Dr. Strangelove
by V.E. on November 30th, 2011
filed under entertainment, personal, recap/review, writing
Show me the way home
I’m lost
Show me the way home
It hurts too much—Phil Roy, “Show Me the Way Home“
So, let me explain about Dr. Strangelove (wiki).
I dated a guy during my first year of college who was basically in love with Dr. Strangelove (the film, not the character) and wanted me to see it. I refused—first out of apathy, then general disinterest for war movies (satirical or no), and then just to irk him a little… because that’s just how I am. (I had a different boyfriend later who let me needle him and still made me do whatever it was that he wanted… because that’s just how he was [and is]… like go to see Casino Royale even when I was an avowed James Bond hater.)
Anyway, this guy was just waiting for the nuclear apocalypse so that he could take his KA-BAR out into the wilderness and fend for himself once and for all. He was a right-wing, gun-loving, self-proclaimed libertarian who hated affirmative action and thought that feminism had run its course because men and women were equal already, just different. Oh, and he was also against a woman’s right to choose.
But that’s another story. I never did see Dr. Strangelove while we were dating, and at the end of our first year in school, we broke up. We remained friends throughout college (he hated that other boyfriend I mentioned, for example, and eventually I told him to just suck it up) until one night in December of our senior year, when our relationship was irrevocably damaged. That is to say, he raped me.
I’m still taking ownership of that idea—the idea that what happened to me on that night was rape—but no matter how I put two and two together, it still adds up to… that. It’s hard to think about; I have many triggers—his name is one that I had to deal with when I got a new job and one of my supervisors not only had the same first name but also the same last initial. Usually, I don’t think about it. I’m not over it. I mostly know my triggers, such as they are, and I avoid them.
What the hell does this have to do with Dr. Strangelove, right? Well, this semester I’m taking a creative writing class because such classes—even though I already have a terminal degree in creative writing—help me and force me to write, and if I want to call myself a writer, I need to actually do some writing.
This writing class is split into three parts—poetry, fiction, and screenplays/playwriting. To help students learn about characterization, plot development, timeline, structure, and so on in the last category, the teacher has taken to showing the class good film examples of said. Tonight, that meant watching Dr. Strangelove. All of it. And then talking about it for 45 minutes afterward.
The teacher told us he was bringing in the film last week, and I was… disgruntled. I mentioned after class that day that I had an ex-boyfriend who loved the film, but we hadn’t parted ways amicably (an understatement if I’ve ever said one) and that I wasn’t really keen on remembering that bullshit. But after my off-handed comment, I honestly didn’t think much more about it.
Then, when he actually did bring it in today [Tuesday evening, 29 November 2011], I said, “Are we seriously going to watch the whole thing?”
And he said, “Sure, why not?”
And I rolled my eyes and said, “Fine.”
And then I sat through the entire film. And you know what? Objectively speaking, it isn’t a half bad movie. Stanley Kubrick is nothing to shake a stick at, so to speak. But I sat there, unable to really focus on the movie to really enjoy it (or scoff at it, or have any normal reaction at all)… because all I could think about was him. Because it had been his favorite movie. And it had been his hands on me, even after I’d told him “no”.
Half way through the film, I slid down in my chair, sick to my stomach, and wrote in my notebook:
watching this movie all I can think about is [him] holding me down in that geology lab @ [our school] that night.JUST
KILL
ME
and then I scribbled over the entire page to mark it out.
As soon as the film was over, I knew had been a terrible, terrible idea for me to have watched it when the only thing I could really see was… that, and as soon as the teacher gave us a five-minute break, I was out the door and down the steps to find a relatively unoccupied restroom.
I went into the nearest available stall (the very first stall had a sign taped to it that read “OUT of ORDER”—ridiculous, the things I remember) and threw up. Or rather, I would have thrown up, except that I hadn’t eaten much before the class since I was intending to eat when I got home. (I’m sure you can imagine that didn’t happen.)
After a few minutes, I stood up and went to the sink to wash my face. I went back to class (“You okay?” the teacher asked, and I nodded) and sat silently while the class discussed the film’s characters and structure, fists clenched in my lap. I was so wrapped up in my own crap—just trying not to explode or implode, just trying to stay in that holding pattern until I could go home and fall apart in the privacy of my own room—that I didn’t even notice the film has a single woman character (thereby utterly failing the entire Bechdel Test) until someone pointed out that she’d been wearing a fucking bikini in her only scene.
