Critical theories notes

Alice in Wonderland.

Auteur theory

Tim Burton
Stripes
Recurring actors - Johnny Depp, Helen Bonham Carter
Recurring crew - Tim Burton works with Danny Elfman when it comes music for his works.

Feminist theory
Advertisement focuses on Hatter, Alice is offside.
Bechtel test- Pass. The White queen and Alice talk about potions, fighting a monster etc. And the White queen and Red queen discuss who is meant to wear the crown.
Showing how females were treated in the past and how she changes that and fights for independence. Wonderland could symbolise her fight for equality as she fights a monster wearing armour and becomes a partner of a trading business; becoming the first to trade with China.

Psychoanalytic

ego - Alice
Super-ego - the real world - telling her how she should live.
id - wonderland - Throwing up both good and bad ideas

Then the super-ego and id swap roles. Now Wonderland is telling Alice what to do and she rejects the real world's ideas.

Bringing childhood memories back with uncertainty (the uncanny) - Fighting the Jabberwocky, brought to life from Carroll's poem that many remember from their childhood. Also beloved animals now insane and creepy. Especially the march hare who is a scrawny, crazy character that probably can't be trusted.


I think the Hatter almost represents the writer of the original story - Lewis Carroll.  The way he looks at Alice, asks her to stay and is captivated by her could represent Lewis Carroll's attachment to a young girl called Alice Liddell. In the original story and other adaptations the Hatter does not have an attachment to Alice. She is older in this version and he talks about her in the past and is proud of how much she has grown up. Also Lewis Carroll's attachment with Alice Liddell included dressing her up like a doll for his photography. This could relate to the Hatter making Alice her dress when she is shrunk.
I also think that when Alice shrinks down and her dress becomes loose that maybe this references the young Alice Liddell who Lewis Carroll used to photograph. These 2 photos show the dress that Lewis Carroll dressed Alice Liddell in and the dress of Alice's remaining undergarments when she shrinks in Tim Burton's movie. I think the strange off the shoulder, baggy look could relate back to the young girl. Because in most versions of Alice in Wonderland, when she shrinks he dress shrinks with her but this time it doesn't and she is left with this strange look. When you see her memories of wonderland when she was young she is wearing her ordinary dress and is in the same place and the same size and Alice when she has been shrunk.