Walt Disney presents us this classic children’s story based on author Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass” in a new Masterpiece Edition that includes a variety of fun bonus features. The story of a curious, blonde little girl named Alice, who falls asleep outside and travels in her dreams to Wonderland, is beautiful and sweet and best of all, never boring. Her adventures are colorful and wild, and make no sense at all, which is why this has always been a fascinating ride into a child’s imagination.

Originally, Walt Disney released Alice in Wonderland in 1951, but you don’t feel like it’s an old film when you watch it, just like many Disney classic animation films. They are so well executed that it’s hard to find a flaw in them. This story is a treat for animal lovers, as it’s filled with strange, adorable and funky creatures of which my favorites were the Mome Raths, small, furry little multi-colored thingies that crawl around. Classic characters such as the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the Hookah-smoking Caterpillar, the Cheshire Cat, the Queen of Hearts, the talking flowers, and more, all delight us with their funny weirdness. As a child, Tweedledee and Tweedledum were my favorites, because I thought they were so funny. But now, of course, decades later, I no longer laugh at their names and antics, and I would have to say that the White Rabbit is now my favorite as it relates strongly to my life nowadays: I am always late for work! I have called myself the White Rabbit as I walked into the office late too many times to count.

Also, the talking flowers rock, they are so beautifully animated that they really stood out for me. They have faces, and personalities, and attitude too. This story could work on more than one level, as on the one hand, it is clearly geared towards small children, and yet on the other, it has this adult drug theme running throughout. Jefferson Airplane wrote the amazingly trippy song “White Rabbit” based on the story of Alice in Wonderland. The lyrics go, “One pill makes you larger, and one pill makes you small, and the ones that mother gives you don't do anything at all. Go ask Alice, when she's ten feet tall.” That said, since children won’t get the drug references in this film, I would not worry about letting them view it. In fact, I recommend it greatly, it is a delight for children’s senses, with all the colorful visuals and music it has to offer. All in all, this story is crazy, fun and colorful and that is why I always loved it, it is not traditional and typical, and I have always gravitated towards the underground things in life, even if they are Disney.

Video: This DVD version is digitally restored and re-mastered with an all-new transfer and is shown in full screen (1.33:1) The picture quality is top notch.

Audio: This 2-set DVD has all-new Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, and is THX-Certified, including THX Optimizer. It has Spanish and French tracks. The quality is very good, to say the least, and the songs are all beautifully clear and crisp.

DISC ONE:

In The Virtual Wonderland Party, the White Rabbit tells us to pick items from the Mad Hatter’s tea table and each of these items leads the player/viewer to a game or riddle or a sing-a-long song. It is very much geared towards very small children, but is interactive and entertaining nonetheless (again, for a three year-old). It includes “The Mad Hatter Says” which is a Simon Says type of game.

Sing-a-Long Song “The Un-Birthday Song” with scenes from the Mad Hatter’s Un-Birthday Party. The classic song from the classic film.

Sing-a-Long Song “All in the Golden Afternoon” which takes place in the flower garden with the singing flowers. Very cool indeed. The flowers are stunning. They sing so well too.

Adventures in Wonderland” Set-Top Game: The Cheshire Cat guides us through very easy, but fun, games for small children.

The newly discovered Cheshire Cat song “I’m Odd”, is a treat to see and we even get a little bit of history as to how it was discovered after all this time. There were way too many songs in this film, and this was one of the ones that got cut, in the day.

“Thru the Mirror” Mickey Mouse animated short circa 1951 and based on Alice In Wonderland story. It is very well-executed, runs about 8 minutes long and is reminiscent of the old Mickey Mouse animations of days gone by.

Also contained on this 2 DVD set is a Wonderland Card Game, which is a “Memory” style card game with Alice characters on the memory cards.

DISC TWO:

The main feature on this second disc is the One Hour in Wonderland show, the first ever Walt Disney TV show. It is hosted by the actress who voices Alice, Kathryn Beaumont, and Walt Disney himself. Legendary ventriloquist Edgar Bergen (father of Candice Bergen) is also featured here with his ever-famous Charlie McCarthy doll. This 1950 production is typical of the old-time variety show specials of the fifties, which were filled with musical numbers and special guests and even features Disney characters and animations starring Goofy, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, etc. This program is dated, but that is what is so cool about it, all the way down to the vintage Coca-Cola ads...they actually call Coke the "wholesome" drink here. Really? Vintage, and contains some classic Disney shorts.

An Alice Comedy: Alice’s Wonderland: This 8-minute series pilot by Walt Disney is so ‘twenties’, which makes sense since it came out in 1923 and stars the tiny actress Virginia Davis as Alice. Trust me, you’ve seen nothing cuter. A vintage treasure in my book.

Operation Wonderland: A 1951 behind the scenes featurette which provides us with interesting background facts on how this animated story was brought to life for the big screen. In black and white, hosted by the man himself, Walt Disney.

The Fred Waring Show: A half hour excerpt from this 1951 variety show includes re-enacted scenes of song and dance from Alice in Wonderland with the actress Kathryn Beaumont (Alice) hosting. My least favorite feature, I found it too long and boring. B&W.

And last, but not least, the second disc also includes many deleted scenes, a deleted storyboard concept, song demos, art galleries (very beautiful sketches), two original theatrical trailers and Walt Disney’s TV introductions (one from 1954 & one from 1964).

ALICE IN WONDERLAND is a wild, nonsensical ride through the surreal, adventurous world of a child’s imagination and is a treat for the eyes and ears, especially for younger audiences. That said, it is in my view a classic childhood story, enjoyable by young and old alike. If you enjoy Disney classics, this 2-set DVD is a must own for you. I personally loved it, and more than that, I would say this is Disney’s most colorful and trippy film ever made. For little girls out there, who all want to be the pretty heroine of the fairytale, Alice is simply a joy to behold.