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.

Directors:

Norman Z. McLeod (as Norman Mc Leod), Hugh Harman (uncredited)

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:

wonderland | alice character | cheshire cat | white queen character | red queen character | 

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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

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sterling Holloway, who played The Frog in this movie, later went on to be the voice of The Cheshire Cat in the well known Disney adaptation of Alice in Wonderland (1951).

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Goofs

William Shakespeare's birth and death dates are given as 1585-1616. That would make him 31 when he died. Actually, although he did die in 1616 at the age of 52, he was born in 1564.

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Quotes

Alice: How can you go on talking so quietly with your head in a ditch?
White Knight: What does it matter where my body happens to be? My mind goes on working all the same. In fact, I once invented a new pudding during the meat course.
Alice: In time to have it cooked for the next course, hmmm? That was quick work!
White Knight: Well, not the next course. In fact, I don't believe that pudding even was cooked.
Alice: What did you mean it to be made of?
White Knight: Well it began with blotting paper.
Alice: That wouldn't be very nice, I'm afraid.
White Knight: Not very nice alone, but ...
[...]

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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

Version of Alice in Wonderland (1999)

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Soundtracks

Fill Up the Glasses
(uncredited)
Music by Dave Franklin
Words by Lewis Carroll
Sung by all at Alice's Queening Party

User Reviews

Lewis Carroll's Creation Comes Alive

A young girl in Victorian England suddenly finds herself drawn into a kingdom where absurdity rules & illogic is the theme of the day. Bemused by the antics of the strange inhabitants of the place, ALICE IN WONDERLAND continues to keep her dignity & wits about her.

This movie has received a great deal of criticism down through the decades, mainly because it was considered to be a travesty of Lewis Carroll's classic books. But this is to miss the point of the film. It was never meant to be Art. Pure & simple, it was the chance for Paramount to showcase as many of its stars as possible in a light, enjoyable 1933 Christmas release, giving each their moment to shine in front of the cameras . In this it succeeds quite nicely. The Carroll stories, with their colorful, bizarre characters, have always been a favorite for celebrity cameos: the short, vivid roles are real attention grabbers, but require only a minimum investment of time from the majority of the actors.

Great care was taken to be faithful to Carroll's original works and a certain demarcation was respected between Wonderland & the Looking-Glass Country (although the transition between the two, with the Gryphon metamorphosing into the Red Queen, is rather awkward.) The elaborate make-up, costumes, masks, puppets & animation strives to resemble Sir John Tenniel's famous drawings. Paramount at least deserves high marks for their visual display.

In a role difficult by any stretch of the imagination, young Charlotte Henry does very well as Alice, utilizing the character's spunk & determination in holding her own against a supporting cast of seasoned veterans and inveterate scene stealers. Spirited & charming, with few hints visible of Victorian decorum, she is never boring. (Ida Lupino was first slated to play Alice, but upon arrival in Hollywood from England the nabobs at Paramount decided she was too mature for the role. Stardom would have to wait for Miss Lupino.)

W. C. Fields has received much acclaim for his performance as Humpty Dumpty, and, indeed, his raspy voice & personality fit the character perfectly, but Edward Everett Horton's Mad Hatter and May Robson's Queen of Hearts are equally enjoyable - perhaps more so, as we can see their facial expressions. (Listen closely during the penultimate banquet scene to hear Fields' voice again.)

Several of the stars - Leon Errol, Louise Fazenda, Ford Sterling for example - are all but forgotten now, while others (Ned Sparks, Roscoe Ates, Roscoe Karns) are in danger of obscurement, but that shouldn't diminish from their contribution to the overall fun. And where else will you find the likes of Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, Richard Arlen, Edna May Oliver, Polly Moran & Alison Skipworth all gathered for one grand romp? This was a once-in-a-lifetime cast.

Movie mavens will recognize the shamefully uncredited Ethel Griffies as Alice's governess and tiny Billy Barty as both the White Pawn and the Duchess's baby. And although he receives cast credit, Baby Le Roy's turn as the Joker lasts only a few scant seconds.

For children of all ages & those with an uncritical appreciation of old films, ALICE IN WONDERLAND has much to offer.

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