Finally, at the end of the discussion, the teacher turned to me and said, “You haven’t said a single thing. What do you think?”
And I said, “I’m not going to talk about this film.”
And he said, “What? Having some ex-boyfriend ruin one of the greatest comedies ever to grace the silver screen? What a tragedy.”
And I nearly just cracked up and laughed out loud because he really had no idea how right he was. It is a fucking tragedy, and you know why? Because I sat through the entire thing. I could’ve gotten up at any point and just said, “Fuck this. I know when I’m being triggered” but I didn’t. I didn’t really know it was a trigger at first, but the moment I realized it, I should’ve removed myself from the situation. I had every right to do that, but I didn’t because—as one of my waterbrothers said—I’m “certainly a committed student”.
Really, though, it’s because I still want people to like me, want people to not dislike me, want to not rock the boat, want to be “a good girl”, want to believe that if I do the right things—say the right things, wear the right things—that I’ll be safe. But I wasn’t safe that time. I had thought I was safe, and I wasn’t. I was with someone I trusted, and he betrayed me.
I left the class and started shaking. I called one of my waterbrothers and hung up the phone on the second ring. He called me back. I told him I needed him because I knew I was about to have a panic attack and I didn’t want to be alone. I drove home on autopilot and he found me there, sitting in my car, hyperventilating. He took me back to his house and held me while I cried and told me that I was safe, that whatever had happened was over now, and that he would hold me for as long as it took.
And then, after I’d calmed down some, he kissed me. And he kept kissing me, and I was thinking to myself, “Again? Please, not again.” But I was kissing him back because I actually do like him that way sometimes and I was just reacting, but it was too soon—still, even after all this time—and too fast, and after a few minutes, I was trying to get away and saying “no, no, no” over and over.
He held me there, and it wasn’t the same kind of hold as the one that time because suddenly he was whispering urgently in my ear, “God, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry” and I was shaking and crying again and he was holding me tightly, saying, “Goddamnit, I’m so sorry; you were vulnerable and I took advantage and I’m so sorry”.
And I wanted to scream at him, “Yes! Yes, you did take advantage!” but I didn’t because I couldn’t get the words out in between my sobs. When I could breathe again, he stroked my hair and let me just lean against him, listening to his heartbeat, for a long time.
Finally, just when I thought maybe he’d fallen asleep, he said, “Something happened tonight that made you remember something traumatic that happened to you, and I was supposed to be safe for you, but instead I made you remember twice. I’m so, so sorry. I’m no better than him.”
I was silent for a minute, thinking about it, thinking maybe I should agree with him, and then I leaned up and looked him in the eyes and said, “Yes, maybe you did, but you know the difference?”
It was his turn to be silent for a minute, and I could tell he didn’t believe there was a difference. Finally, I prodded him further, “Do you?”
“What?” he asked gruffly.
“You stopped.”
One Paragraph 3
by V.E. on November 3rd, 2011
filed under entertainment, one paragraph
Alcohol, Shirt & Kiss (finished 28 October 2011)
Well, I can’t complain about two guys kissing each other, but I tend to like more explicit yaoi manga. The interaction between the two main characters isn’t too realistic, I don’t think—it is erotica, after all—but suspending my disbelief wasn’t a problem. The short at the end, “Moon Kiss”, was cute and ended unexpectedly. Kind of nice to be pleasantly surprised, you know?
Ai no Exorcist (viewed at home as it aired online April-Ocober 2011)
An anime that doesn’t really do anything new but held my interest long enough for me to watch all 25 episodes. I thought, by the end, that perhaps the younger brother (Yukio) had been the protagonist all along, even though much of the story centered on the elder brother (Rin). I think my favorite characters were Shiro (the brothers’ adoptive father)—even though he’s barely in it—and Mephisto (the school’s headmaster/chairman).
