagonist | 

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Taglines:

The Entertainment Miracle Of All Times!

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 December 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Paramount previewed the film in 1933, the original running time was 90 min. However, by the time it was shown to the press, the running time was cut to 77 minutes (many reviews, including the savage one it received in Variety, made a point of how long it seemed at an hour-and-a-quarter). Although it is often reported that Universal Studios cut it to 77 minutes when they bought the television rights in the late 1950s, the film went on general release in 1933 at the shorter length. The film is now legally available on DVD.

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Goofs

When Alice holds the encyclopedia up to the mirror, the insert shot shows it as being VOL. VII (REF - SUB) but when the scene cuts to a two shot of Alice holding the book and smiling, it can be seen that the volume she is holding is VOL. VIII (SUB - ZX-something).

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Quotes

March Hare: Have some more tea?
Alice: I haven't had any yet, so I can't take more.
March Hare: You mean you can't take less. It is very easy to take more than nothing.

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Crazy Credits

The opening cast credits are in order of appearance, with stills of credited actors shown twice: first in full costume and mask with the character name identified, and followed by a studio photo of each with their actor name identified. The end credits are in alphabetical order and presented normally with a character name and actor name on each line.

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Alternate Versions

The film was previewed at 90 minutes and featured scenes with Julie Bishop as Alice's sister, Harvey Clark as Father William, and Lucien Littlefield as Father William's son. These scenes were deleted and the general release version runs 75 minutes.

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Connections

Referenced in Project ARMS (2001)

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Soundtracks

Beautiful Soup
(uncredited)
Music by Dimitri Tiomkin and Nat W. Finston
Words by Lewis Carroll
Sung by Cary Grant

User Reviews

1933 Alice in Wonderland

I was lucky enough to watch this movie on television a couple of times. The first time was as a child in the early 60's. I was totally fascinated. I think it introduced me to the pleasures of black and white film. The second time I saw it was about 20 years later. I was traveling and had just checked into a wonderful old hotel. I turned on the vintage television to entertain myself as I unpacked. To my amazement there it was. The original Alice in Wonderland! What a marvelous afternoon treat to watch this classic in such a perfect setting.

I am so enchanted with this film and so frustrated that such a classic seems to have disappeared entirely. Though I'm sure the animated versions are good, this version is fantastic. For as old as the film is the surreal settings were incredible! I can't imagine this gem is locked away, collecting dust. Its just a shame. It would become a cult classic like Wizard of Oz.