In the wild and wacky 1980s, schlock producer Irwin Allen, of The Towering Inferno and The Poseidon Adventure fame, decided to transform Lewis Carroll's beloved children's classics into a celebrity-studded three-hour musical extravaganza. To call this 1985 tchotchke directed by Harry Harris a disaster is tempting—considering the Allen connection—but millions of Generation Xers have fond childhood memories of this made-for-TV two-part adaptation of both Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, even though the songs by Steve Allen are painfully hokey, and much of the author's wit is simply lost in the mugging by the whopping cast: Ernest Borgnine, Sid Caesar, Red Buttons, Carol Channing, Imogene Coca, Sammy Davis Jr., Merv Griffin, Sherman Hemsley, Harvey Korman, Anthony Newley, Donald O'Connor, Telly Savalas, Ringo Starr...the list goes on and on (and they're all in foam-rubber Wonderland costumes!). Depending on your take, it's either like being at the world's scariest (unintentionally) or funniest tea party. Presented on an extra-less disc, this is a strong optional purchase. (M. Johanson)
Alice in Wonderland
Sony, 187 min., not rated, DVD: $14.95 Volume 21, Issue 5
Alice in Wonderland
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