Alice Movie Off The Ground

After a long period of preproduction, the movie adaptation of American McGee's Alice is moving forward. Eurogamer has the news that 'Buffy' star Sarah Michelle Gellar will play the title role. From the article: "The movie will follow the plot of the game, which adds a twisted spin to Lewis Carroll's classic tales. Some years after her adventures in Wonderland, Alice's parents are killed in a house fire and, devastated by the loss, she winds up in a mental asylum."

Comments

Story-based games

[mokiejovis]

I've personally always been a fan of story-based video games. Alice is a perfect example of one, and with such a strong fleshed-out plot, I'd hope that they'd manage to get it done without too many screw-ups.

On the other hand, look at what they did to Doom.

Re:Story-based games

[Tanmi-Daiow]

Wait a second....are you saying Doom is a strong story based game?

Re:Story-based games

[Anonymous Coward]

"...look at what they did to Doom."

Whaaaa? Umm did you ever happen to read the text file 'story' accompanying the origional Doom? It was about three paragraphs long, and used the cliche "interdimensional portal opens...apparently they are not friendly" plotline. It definitely had the look of being thrown on at the very last minute to give some sort of context why you are blasting away at various mosters and ghouls.

Re:Story-based games

[mokiejovis]

Really, it was more like two entirely different thoughts crammed together to form one useless thought.

Good, good.

[Leroy_Brown242]

Sounds like a capitolisation on a good idea.

BTW, this is my 700th slashdot post. YAY!

Re:Good, good.

[Winterblink]

BTW, this is my 700th slashdot post. YAY!

You go girl.

Excellent

[TripMaster Monkey]

Truly excellent game...looking forward to the movie.

Sarah Michelle Gellar, though? Isn't Alice supposed to be British?

While were at it, I'd like to see the movie adaptations of System Shock andSystem Shock IIas well...

^_^

Re:Excellent

[Winckle]

War Of The Worlds was set in Eastern England, now look at the Speilberg film. A typical American family coping with the crisis was not what Wells had in mind

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Americans can't relate to things that happen to people who aren't American in countries that aren't the US.

Re:Excellent

[Soybean47]

Does it really matter that much? Is the story in some way about her inherent British-ness?

Anyway, if the movie people want to make her British, I think Sarah Michelle Gellar can pull it off. I like to think that she's a better actress than people give her credit for. I mean, just the fact that her character in The Grudge felt like a different person than Buffy was enough to convince me that she's better at acting than most people seem to think.

Re:Excellent

[Elranzer]

Disney never believed that...

Alice in Wonderland - British
Mary Poppins - British
Lion King - Africa
Mulan - China
...
Disney - American company

Spielburg and Cruise will be ruining War of the Worlds. Luckily, a recent British adaptation of the movie was just released, and available on DVD in America now.

Re:Excellent

[Golias]

Americans can't relate to things that happen to people who aren't American in countries that aren't the US.

Very true. This is why "Casablanca" did so poorly, and why nobody goes to James Bond movies in the US. Or Harry Potter movies.

Also, "Titanic" might not have lost so much money if Rose was American. Too bad, that film looked like it had a chance to make a few bucks.

I could go on all day rattling off failures like "Lawrence of Arabia", "Doctor Zhivago", and "The Passion of the Christ." If only they had American main characters, they might have made money in US theaters.

Re:Excellent

[NanoGator]

"Americans can't relate to things that happen to people who aren't American in countries that aren't the US."

Just remember that whatever country you're from has ugly ill-based stereotypes, too.

Re:Excellent

[delete]

If only they had American main characters, they might have made money in US theaters.

I think the grandparent post is referring to large-budget movies of an apocalyptic nature, which always seem to center around the US. "War of the Worlds" follows in the well-trodden footsteps of previous films such as "Independence Day", "The Day After Tomorrow", "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon". Judging by these films, aliens and Mother Nature clearly have an anti-American agenda.

Seriously, it's quite understandable that films such as these are US-centric as that is the dominant and most influential target market. While films such as "The Passion of the Christ" and "Titanic" may not have Americans filling all the lead roles, any non-American can see that they are primarily aimed at the US market. That's probably what irritates the original poster.

Re:Excellent

[Golias]

I think the grandparent post is referring to large-budget movies of an apocalyptic nature, which always seem to center around the US.

