Alice

Alice (Neco Z Alenky) (1988)

Runtime: 86 minutes

Directed by: Jan Svankmajer

Starring: Kristyna Kohoutova

From: Several European Companies

Here is a movie from the Czech area of Europe and it's a rather strange mix of live action and stop-motion animation. I explain it all in my Letterboxd review below: 

Last night I decided to Czech myself before I wreck myself; I looked at my Netflix Instant queue and saw that this would leave the service at the end of the month so it made the most sense to see it immediately. I hadn't seen any other works from director Jan Svankmajer but I have heard he specializes in rather odd creations, so between that and the general weirdness of the original Alice Through the Looking Glass story (which I've never been a fan of; personal preferences is the main reason why), it's no surprise that he wanted to do his version for years and finally was able to do so in the late 80's.

The plot generally follows the classic tale but there are plenty of points where Svankmajer inserts his sensibilities and this turns out to be rather strange; the film itself states that it's “made for children... perhaps.” I can tell you that it's not! I definitely would not have wanted to see it as a kid, as there are many weird and nightmarish images which I won't spoil here; this is not even taking into consideration how I couldn't possibly accurately give a recap of the plot anyhow due to all the random crap and weird non-sequiturs that happen.

Of course, if you love Alice in Wonderland then you may rate this differently... you could love the unique spin on this, or you could hate it and prefer the animated film or... well, not a lot of people like the Tim Burton-Johnny Depp version, but if you do... I viewed it as a daffy acid-drenched adventure where live-action is mixed with stop-motion animation perfectly and you got plenty of surreal landscapes and dream-like moments. I was certainly entertained even if I didn't always have clue one as to what in the hell was going on.

I have mentioned on Letterboxd and elsewhere that there are plenty of examples of weird media being produced behind the Iron Curtain; I don't know how much a factor the stifling influence of Communism had but whether the Soviets, the Czech or others, you definitely got unique products from them, this being a definite example.