Garbo’s Cuban Lover (viewed at Macha Theatre 08 October 2011)
Went to see this stage play in West Hollywood with a friend, Joyce. Really enjoyed it, even though we got lost on the way there. ^_^;; Notes: two restrooms (one unisex, the other women only), no outside food or drink allowed, a can of Coke at the bar costs $2, one glass of White Zinfandel costs $10 (reason #837259 I don’t drink). The theatre is smaller than I was expecting (makes for an intimate experience, at least, right?), but the play itself wholly made up for that. Well written, well staged, and well acted. Also, lesbians kissing/being frisky/sexin’ it up, and who doesn’t like watching that? Would definitely see it again (after reading up on Mercedes de Acosta and Greta Garbo), if I could afford it. T_T See also.
The PhD Movie (viewed at Caltech‘s Beckman Auditorium 22 September 2011)
We meant to see the first showing (we didn’t know there would be another showing after the first), but the auditorium was full up right as we reached the steps up to the door. Saw this with Dad (his suggestion), sister, Mom, and Grandma. It’s really funny in an “ouch, that’s actually true” kind of way. If you haven’t read the comic, start here. Highly recommended for anyone who has worked toward a degree in higher learning, and for everyone who’s thought about it! Brother will be seeing it on his campus in November!
Seven Days in Utopia (viewed in theaters 04 September 2011)
It was (I think) Dad’s idea to see this movie, so the whole family (Dad, Mom, me, Bunny, and Grandma; not Johnny since he’s out of state) piled into the car and then piled into the theater. For a movie about golf, it was… okay. My mom really likes Robert Redford Duvall (Redford, too, probably), so she thought it was pretty good. It pretty spectacularly failed the Bechdel Test (no surprise there), but I was pleasantly surprised when the lady love interest told the main character, “No. It’s too soon” when he tried to kiss her. And then he didn’t pressure her. The sports commentators at the end were really, really irritating (all the talking over the action is about half the reason I dislike watching sports in the first place), but overall I didn’t mind sitting there watching it, even if the entire film turned out to be, as my sister said, “the longest, most elaborate website advertizement I’ve ever seen.” Like I said, meh. It wasn’t great. It wasn’t absolutely terrible.
One Paragraph 2
by V.E. on August 22nd, 2011
filed under entertainment, one paragraph
Beastly (viewed at home 22 August 2011)
As someone who collects “Beauty & the Beast” stories, I meant to see this movie in theaters and didn’t manage to, so I rented it. I actually have the book upon which it’s based (in storage in New Jersey), but I haven’t read it, so I could only go on my knowledge of the fairytale itself. In terms of “how great was this movie?” it’s not spectacular, but I’m still putting it on my “need to own this someday” list. In terms of “how interesting was this adaptation of the fairytale?” it ranked somewhat higher. I’ve never seen or read a version that more fully incorporates the witch/enchantress who transforms the beast into a… well, a beast. Usually, that character is in the prologue or Beauty learns the beast’s story through other characters (or the beast himself, sometimes) telling her about something that has already happened. In this film, the witch is more active, and she doesn’t just do her thing and then disappear. It made me want to learn more about her character over the other two.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (viewed at home 22 August 2011)
My sister and I had been talking about “seeing that movie that Heath Ledger was making when he died” for a long time, and today we finally sat down and watched it. Neither of us knew anything about it, except that it was Ledger’s last film (so “last” that he didn’t even get to finish acting in it), so it turned out… stranger than I was expecting. Honestly, I don’t know what I was expecting (I hadn’t even seen a preview before watching the film), but it wasn’t… so fantastical, I guess? I liked the Mercury character, by far, the best. It was kind of the other actors that were cast in Ledger’s role after he died to take up his mantle, so to speak, and the transitions actually worked quite well. It was all right. No complaints, but nothing to really write home about, either.
Crazy, Stupid, Love. (viewed in theaters 10 August 2011)
I went to see this with Daylin (visiting from out of town) when she suggested it, though I hadn’t heard much about it and have never been really impressed with Steve Carell (the actor who plays the main character). Well, this movie was much better than I expected. I was actually surprised by the surprise twists, for one thing. It was a “light-hearted romantic comedy” but it also—I think—showed a truer side of life; confusion, heartache, revenge, anger. And it was honest: at the end, things were still not completely okay, just like life. Totally recommended, but if you’re prone to crying in movies, bring some tissues.