That's because Hollywood (a city in the US) spends more on their movies than anybody else. Up until the rise of cheap CGI, nobody else could afford to do a big-budget apocalypse. Maybe India or Hong Kong, but those countries have been making movies with vastly different themes. Global threats to all human life seem to be a largely American entertainment theme lately.

Anyway, the post we are discussing was clearly implying that American audiences were entirely to provincial and xenophobic to enjoy movies with foreign characters and settings, and that's clearly a load of crap.

While films such as "The Passion of the Christ" and "Titanic" may not have Americans filling all the lead roles, any non-American can see that they are primarily aimed at the US market.

"Titanic" is the #2 movie of all time in Japan, and took in vast sums all over Europe and Asia. It was huge in the US, but it was huge everywhere else, too.

The extremely Roman Catholic "The Passion of the Christ" was vastly more popular in South American countries than in the US. Here it was a big art-house hit, but it was the global audience that made it the #9 all-time top grossing film that it is.

If they were "clearly aimed at the US market", then they missed the mark by a rather wide margin, as both films relied on international popularity to make their money.

Re:Excellent

[Txiasaeia]

Or the fact that War of the Worlds was set in 19th century England, not 21st century US. What would have been wrong with actually setting it in the book's original setting? There are not nearly enough steampunk films on the market.

Re:Excellent

[cephyn]

Given the reviews/rating at IMDB, it may not be a "lucky" thing at all!

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

What would have been wrong with actually setting it in the book's original setting?

That film has already been made. Several times. Spielberg wanted to make a Tom Cruise vs. Flying Saucers movie, and is using the frame of "War of the Worlds" to hang it on.

I'm sure it's going to suck, but oh well.

Re:Excellent

[great throwdini]

If they were "clearly aimed at the US market", then they missed the mark by a rather wide margin, as both films relied on international popularity to make their money.

That's a bit of a stretch for both Titanic and The Passion of the Christ, don't you think? The latter was budgeted at about $30 million, and took in $370 million in the United States alone. Titanic, though budgeted at around $200 million, took in $600 million in the United States.

Yes, both films gained from worldwide receipts ([US+International gross:] Titanic - $1.8+ billion, Passion - $600 million+) ... but to say that either relied on the international market to make money is absurd. More money, yes. A profit, no.

Re:Excellent

[NanoGator]

"Just remember that whatever country you're from has ugly ill-based stereotypes, too."

I resent the flamebait moderation for my post. Some people spout off like their shit don't stink. I was pointing out that maybe, just maybe, they shouldn't be so quick to cast stones.

Ever since the US invaded Iraq, there's been a green light to wrap up 300 million people in vague stereotypes. We're fat, we're self obsessed, we're wasteful, we're ignorant. Insightful, Interesting, Informative. Then we turn around and pat ourselves on the back for wanting to work for the greater good of humanity. It's about America, so it's not okay for me to point out the less than civil behaviour going on here?

America sucks, mod me up.

Re:Excellent

[Thangodin]

Disney may not have believed it, but the marketing droids do. And much as I hate to be the bearer of bad news, they have the focus group studies to prove it. Keep in mind that Alice in Wonderland and Mary Poppins were made in the 60's, before the marketing droids took over. Lion King and Mulan are essentially Americans in Africa and China.

You also wouldn't believe the number of movies made with English, Australian, or New Zealand accents that are 'dubbed' into American. I've often found myself watching a movie and realizing that the whole cast is British or from down under, and wondering what the hell happened to their accents. It is believed that the British accents are too hard for Americans to understand. Likewise, sad endings can often destroy a movie at the box office--which is why many movies have multiple endings shot, and the happiest ending is almost always used after showing it to a test audience. The final product that ships to the theatres often sickens almost everyone involved in it. In some cases, the original tragic ending was the whole point of the movie. Some potentially great movies have had their guts slashed out and left on the cutting room floor (David Lynch's Dune is one that comes to mind--even Frank Herbert loved the original, but the studio hated it.)

So yeah, you're getting crap dished to you. As P.T. Barnum put it, nobody ever went broke by underestimating the taste of the American public. That statement has become the motto of the marketer. Lucky us.

Re:Excellent

[coaxial]

"The Passion of the Christ." If only they had American main characters, they might have made money in US theaters.

Wait! Wasn't Jesus American? I mean, I know he wasn't Jew... :)

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

It's really hard to talk people in Brazil into paying $8.50 for a movie ticket. The global market makes a lot of money, but only by volume.

