tim burton

Alice' in Moneyland -- Tim Burton film poised for a $100-million weekend
March 4, 2010 | 5:02 pm
Peter Feldman: Tim Burton's imagination runs riot in "Alice in Wonderland" and "Precious" is the heartrending tale of an abused African-American teenager.


Alice in Wonderland
Cast: Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Crispin Glover
Director: Tim Burton

Only a visionary director of Tim Burton's stature could visualise "Alice in Wonderland" in such spectacularly dramatic terms.

Basing his production on Lewis Carroll's celebrated children's works, Burton has allowed his imagination to once again run riot - with astonishing results. Although he has never produced nuanced human drama or noble character development, his style is more flamboyant and extravagant with a gentle trace of madness. His computer generated avant-garde visuals, which give life to such characters as the dormouse, the caterpillar and a cheesy Cheshire Cat that appears and disappears into thin air with alarming regularity, tend to overshadow their human counterparts such as Johnny Depp's perpetually amusing Mad Hatter and Crispin Glover's nefarious one-eyed knight.

This Alice is a dark, brooding tale, appropriately drained of colour, as an older Alice (sweetly portrayed by Mia Wasikowska), still harbours vague recollections of her trip to Wonderland and the weird characters she met when she tumbled down that famous rabbit-hole. In Burton's freshly brewed story, with a screenplay by Linda Woolverton, Alice is 19 and a prudish young man is about to propose. In her confused state she thinks she spots a rabbit in the garden with a clock tied around its neck.

Thrown totally by this, and needing head space in which to think, she runs off and follows the rabbit into the woods. She tumbles down that famous hole, triggering yet another ridiculously funny, eye-popping journey into a place that is far from pleasant.

It is ruled with an iron fist by the creepy, psychotic Red Queen, who is forever uttering "off with their heads." She has a cluster of red hair sprouting from an oversized head that is attached to her small frame, and the role is played with delicious venom by Helena Bonham Carter.

Her sister, the White Queen (Anne Hathaway in something of a cameo), resides in another part of the country, and is awaiting the eventual demise of her horrid sibling - but it requires a miracle in the form of Alice.

Her arrival on the scene is the catalyst for change and during her perilous journey she discovers courage and inspiration and her own inner strength. It's a coming-of-age party with plenty of wicked twists and a fire-breathing dragon which Alice has to slay.

Burton's concept may frighten younger viewers, but as a slice of off-the-wall entertainment it sure rocks.


Precious
Based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire
Cast: Gabourey "Gabby" Sidibe, Paula Patton, Mo'Nique, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd, Lenny Kravitz
Director: Lee Daniels

Once in awhile comes a performance so intense and riveting that you leave the cinema with its dramatic images burnt into the mind long after the film has dimmed from the screen.

Such is the feeling left by Gabourey Sidibe whose portrayal of an abused 16-year-old African-American girl, Claireece "Precious" Jones, has already got the nod for an Oscar nomination. It's a performance of a lifetime.

The story, based on the novel by Sapphire, is a heart rendering cry from the soul that is too often ignored in today's hectic world.

Precious is not the prettiest girl in the class. She is obese, takes very little care over her appearance and has a bad attitude. This has been brought about by her life in Harlem at the hands of her poisonously angry mother, Mary, played by stand-up comic Mo'Nique who gives a dynamite performance, too.

She's pregnant for the second time by her absent father; at home, she must wait hand and foot on her mother, who takes fiendish delight in abusing her emotionally and physically. School is a place of chaos, and Precious has reached the ninth grade with good marks and an awful secret: she can neither read nor write.

The underlying strength of Lee Daniel's production lies in the fighting spirit of his key character. She may be down, but beneath an impassive façade is a watchful, curious young woman whose inner belief is that great possibilities exist out there if she can only overcome the many hurdles. She takes her fight to the people and with a little help from her kindly and concerned teacher, Blue Rain (Paula Patton), and a social worker (Mariah Carey) finds her road to redemption.

What makes the film so intensely moving is watching the growth of Precious as she begins to blossom, like unfolding petals, as she discovers new experiences and new worlds.

This film may plunge the depth of human ugliness, but its redeeming features are the hope, love and self-determination the story embraces.

The performances from the support team are commanding; Lenny Kravitz as the understanding Male Nurse John and a de-glittered Mariah Carey as Ms, a social worker who knows the roots of Precious' problems.

The subject may put audiences off, but the authoritative way director Lee Daniels has stitched together his film and the superb casting make this one of the best films of the year so far.


Daybreakers
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Claudia Karvan, Michael Dorman, Vince Colosimo, Isabel Lucas, Sam Neill
Directors: Peter Spierig, Michael Spierig

(Not seen)

Two-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke plays Edward Dalton, a researcher in the year 2019, in which an unknown plague has transformed the world's population into vampires. As the human population nears extinction, vampires must capture and farm every remaining human, or find a blood substitute before time runs out. However, a covert group of vampires makes a remarkable discovery, one which has the power to save the human race.

One critic felt that "Daybreakers" is a more serious film, from its A-list cast to its political commentary, with blood as a metaphor for oil. "Like the best genre films, it has something on its mind."

Another said: "On balance, however, there are more things to like about ‘Daybreakers' than to dislike. The production is loaded with impressive touches, some more nuanced than others."

A third added: "Daybreakers" isn't a great film, but it's a good one, and in a market oddly lousy with vampire tales, it's an original.


Peter Feldman has been a journalist and arts critic for over 45 years and served on The Star in various capacities for 35 years, ending up as a specialist writer on films, music and theatre. During that time he travelled extensively on assignments and interviewed many international film and pop stars, both in South Africa and overseas. He also covered some of South Africa's biggest film and musical events. He is active in the freelance field and his work over the past 10 years has appeared in a variety of South African newspapers and magazines. He writes regularly for Artslink.co.za, The Citizen, South African Jewish Report, The Sunday Independent and is a contributor to "Eat Out" Magazine. He also contributes movie reviews to Chai fm Radio and has worked on TV in his specialist capacity. Over the years Feldman has been the recipient of several awards for his contribution to music journalism and the SA record industry. He wrote lyrics for some top artists, including Sipho Mabuse, and had a hit disco single, "Video Games," which was released in 1988. After retiring from The Star in April, 1999, Feldman joined the PR and events management company, Dlamini Weil Communications, where he currently works as an entertainment and media consultant.