The 1980s saw a wave of dark fantasy films that felt like moody fairytales.
In 1988,Jan SvankmajerreleasedAlice, one of the darkest versions ofLewis CarrollsAlice in Wonderland.
Half stop-motion, half live-action,Alicesees a youngKristyna Kohoutovaplay the titular Alice.
Image by Nimesh Niyomal Perera
Sometimes the road to “happily ever after” takes some dark turns.
One of the many strengths of SvankmajersAliceis how he warps familiar characters into fitting his grim aesthetic.
While Alice is primarily played by an actual actress,the other characters appear through stop-motion.
The White Rabbit and the Mad Hatter are grungy, taxidermied animals.
Sarah fromLabyrinthgets caught in a game of cat and mouse with David Bowies sexualized Jareth.
But what sets Alice apart from them is that she is still a very young child.
One of the uglier aspects of growing up is the sudden awareness of others' unwanted perceptions.
Svankmajer puts the audience in the position of being both the subject and the observer.
Aliceis available to buy or rent on Amazon.
Rent on Amazon
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