Re:Excellent

[evan1l38]

I am also shocked that most american movies are based in America. Similarly, it is amazingly poor taste that the Japanese movies I watch are set in Japan. It's horrible! Oh, and I saw a German movie that was set in Germany. Disgusting! Just terrible!

Re:Excellent

[88NoSoup4U88]

Lion King - Africa ?

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, Jesus was a Jew.

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

well, i DONT.

im tired of business people sucking every possible penny from every single IP (intelectual property) available in the company they run.

i want NEW IP, NEW CHARACTERS, NEW STORIES, NEW WORLDS. IM TIRED OF THIS SAME OLD BS.

Re:Excellent

[Lisandro]

Quoting Robin Willams...

"And people say 'Jesus isn't Jewish'. Of course he is! 30 years old, single, living at home with his parents? Come on! Working on his father buisness, his mother though he was God's gift? He's Jewish! Give it up!"

That DVD was probably the funniest shit i've seen in recent years.

Re:Excellent

[coaxial]

Reminds me of the 1970's Second City Christmas skit.

Joseph and a pregnant Mary attend a marriage councilor.

Joseph: "Look. We just get married. I don't even get a chance to fuck her yet, and she turns up pregnant!"
Councilor: "Jesus Christ!"
Joseph: "That's what I said!"

Re:Excellent

[BlueFashoo]

You also wouldn't believe the number of movies made with English, Australian, or New Zealand accents that are 'dubbed' into American. I've often found myself watching a movie and realizing that the whole cast is British or from down under, and wondering what the hell happened to their accents.

Name some.

Likewise, sad endings can often destroy a movie at the box office

That's why Titanic did so poorly.

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

What do you mean, 'since the US invaded Iraq' ?

Re:Excellent

[Detritus]

Right, the Martians vs. the 19th century Royal Army. That should make for an exciting 10 minutes.

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

So basically, it's going to be like I, Robot, which was a Will Smith versus Robots film with the name to get people's attention?

Re:Excellent

[paedobear]

Name some.

Star Wars Mad Max First 2 that come to mind

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Wait! Wasn't Jesus American? I mean, I know he wasn't Jew... :)

Well, no, but his Dad is a well-respected American policy advisor with the ear of the President...

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, no, but his Dad is a well-respected American policy advisor with the ear of the President...

Dick Cheyney?

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Hang on how do you want titanic to have a happy ending? It sank, thousands died, ooo hang on! i get it the captin goes " Hang on we arent sinking! thank god this boat has an anti ice burg bumper on it!"

Even that is a bit far fetched for Holywood.

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't forget "Star Wars", which didn't even take place on Earth. I wonder how much better it would have done had it been set in the good ol' USA?

Re:Excellent

[Richard_at_work]

Obviously you have never read the book or listened to the Jeff Wayne musical. The whole point is that the military cannot stand up to the might of the martian invasion, but earth is spared at the last minute.

Re:Excellent

[Rallion]

System Shock is an amazing candidate for a movie. (Also, best FPS ever.) I read an online novel loosely based on it (twice) that, I think, really shows how great a script could be.

It's called Free Radical, by Shamus Young, and I won't link to it anywhere on Slashdot. Google is a useful tool.

Re:Excellent

[Impotent_Emperor]

Which characters in Star Wars were re-dubbed? (Some of those Imperial officers had British accents and they weren't dubbed over.)

Re:Excellent

[Txiasaeia]

I know it's hard to believe, but if the movie remains true to the book, the Yanks don't save the day with some fancy piece of technology.

Re:Excellent

[scabb]

I'm British, and I don't particularly care. All those films are very good in my eyes, regardless of accents and americanisation.

Re:Excellent

[PakProtector]

Titanic's ending was happy, wasn't it?

I mean, Leo died... That's a happy time, right?

Re:Excellent

[paedobear]

A significant number of the rebels in the first two films - Noone minds the bad guys being English, but the heroes?

Re:Excellent

[chrisbtoo]

Darth Vader, for starters.

OTOH, I can understand that, David Prowse's accent just doesn't work for the character.

Oye findle yourl lackl of faithl disturbling, moy luvver.

Re:Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh yes we do!
#1#1#1 USAUSAUSAUSA!!!!!!!1

Alice

[Anonymous Coward]

Man, that movie gives me the creeps. I can't believe it's a childrens movie. <>

Much like clowns, there is just something evil about them.