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, season 1 (completed 04 August 2011)
The first two episodes were completely ridiculous, but I liked the original My Little Pony enough when I was a kid that I decided to overlook how terrible contrived it was and watch a few more episodes after that. I ended up watching the entire 26-episode season without even realizing it. My favorite pony from when I was a kid, Firefly, isn’t in it because most of the characters from that era (excepting Applejack and Spike, the baby dragon) are out of copyright or something. (Seriously, though, how does a company lose the copyright on most of the characters but not all of them?) Decent show, though; I did watch the whole season, after all. Strange that it’s popular with the 12-35 male demographic, though.
Cowboys & Aliens (viewed in theaters 31 July 2011)
My dad, sister, and I went to see this because we had to get out of the house to let my mother work on her PhD. My sister (the film major) pretty much hated it. My dad and I went in thinking it would be a good, if pretty ridiculous, movie for just sitting back and being entertained, and we were right. It’s not the greatest, but I’ve seen far, far worse; pretty good fodder if you just want to turn off your brain for a while. I did notice, though, that: it fails the Bechdel Test, the main female protagonist—after proving she’s actually an important character—sacrifices herself (why am I not surprised?) for “the cause” or whatever, and that it was an interesting take on “the Native American metaphor fights the American military metaphor”… Also, the driving force behind this invasion is… gold? Weeeeeeak. Manifest destiny? Goddamn. Obviously, it’s not without its problems, but I’d watch it again.
Bob and the Monster
by V.E. on August 5th, 2011
filed under entertainment, recap/review
So, when a friend of mine found out that Bob and the Monster (IMDb | Wikipedia) was having its Los Angeles premiere tonight (August 4th) and I would be able available to go, he told me he’d kick my ass if I didn’t go because he wanted to go and wasn’t able to.
I have another friend/coworker who actually worked on the film and is friends with Bob Forrest (the man around whom the documentary centers), and I was really worried that showing up to the premiere (even just the second showing at 11 pm, which is the time I was able to get a ticket) might crimp his style or something. I don’t know, I always worry about that kind of thing. I didn’t want him to think I was encroaching… or stalking… hahaha ^_^;; Whatever.
Also, I know nearly nothing about Bob Forrest himself; and I know nearly nothing about the L.A. rock scene at any point in time: now, in the ’80s, or otherwise. And I’ve never touched an illegal drug in my life, except the one time in 7th grade when the D.A.R.E. police officer passed around a bag of weed so we’d know what it looked like and that one time in college I accidentally walked into a hotboxed room and then promptly turned tail and fled. (People tell me I partied hard enough without drugs or alcohol anyway, so that’s fine with me.)
Plus, I’d never been to the Silent Movie Theatre before. So, even though my friend (the first one I mentioned, not the one who worked on the documentary) told me he’d kick my ass if I didn’t go, 
I was kind of… going in blind on all accounts except the literal, physical one.
Well, it turned out that I didn’t have to be worried about crimping my coworker’s style because I didn’t even see him there. And the documentary was well-rounded enough that I didn’t really have to know anything about Bob Forrest (or the ’80s rock scene, or hard drugs) before I saw it to benefit from it. And I managed to get decent street parking not far away from the theatre, so I didn’t kill my feet walking ten miles in heels before I even got there.
Thelonious Monster played a short set before the documentary (“Body and Soul” was the third out of four songs; I didn’t know the others), and the director stayed after the showing for a question-and-answer session. I have to be honest here, I wasn’t particularly impressed with the band (the drummer wore only underwear! is that normal, or just normal for him?), though I do remember distinctly thinking, “He [Bob Forrest] sings the way a poet speaks.”
I wasn’t expecting to really connect with the documentary, either, if my lackluster impression of the band had anything to say about it, but I was pleasantly surprised. The director did a great job bringing out crucial elements of Bob Forrest’s life, his struggle with drug addiction, and the culture in which that kind of addiction thrives. I was touched by Forrest’s conviction. I… tend to have a low opinion of drug addicts, but in the film he says, “I just love drug addicts” and “I want to help them, respect them, and love them” and I think that kind of thinking puts my holier-than-thou attitude to shame. I would not be a good drug counselor, that’s for sure.
I really liked it. It was hard, watching Forrest go through all that bullshit, but I think that it might have been worth it because of how he’s able to help people now. (I hope, at least, that he thinks it’s worth it.) I hope Bob and the Monster is shown across the United States soon to a wider audience than film festival goers. It touched even me, a person who had basically no connection to any part of it at all; imagine what it could do for someone who loves punk rock, or who is a drug addict (or knows a drug addict), or who loves the Los Angeles music scene, or… I could go on and on.
