Entertainment
It's been a long time coming since the first in the new Alice in Wonderland film franchise was released in 2010. Now, half a decade later, the sequel is finally upon us. Alice Through the Looking Glass is out this weekend, and parents across the country can reasonably expect their little ones to tug on their sleeve and ask to see it immediately, pretty please. While there are plenty of things to consider before giving them the "all clear" to attend, there are also plenty of reasons you should take your kids to see Alice Through the Looking Glass.
Of course, most kids who watch any of the previously released trailers will undoubtedly want to attend. And who can blame them? Alice Through The Looking Glass takes place in a bright wonderland with talking cats, madmen in hats, and comical twins named Tweedle Dee and Tweeddle Dum. And not only is there a good queen, but a bad queen too, just like The Wizard of Oz. This is pretty much the stuff that kids' dreams are made of. Plus, the character of Alice, played by Australian actress Mia Wasikowsa, will be older and more relatable as a character for adult viewers in Looking Glass, which takes place several years after the first film left off.
As a parent, though, it's necessary to pick and choose between the five zillion movies that the kids are constantly begging to see. Reviews for the film have so far been mixed, so it may not exactly go down in history as a critical success (although Disney fans' hopes are high). If you're on the lookout for reasons to take the kids to Alice Through the Looking Glass despite these iffy reviews, look no further. There are still plenty of valid reasons kids should see this film (and Johnny Depp is just one of them).
It Will Be A Visual Spectacle
It's no mistake that the promotional poster for Looking Glass looks like the embodiment of an acid trip; Just like the first Alice film, the sequel promises to be a journey of 3-D visual splendor that a Variety review of the film summarized as comprising "day-glow production design, busy CGI and assorted other shiny things."
These are the precise type of mesmerizing graphics that kids tend to love. Whether their caregivers will appreciate it so much is another issue—a review at Cinema Blend characterized the effect as a "CGI overload" that is "dizzyingly over stylized." So adults, take it with a grain of salt. Kids, on the other hand, will likely be thrilled.
Sacha Baron Cohen As Time Itself Is Priceless
Disney was kind enough to pre-release a hilarious clip of actor Sacha Baron Cohen in his role as Time — like, Time with a capital T — and the clip reveals an ominous and hilarious character sparring with actor Jonny Depp's Mad Hatter over the location of Alice, who Time, apparently, has it out for (he calls her a "thief").
In the clip, Time attempts to hide the depth of his beef with Alice, who has stolen something important from him. The issue is "nothing to fuss over," he tells the Mad Hatter. He then does a one-eighty, explaining that he "must have it back... not that I'm concerned." According to Yahoo News, the item in question is a Chromosphere, some sort of time-travel device that will enable Alice to help the Mad Hatter, who is suffering a crisis in relation to a mysterious event from his past.
Whatever the case, both adults and kids will likely enjoy the spectacle.
Johnny Depp
Need we say more? The 52-year-old actor is known for dazzling audiences in eccentric roles, and his portrayal of the Mad Hatter in Through the Looking Glass won't disappoint.
It Will Make Your Kids Curious About The Books
The Looking Glass film is very loosely based of the eponymous sequel to English author Lewis Carroll's beloved 1865 children's books, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. If you've not had the delight of reading these irreplaceable gems, I suggest that you do so immediately. It takes the reader on a journey of the imagination with twists and turns on every page, and does so with endless puns and word play that put even author Oscar Wilde, the other English king of wit, to shame.
Alice in Wonderland is pretty much the most quotable book ever, and perhaps one of the best quotes in the book is an excellent lesson for any child to learn as they're growing up: “It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,” Alice explains at the book's end. If the Looking Glass film gets your youngsters interested in the Alice novels, then seeing the film is time well-spent indeed.