Dementation of already odd tales

[mister_llah]

... seems to be a trend in film and theater these days. Alice in an institution, the Wicked Witch being portrayed as the victim of Dorothy in "Wicked" (on broadway) ... http://www.wickedthemusical.com/ ... if you are the curious sort...

===

I think it's all well and good to try and come up with new ideas, but in a way, I am starting to dislike the trend of taking childhood films and turning them into something not intended for children.

Next they'll have "The New Adventures of the Smurfs" ... it'll be triple X, and you know where this is going, so I'll shut the smurf up.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[mokiejovis]

Listen buddy, you can take that comment and smurf it right up your smurfing smurf. People like you really smurf me off.

(BTW- I hear from a reliable source that Smurfette just LOVES it up her smurf. Smurf yeah!)

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Datamonstar]

It might be a new trend commercially, but it's been around for a bit. I remember writing a creative writing bit for class about Goldilocks' version of the 3 bears encounter. It ended up a rretty amusing story.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[mister_llah]

I won't deny a certain allure in modernizing/making adult (not like that, pervs!) tales from my childhood, and I am guilty of having drawn comics that depict things such as Q-bert doing a line of coke, or the bulemic Hungry Hungry Hippo... ... but these things won't be seen by kids... (and I suppose Wicked isn't likely to, either) ... I suppose I just worry that kids have enough media influence screwing with their heads, and previews being what they are (being played on TV, nothing more sinister than that ;) ), we don't need them having another reason for future therapy...

===

Some people say I worry too much, but the voices, they tell me I'm fine...

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[justforaday]

Next thing you know Disney will come along and start bastardizing classic stories...

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[FuckTheModerators]

Smurfs, Shortcake, who knows what's next?

Obligatory PA link here.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[HiVizDiver]

Not sure I'd consider "Alice in Wonderland" a kids book per se... there're a lot of adult themes in the original story, including drug references (although he was not under the influence of any illicit drugs when he wrote AIW, contrary to popular belief), beheadings, disobedience of authority (how shocking!), etc. I'd let my kids read it, but I think that an adult can get as much out of it as a kid, on a wholly different level.

That said, I thought the AM's Alice was a great game, that I thought paid appropriate tribute to the original story but took it in a new direction that created a world I wanted to explore and know more about.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[UrgleHoth]

As you can see by the replies to the parent post, twisting children's entertainment to adult themes is nothing new. Most of it is garbage, but most entertainment is rehashed garbase anyway.

To add yet antother example, anyone remember Andrew "Dice" Clay and his rendition of Mother Goose rhymes?

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[jspoon]

I think it's all well and good to try and come up with new ideas, but in a way, I am starting to dislike the trend of taking childhood films and turning them into something not intended for children.

"...It just couldn't happen. Smurfs are asexual. They don't even have reproductive organs under those little white pants. That's what's so illogical, you know, about being a Smurf. What's the point of living if you don't have a dick?"

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Elwood P Dowd]

Ever read the Brothers Grimm?

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[mister_llah]

Actually, no... should I?

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Jerf]

Yes.

It may not be Hellraiser, but the term "Fairy Tale" has been pretty whitewashed since the Brothers Grimm chronicled them. If you go expecting stories about Jack jumping over the candlestick, you'll be surprised.

Modern times differs only in our ability to graphically depict gore without actually hurting anybody; the fascination isn't new.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Elwood P Dowd]

It's rather educational. Definitely don't read it to your kids without preparing yourself and checking the whole story beforehand.

For example, one of Cinderella's stepsisters was doing fine with Prince Charming, until the fields whispered to him "Dude, check out her foot! Check out her foot!" and he looked and saw that she had severed her heel in order to fit into the glass slipper and she was bleeding everywhere.

Also for example, there is a story that's only one page long about Rose Red: This little boy disobeys his mother and goes out into the forest and meets Rose Red. Then, exactly one year later, the boy dies in his bed and his mother finds a red rose on the doorstep. No, it's not too upsetting, but that's the whole story.