There’s been one thing bugging me, though. There’s a scene that shows Thelonious Monster on stage at a concert in the Netherlands in 1992 (not 100% sure on the date) and Forrest is rolling around on stage, obviously high. The music covering the visuals is a vocal piece with guitar (and drums? I’m not sure) and the singer’s first line is something about wanting or trying to commit suicide and not being able to. I can’t remember the lyrics exactly—I’ve already spent more than an hour trying to find them online—and I couldn’t tell if the song was actually being performed (Thelonious Monster is, after all, a band, so it’s not inconceivable that the video and the music were already connected), or if it was part of the music that Josh Klinghoffer scored specifically for the film. Damn it, it’s really frustrating because that part, that song, was beautiful and now I’m kicking myself for not writing down the lyrics the minute I heard them, dark theatre or no.
One Paragraph 1
by V.E. on July 29th, 2011
filed under anime/manga, entertainment, one paragraph
Ludwig II 1 by You Higuri (finished 26 July 2011)
Almost 300 pages of historical yaoi—based loosely on the King of Bavaria who built Neuschwanstein—is totally awesome. I was slow to warm up to this manga (I bought it last October at Yaoi-Con and didn’t even flip through it after that until this month) but when I finally sat down to read it, I wished I had read it sooner. I think I have a thing for military and royal courtship yaoi. I will definitely be getting the second volume when I go to Yaoi-Con this year.
North Country (viewed at home 19 July 2011)
I first saw this my senior year of college and 99.9% of the film just made me so furious. My sister, dad, and I watched it on my request and I was practically furious the entire time watching this time, too. I cried I was so angry. It’s a great movie to watch so that people understand that sexual harassment isn’t as innocuous or harmless as people might think. The only thing that worries me about it is that some watchers might think that the work has been done. (The film is set in Minnesota in 1989, after all.) But that’s not true. We have a long way to go. This movie is a good discussion-starter. Definitely recommended.
The Book of Eli (viewed at home 18 July 2011)
My dad and I watched this after my sister insisted we bring it home from the video store. Post-apocalyptic, books and reading, dusty western town run by a warlord? Check, check, and check. All things considered, it was decent. My dad and I quipped that we’d be surprised if it turned out that the main character and the warlord actually got a long and worked together, and we correctly predicted that wouldn’t happen. Interesting use of blindness, and I’ll admit that I didn’t expect the ending to happen as it did. The title references the way the books in the Bible are titled and… let’s just say that’s not a coincidence. As my dad said, “Meh, it was worth maybe half an hour.” (To which I responded, “Yeah, too bad it was two whole hours, then, right?”)
Doctor Zhivago (viewed at home 17 July 2011)
When my dad, sister, and I sat down to watch this, we didn’t realize how long it was (200 minutes!). It won five Academy Awards, and my dad had never seen it, even though he’d heard it was “an epic”… Well, it was, at least, epically long. We couldn’t figure out anyone’s name, so they ended up being “Creepy guy”, “Glasses guy”, “The title character’s adoptive sister”, and “Wait, who was that again?” The film is so long it had a damn intermission, for Christ sakes. Most definitely historical fiction, but it’s not history with which I’m very familiar, so a lot was probably lost on me. Best line: (in relation to a pianist’s playing for a small audience) “Darling, this is genius!”—”Really? I thought it was Rachmaninoff.”
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (viewed in theaters 9 June 2011)
The first Pirates was genius/epic/awesome. The second was… pretty good. The third was meh, okay. This one is basically just a romp with Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow. If you like watching Depp/Sparrow run around and fight Redcoats (and Spaniards) with swords, then this is the movie for you. Since I like those things, it was worth the price of admission. Otherwise, though, I’d just skip this in theaters and catch it on DVD on a night when you want to sit back and not have to think for a whileshed I had read it sooner. I will definitely be getting the second volume when I go to Yaoi-Con this year.
