This is my second 3D movie, after seeing Avatar on Christmas Eve.
My workmate and I drove down to the newly-opened theatre in Dunedin to see Alice, apparently the projection system is state of the art and was installed just this last weekend. We both LOVED Alice In Wonderland! The story was cool, great for kids as it encourages them to be brave and cut the head off the jabberwocky if they ever face one! The 3D was STUNNING, very subtle but superb clarity and Tim Burton did an awesome job with the set design and animation.. the Cheshire cat was fluffy and lovely.. then up in a puff of smoke!
When I saw Avatar, I found the cinema to lack contrast and it was a bit blurry/stuttery but in Alice it was bright and always in clear focus. The 3D in Avatar sometimes came out so far you felt you could reach out and touch it, but in Alice the 3D effect wasn't as extreme but it was subtle and 'just right'. I now have to make up my mind which movie I plan to see at the Imax with my sister when we fly up to Auckland on Friday - Alice or Avatar!! (we're goin' up this weekend to see Lady Gaga in concert).
The other thing I noticed about the 3D in Alice is that it didn't lack resolution. Some scenes did have soft focus in the foreground, but other times it was the other way around, it was just a superbly-crafted movie with tons of imagination, flair and the usual Tim Burton brilliance. I can't comment on the story as I never read the original Lewis Carroll classics, but as a movie tale, I was riveted just as I was watching the likes of 'Narnia' etc.
Brilliant performances by Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway and all the British actors - the little fat guy in Little Britain, Alan Rickman, Chrostopher Lee as the voice of the jabberwocky, Stephen Fry, Helena Bonham-Carter as the Red Queen - a stellar cast.. and like Avatar - the animation was so mind-boggling you couldn't tell which elements were human and which were computer-generated - seamlessly done. The way they made Johnny Depp's eyes as the Mad Hatter - simply incredible computer imaging going on.
But it's the kind of movie you don't want to just see for the special effects, it's just a beautifully-made film that fits alongside the likes of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as an animated cinema classic. Speaking of which, there was a trailer for the upcoming Shrek film which is also in 3D and adds some really cool realism to the characters!
5/5 for this movie. You've just gotta see this one!