Most of the stories are gory and weird. Yes, German people are twisted, but IMHO there is something to be said for telling your children about twisted shit. This is expounded upon in Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age, and he cites The Raven (By Coleridge, not Poe) as an excellent example.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[mister_llah]

Oh I thought it was some new book or something with the title "The Brothers Grimm" ... :"> ... but how many of us are raised on the unedited ones? I think I heard about them being twisted originally around Jr. High, by then I wasn't young enough to take delight in cutting people's heads off or doing horrible things except in games like Wolfenstien :)

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[imr]

Actually the original stories were a lot more gore than the Grimm or the Perrault versions.
Take "little red hood" for instance.
They found it too gore for young people, especially young girls, and some parts were senseless to them. So they cut off all that was bothering them.
They were in fact part of an oral tradition of stories which brought meanings to various stades of life in the countrysides of Europe. And you couldnt understand such stories either if you didnt know the way they were living. Which neither the Grimms nor Perrault did.

Funny to see that the trend that Disney is following when putting those stories from books into pictures, and taming then in the process, was already in action then.

Here are the missing parts that you won't find in those books, or in cartoons, and that I was taught in an Anthropology course:

in the story:
-the wolf don't talk about shorcut, he says she must take the cisors way, not the needle way. (writers didnt understand that one)
-the wolf kill the grand ma allright, but he also prepares a nice meals with it: meat rolls and heart prepared in blood sauce. (boudin in french).
-The girl is offered a nice meal before the "big eyes" part of the story, see above. Yes, she eats it.
-She is eaten by the wolf in the end. Yes, no hunter, no woodcutter, no droopy to the rescue, no high kick. She is dead.

Countryside life in the areas where that version was told:
-girl were taught what they needed at "wise women" houses. As long as they were considered child, during the sewing lessons they were allowed to use only needdles not cisors. They were allowed to use them anly after becoming young women.
-When they became young women, there was a huge party in the village where the main meal was pig meat rolls and heart in blood sauce.

All in all, the original story is a lot darker (or more red), yet it contains more sense once you know it's an initiation story for women in a time when there was such an initiation.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Ben Struferga]

Beeing a german and haveing grown up with those, admitantly sometimes disturbing, stories, I remember having learned that these stories originally werent intended for children.
The stories and fairytales the grimms collected in the 18th century, have been going around for many hundreds of years before they were written down and collected.
Back in those days, there were told by and for adults, wich explains why a lot of them are rather cruel and explicit.
Try and find some of grimms fairytales in their original versions and you will be surprised. They are violent, sad, often have unhappy endings and, above all are very graphic about sex
(that part got my attention, too)

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Anonymous Coward]

Please take life drawing. For the love of God, please take it.

Re:Dementation of already odd tales

[Impotent_Emperor]

I thought that Cinderella was a French story, but I'm not sure.

Anyway, I heard that in the original story, the shoe was made out of fur and not glass. And there was an expression called "putting the foot in the fur shoe" which was a euphemism for sex.

I guess the prince slept with a lot of women in order to find the "shoe" that fit.

So this means..........

[1967mustangman]

she is now Buffy the Cheshire Cat Slayer *grin*

Re:So this means..........

[Leroy_Brown242]

*RIMSHOT*

Oh, Alice, you treat me well...

[Jicksta]

Alice was definitely one of the best games I've ever played. It was crazy, fun, and extremely well thought out. Honestly, I don't think a movie producer could pick a better game to make a movie out of.

I've been keeping track of the movie for years. I'm glad the idea wasn't just smoke in the wind.

Anyone who hasn't played it should check it out.

Re:Oh, Alice, you treat me well...

[joeljkp]

Or pick up a copy. No, it's not an affiliate link.

Re:Oh, Alice, you treat me well...

[Kaimelar]

Anyone who hasn't played it should check it out [torrentspy.com].

Or, you could cough up twelve bucks and just buy the damn game!

Unless you don't think "one of the best games you've ever played" is worth that much . . .

And if you're not sure it's worth buying? Grab the demo!

Re:Oh, Alice, you treat me well...

[Flunitrazepam]

He probably can't afford it since he spent all his money buying pot so he could tolerate that shitty game

Re:Oh, Alice, you treat me well...

[Jicksta]

Right. While I was out out buying pot you were out making fantastically insightful untrollish comments on Slashdot.

Hmmmm,bn

[yasth]

So it will have a pair of dice that SMG rolls and summons up demons with? Seriously that was a twisted game. It should be an interesting transition

ADDS a twisted spin?

[Gulthek]

You mean their wasn't twisted nature to that book already? Or does the submitter mean that the happy spin added by Disney is twisted back to the creepiness of the book with this movie?