The Thing About Harry Potter
by V.E. on July 21st, 2011
filed under entertainment, recap/review, thoughts
I went to see HP7, pt.2 on Tuesday with one of my friends. It was… hard… tragic… emotionally exhausting… and I’ve never even read the books. It was clear to me that Harry was just… tired of fighting, tired of feeling like he was making his friends fight. He wanted it to be over, and I could feel the heartache he felt when he looked at his wounded and dead friends sitting in the rubble that had once been Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I couldn’t help but wonder: what was Voldemort getting out of this? I mean, he wanted to rule the world, I guess—and he hated Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived—but it seemed like he’d lost sight of his goal as was just acting out in hatred against the only person who could—was forced to—take it: Harry Potter. Where did Tom Riddle’s life go so wrong that he had to create an army by intimidating his followers and attacking a school, for god’s sake? We were supposed to hate him, but in the end, I just pitied him.
I didn’t understand some of it: I didn’t understand Narcissa Malfoy’s apparent interaction with her son, Draco; I didn’t really understand all the back story that Harry learns about Professor Snape after shit goes down; I didn’t get why and how the Death Eaters had captured Hagrid; I didn’t understand some of Harry’s conversation with Professor Dumbledore in King’s Cross Station, or really how and why they’d ended up there and not somewhere else; I didn’t really get all the characters except for probably the top five or six; I didn’t fully understand Harry’s use of the Resurrection Stone; and what was that thing with the snake? it’s suddenly important, now?; and so on. I did understand, however, that I would have understood all those things if I’d read the books. And I didn’t need the “19 years later” epilogue, either. It was tacked on and completely unnecessary. It may’ve been a good way to end the book series, but movies are much faster paced and I, at least, didn’t need the “see? everything turned out okay” moment at the end.
The first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, was published in June 1997, when I was 12; and the last film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part 2, was just produced this month, July 2011. That’s almost 15 years of magic. I bought my sister each of the novels as they were published. I was even pulled over after buying Order of the Phoenix (I remembered the cover was blue, so I looked up which US title that was, haha) because it was after midnight and I didn’t have the car’s lights on because I’d forgotten because the street was so well lit. I frantically told the police officer that, no, I was really wasn’t drunk, I swear, and I was just getting my little sister the most recent Harry Potter book (I even showed it to him, as if that would prove anything). Whatever the reason, he seemed amiable and let me off with a warning. ^_^;;
My sister and I went to see the first movie when it came out in late 2001 and the first thing out of her mouth (that I remember, anyway) about the film after it was over was, “There was no potions room!” She was devastated—at least as devastated as a 14-year-old can be about a film adaptation completely cutting out her favorite part of the novel upon which it was based. In the film, the three kids have to successfully traverse multiple rooms with tests in each: they pass the cerberus, Fluffy; get the key from the room of flying keys; and play a life-size version of Wizard’s Chess before Harry can get to the room with the Philospher’s Stone in it. Getting past Fluffy was almost a fluke, the key room was Harry’s test, and the chess room was Ron’s. In the book, there was also a potions room that was Hermione’s test, but it wasn’t in the movie. As far as I can find, it was cut out of the script (or was never in it in the first place) before filming even began, so it’s not like it’s a deleted scene or something.
I decided right then and there, after my sister’s disappointment was made clear, that I was not going read any of the books until the last movie was produced because I had liked Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone and I didn’t want to be disappointed by future movies after having been spoiled by reading the books.
When I was living in New York, I bought a complete series hardcover box set from the UK (not cheap!) in anticipation of reading the books (and not the edited down US versions, either) once the film series was complete. When I moved home, I put most of my stuff in storage, including the box set. So, I have the books (sort of); I’ve seen all the movies. Part of my brain says I should sit myself down and READ, and then another part of my brain says, “But you have no access to the books right now.” /sob
Well, I’ve waited this long—14 years! I can wait a little longer, right?
“Harry Potter is about confronting fears, finding inner strength and doing what is right in the face of adversity. Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend.” —Stephen King
“Alice” (SciFi mini-series)
by V.E. on June 28th, 2011
filed under entertainment, recap/review
Alice (wiki) is a three-hour mini-series produced in 2009 by SciFi Channel (now stylized “SyFy“—because that makes it so much cooler looking; ugh). It follows a young woman in her twenties, Alice (Caterina Scorsone), who falls in love with a man named Jack and—when she sees him being kidnapped—follows him and his captors into Wonderland, intent on breaking him out. She’s introduced to Hatter and the White Knight, and, of course, hi-jinks ensue.
