Irwin Allen--The Master of Fairy Tales??
Five years after the "Disaster Craze" of the 1970's, Irwin Allen attempted to become the "Master of TV Mini Series Fairy Tales." (In fact, he had an even bigger cast lined up for an all-star extravaganza production of 'Pinocchio' in the works..but fell ill, and died before it could be made.)
---So..how do you summarize this elephantine production, one that hits big on so many levels at times, then misses big at other times??
---Let's start with NATALIE GREGORY in the title role. She is excellent. She looks the part, is kind of like an even cuter version of Dakota Fanning, and IS Alice. "Irwin and Co." certainly hit the bullseye when they cast this tot for the miniseries. The girl could not only act (by the way, where DID she go? I never heard from her again...) but she also hit the notes (of some Godawfully bad songs at times) every time.
---Since we are talking about the songs, let's be kind and say...THEY TRIED. Steve Allen-penned, and backed by a great orchestra, one would (and should) expect better. A few of the production numbers are "tolerable", but on the whole...they are so bad, they make the soundtrack of "Stripes" look like a masterpiece by comparison. Sammy Davis Jr comes off the best, with a coll dance number to boot...but the rest look like a bad High School production. This is a shame, as the series was HEAVILY touted as a musical, and the music is its own worst enemy. Almost single-handedly destroying the entire production.
---Storywise, this is definitely the most faithful to the book, and the endless stream of cameos is actually enjoyable rather than distracting (as was the case in other mega-all star-films like 'Greatest Story Ever Told' and 'Pepe') and helps adults endure the 4 hour running time playing "spot the star" while the kids enjoy the film. In fact, some of the stars are SO good in their roles (Meadows, Caesar, Sammy Davis, Telly Savalas, etc) that it is obvious they put their hearts into the making of this film. Good for them, as it shows an old-fashioned "College Try" rarely seen anymore.
---So, if you can overlook the songs (shame on Steve Allen) you will probably LOVE this movie. And as for the cast--one of the GREATEST ever assembled in one movie--it is a veritible "who's who" of modern cinema.
---I remember when this Miniseries aired back in 1985, and was really surprised to see Irwin Allen's name attached to the production. But it was refreshing to see that he could bring a film to the screen that didn't require a bee-sting, a burning building, a flood, a tidal wave, a cave-in, or even a cable car hanging by a wire to be enjoyable. Allen was a master showman...hokey at times...but always a showman first and foremost. I mean, he COULD have called this "Beyond the Alice Adventure" or "The Mad Hatter Inferno", or even Voyage to the Bottom of the Rabbit Hole." Instead, he genuinely tried to out-do Disney (a feat rarely done) and he should be given kudos for that.Read full review