Re:ADDS a twisted spin?

[Anonymous Coward]

If that's a Disney happy spin then I know I don't want to read the book. The Disney cartoon was twisted and creepy as hell.

Re:ADDS a twisted spin?

[mister_llah]

Disney still managed to make it pretty creepy, even if it wasn't as creepy as the book... or at least, it is creepy to me...

===

Perhaps this is just part of the natural flow of things? Tales from the dark ages were pretty demented (heck, even the ones that have been altered over time started out being pretty bad, such as the Arthurian legend and Robin Hood) ... but... who knows, since no one from those eras is alive to tell us about any actual similarities :)

Re:ADDS a twisted spin?

[fm6]

You mean their wasn't twisted nature to that book already?

Well, if you're a fan of Martin Gardner's Annotated Alice, then of course you know that the Alice books are full of death jokes and other dark stuff. But when I first read them at the age of 10, all that stuff went right by me -- it was just a cute story.

My two personal favorites: The Bread-And-Butter Fly, which lives on weak tea with cream in it. That's hard to get, so the BABF has a short life span. Then there's the Tweedle Brothers attempts to convince Alice that she's not real, which cause her to burst into tears. She insists that being able to cry proves that she exists. Their reply: "I hope you don't think those are real tears!"

But as much as I like Sarah Gellar, I'm not sure I can see her as Alice. I have to wonder if somebody didn't see that really lame post-shark episode of Buffy, the one where she thinks she's a mental patient dreaming she's a vampire slayer, and decided it was original and cool. God safe us from Hollywood "creativity"!

Re:ADDS a twisted spin?

[fm6]

By Disney standards, it was creepy. By any real standards, it was standard Disney pablum.

Oh heck yes

[mister_llah]

Excepting that most (or all) video game translations of games wind up being pretty awful... the System Shock storyline is GREAT, it'd even have appeal beyond geekdom (as would the Alice film, which is why I think it could work, financially at the least)

===

On a semi-related note, I wonder what would happen if they made a ZZT movie? I'd love to see that.

Re:Oh heck yes

[syrinx]

On a semi-related note, I wonder what would happen if they made a ZZT movie? I'd love to see that.

ha. what would that even be about?

Re:Oh heck yes

[mister_llah]

This giant face needs to collect purple keys that look (oddly enough) like the symbol for "The Artist formerly known as Prince" or whatever the heck he calls himself now (probably 'Assistant manager') ... in order to save the KINGDOM OF ZZT!

===

He shoots "bullets" that oddly enough look like bubbles, and his enemies are called things like RUFFIANS! Oh man, those ruffians... always ... being so ruffianesque... ...

*cough*

On second thought maybe it wouldn't be as good as I thought.

Re:Oh heck yes

[syrinx]

haha, the ruffians! don't forget the lions and tigers. (no bears, at least until the Megazeux sequel.)

great FARK headline on this one:

[Tumbleweed]

"Sarah Michelle Gellar to star in remake of 'Alice.' No word on who will play Vic Tayback role. Alyson Hannigan as Flo? Kiss my grits."

I don't know why people keep giving her acting jobs. I loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer show _despite_ the title character and actor, not _because_ of them. The 'supporting' cast was flat-out amazing, and the show had some of the best writing ever done for us nerds. The more nerdy you are, the more you get out of the show.

Still called "Dark Wonderland"?

[DavidLeblond]

I tracked this back when they first announced they were making a movie of the game. On IMDB it was set to have Wes Craven direct, John August to write, and the title was changed from "Alice" to "Dark Wonderland."

Doesn't appear to exist on IMDB anymore. So is it still going to have this name? Because, uh, "Alice" is a MUCH less lame sounding name than "Dark Wonderland."

Re:Still called "Dark Wonderland"?

[garett_spencley]

"Doesn't appear to exist on IMDB anymore. So is it still going to have this name? Because, uh, "Alice" is a MUCH less lame sounding name than "Dark Wonderland.""

Yeah but "Alice" isn't something that's "in" right now. The American public wouldn't "get it". We need cool names like "The Wickeds", "Seed Of Chucky", "Dark Town" .. and let's not forget the best movie name ever ... "Gothica" !!!!

</sarcasm>

P.S .. I intentionally avoided seeing Gothica solely because of the name... oh and because of Halley Barry.