I really liked Hatter (Andrew-Lee Potts)… as did many other people, it turns out. When I was looking for images for this review, I noticed that—in the first two lines (totaling 10 images) in my Google images search—4 of the images are of Hatter only, and all but one of the remaining ones included him. (The sole image without him in it is just a photo of Alice peeking over the edge of a hole, which never actually happens in the mini-series.) Still, as I am wont to be, I was suspicious of Hatter at first. Just helping Alice out of the goodness of his heart? That might fly with someone who has a history of helping people down on their luck, but Hatter himself admitted that he’d played both sides of the conflict all his life. Not exactly the most trustworthy person in the world. (To her credit, Alice herself is suspicious of him, too, and doesn’t trust him until almost the very end of the mini-series.) It’s clear his loyalties are torn, but he proves himself over and over and eventually she (and I) trusts him. I almost felt bad for Alice’s mother at the end—SPOILERS—but the look on her face when Alice saw him, called him “Hatter!”, and rushed into his arms was just too priceless. I really like Johnny Depp, but I would take this Hatter over his any day of the week.
The White Knight (Matt Frewer) is another really great character, and the actor seemed to have a lot of fun with it. He (the character) is kooky and everyone (most notably Hatter) except Alice writes him off the moment they see him, but by the end of the mini-series, it’s clear that there’s more to him than meets the eye. He’s a coward who loves his friends more than he fears his enemies—the best kind of friend to have.
The White Knight, Alice, and Hatter from Alice
The Queen of Hearts (Kathy Bates, bless her heart… er, no pun intended) is appropriately demanding, but she was much more level-headed and conniving than I would have made her. Said calm and calculating demeanor (though she does flippantly say, “Off with his head!” once or twice) suggests her character is a combination of the original stories’ Queen of Hearts and Red Queen, which is seriously frustrating. Just once, I would like to see a decent representation of the Red Queen without having her subsumed into the Queen of Hearts. I mean, really.
As for the rest of the cast: damn, was it star-studded (or maybe I’ve just been paying closer attention to actors generally speaking recently). Visser Three played “Dr. Dee”/”Dr. Dum” (guess who they are), Lieutenant Gaeta was the Nine of Clubs, Chief O’Brien played the King of Hearts, Roman Grant was the Caterpillar, Dr. Frank-N-Furter himself was Dodo, and there were a bunch of others I recognized (The White Knight, Jack of Hearts, and the Carpenter, for example) but couldn’t immediately place. I know none of these actors (possibly with the exception of Tim Curry) are seriously big-time actors, but… I’m now old enough to have seen (and remember!) things they’ve been in already. /cry
The story itself was an interesting re-imagining of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, and it utilized many of the minor characters better than I’ve seen in any other version. (Even the Red King had a part, though he acted mostly as a prop for the White Knight’s back story.) The Queen of Hearts running a casino seems like it could be obvious, but it wasn’t overplayed and there was enough action elsewhere that it didn’t seem heavy-handed. It seemed like Jack of Hearts got the short end of the stick, but he didn’t seem too torn up about Alice turning down his proposal, so I don’t feel bad not feeling torn up, either. (And, after all, he did have the Duchess.) The romance between Alice and Hatter could’ve been really irritating, but by the end I was totally rooting for it—it didn’t feel forced or overplayed, either, thank heavens. Generally speaking, I think Alice is one of the better versions of Lewis Carroll’s classics that I’ve seen. I’d totally watch it again.
And also, happily, it passed the Bechdel Test since the Queen of Hearts and Alice (two female characters) have an entire conversation (talk to each other) about the Stone of Wonderland (something other than a man). And, I’m pleased to say, the conversation goes on for more than a couple of lines back and forth between characters, too (though Alice does irritatingly keep bringing up Jack, which may make the pass a little dubious).
EDIT 29 June 2011 @ 00:44 PDT—It occurred to me after I’d turned off my computer after posting this review when I was heading for bed that I may also like the Alice/Hatter relationship better than the Alice/Jack relationship because, in the latter, Jack asked Alice to stay in Wonderland with him (forcing her, hypothetically, to give up her life in her world) while, in the former, Hatter gave up everything he knew to follow Alice into her world to be with her. If that’s not romantic, I don’t know what is.