Re:Still called "Dark Wonderland"?

[DavidLeblond]

This Gothika, and you didn't miss much by not watching it.

Re:Still called "Dark Wonderland"?

[mink]

I can just see the theme song to "Dark Town", apologies to Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.

Our town is a very,very, dark town.
We're dead things in the dark.
Life used to be so hard.
But now everything is easy.
Cthulhu.

Crud, I wrote that thinking "dark Town" was a example of a bad name that might be used, then looked and found it was a bad film.

Not just classic stories!

[mister_llah]

... but HISTORY ITSELF!

===

Of course we ALL know *that* would never happen, and shame on us for ever suggesting, even innuendously (is that a word, ahh heck, it is now)...

Ugh

[TheBot]

Why do they have to use her for Alice? Can't we get someone BETTER? Blah, I won't be seeing this simply because we don't need some no class hollywood actors in it. I wish they could've found someone better. *sigh*

Wells or Welles

[ReverendLoki]

I like to think that HG Wells would have approved of Orson Welles' broadcast version, oddly enough set partially in Eastern New England.

And really, that is the version I'd love to see a remake of. Played on TV as a "Breaking News" newscast, as coverage of events in progress. Think the SciFi channel could pull this off?

Re:Wells or Welles

[Ford Prefect]

I like to think that HG Wells would have approved of Orson Welles' broadcast version, oddly enough set partially in Eastern New England.

(Engage Wikipedia!)

Given that the radio broadcast was in October 1938 and H. G. Wells died in August 1946 it's quite probable that he knew about it - but does anyone know what he actually thought of it?

There seems to be quite a vogue for drama-portrayed-as-fact in the UK at the moment. One decent one I saw recently was Supervolcano, a cheery tale in which millions of Americans get buried in a giant volcanic eruption. Others are a bit weirder (there was a bizarre 'documentary' about dragons on Channel 4; I switched off when it started hypothesising about dragon mating rituals) - but sadly I do think a modernised War of the Worlds would be considered a bit 'done-already'. :-/

As for games-to-films - if it takes this many years to make a film of an also-ran computer game, the ideas behind it have to be pretty special. But Alice just seemed a bit too obvious - plus the whole ultra-dark-return-to-childhood-story's been done before with Return to Oz (which scared the proverbial our of me aged five or so)...

Re:Wells or Welles

[Frodo Crockett]

There seems to be quite a vogue for drama-portrayed-as-fact in the UK at the moment. One decent one I saw recently was Supervolcano, a cheery tale in which millions of Americans get buried in a giant volcanic eruption. Others are a bit weirder (there was a bizarre 'documentary' about dragons on Channel 4; I switched off when it started hypothesising about dragon mating rituals) - but sadly I do think a modernised War of the Worlds would be considered a bit 'done-already'. :-/

It's here in the US, too. In fact, it's the reason I stopped watching the Discovery channel. The formula for producing these docudramas seems be:

1) Take an improbable topic we don't know much about
2) Make a lot of assumptions about the topic and present them all as fact
3) Have Patrick Stewart narrate the finished film
5) ???
6) Profit!

It's all part of the "reality tv" crapflood television has been experiencing for the past four or five years. It makes me want to put on my ninja suit, take my katana down off the wall, and go hunting for TV execs.

wrong actress...

[Allison Geode]

should have gotten Christina Ricci for Alice. she already looks the part, at least, and i can see her doing the mentally unstable goth in a strange land better than Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Re:wrong actress...

[ultramk]

I'm not sure you get the character very well. She's the epitome of the little-blond-good-girl, until her life is ripped apart and she becomes... twisted.

So you need a hollow-eyed blond waif who has her mind... corrupted innocence. SMG might actually work for this. Though I would prefer someone like Alicia Silverstone (too old now I guess).

Christina Ricci, on the other hand, seems like she was born that way. Remember her as Wednesday Addams?

m-

Re:wrong actress...

[JonMartin]

Christina Ricci, on the other hand, seems like she was born that way. Remember her as Wednesday Addams?

That movie was full of inspired casting. And lots of great lines, too.

Girl Scout: Is this made from real lemons?
Wednesday: Yes.
Girl Scout: I only like all-natural foods and beverages, organically grown, with no preservatives. Are you sure they're real lemons?
Pugsley: Yes.
Girl Scout: I'll tell you what. I'll buy a cup if you buy a box of my delicious Girl Scout cookies. Do we have a deal?
Wednesday: Are they made from real Girl Scouts?

Re:wrong actress...

[Rallion]

GO to IMDB and look at the headshot they have on her page. Actually, hell, here:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000207/

Tell me that isn't freaking perfect.

She does do the Wednesday Addams thing very well, sure, so she gets called on to do it a lot. And I can't pretend I'm some kind of Christina Ricci expert or anything, I've only seen at most five movies with her in them, but she isn't ALWAYS like that.

Re:wrong actress...

[ultramk]

I don't know... I saw her in "Cursed" earlier this year... and she was just terrible. Of course, it could have just been the horrible, stupid script, but she was really, really bad.

I've always liked her work, too.

m-

Portman! Portman!

[holiggan]

Well, I still think that Natalie Portman would be a better Alice... But, hey, "Buffy" was pretty good in "The Grudge", so maybe she can pull it off :D

Re:Portman! Portman!

[dn15]

Well, I still think that Natalie Portman would be a better Alice...

[vader] Noooooo!!! [/vader]

*keeping fingers crossed*

[ultramk]

Here's hoping American McGee's Strawberry Shortcake will make it to the big screen soon, too.

m-

Re:*keeping fingers crossed*

[kongjie]

Not likely. American Greetings is too protective of SS and too mismanaged to actually sense and pursue a good idea.

wait a sec...

[Axis of Weasel]

"the movie adaptation of American McGee's Alice is moving forward ... 'Buffy' star Sarah Michelle Gellar will play the title role."

the title role... so would that be American McGee or Alice?

Re:wait a sec...

[Anonymous Coward]

is it me, or do I want a taste of pain from Ms. Cake? Ye-Owch

In a way it is...

[Anonymous Coward]

On the other hand, the original story doesn't really matter. It was a collection of ridiculous injokes and parodoxes which were breathtakingly biased toward living in late 19th century london. The story of Alice and her adventures was never really the point. It was supposed to amuse a certain set of little girls, and that's all.

Since it's absolutely impossible to preserve this original form, and since the modern appeal of the Alice story is clearly *not* based on its clever parodies of tiresome schoolroom poems, Alice can be said to have escaped its origins and become a sort of legend. Seen in this light, The Wizard of Oz is almost a retelling of Alice.

Given this situation, reinterpreting Alice as an American isn't unreasonable.

Games to movies , amoungst the..

[FidelCatsro]

It will join such classics as Resident Evil the movie , The Mario brothers movie , Alien VS predator(comic as well but still fits in here) , Tomb Raider.... Oh wait they were all pretty much terrible
It will need a miracle to make this conversion anything beyond awful , the best of which being Tomb raider and it was fairly poor.
Game to movie conversions have for some strange reason (perhaps its the total disregard for the plot (Mario) or the shoddy acting and poor scripts (most of them)) .
I am not getting any hopes up here , lets hope for a pleasant surprise though

Re:Games to movies , amoungst the..

[Rallion]

Hey, now. I liked Resident Evil.

But...yeah, okay, that's the only one.

Soundtrack

[Conspiracy_Of_Doves]

A modernized version of the Jefferson Airplane song "Go Ask Alice" needs to be on the soundtrack.

Re:Soundtrack

[technoextreme]

Wrong title. The name of the song is "White Rabbit". How did you get the name wrong when it was clearly visible on the website you linked to? Personally, I love the Blue Man Group's version of the song. Here is a link to their CD. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Complex_(Blue_Man _Group)#Track_listing

Re:Soundtrack

[Anonymous Coward]

Blue Man Group - White Rabbit

taking childhood film

[oliverthered]

I remember the night my father used to read struwwelpeter to me.

"When children have been good,
That is, be it understood,
Good at meal-times, good at play,
Good at night, and good all day, -
They shall have the pretty things
Merry Christmas always brings.
Naughty, romping girls and boys
Tear their clothes and make a noise,
Soil their aprons and their frocks,
And deserve no Christmas-box.
Such as these shall never look
At this pretty Picture-Book."

Re:taking childhood film

[SixArmedJesus]

Oh man! The memories of my grandmother reciting by heart "The Story of Little Suck-a-Thumb". Good thing I wasn't a thumbsucker, otherwise it probably would have actually frightened me. :)

Re:taking childhood film

[jebell]

Cripes, I still have nightmares about that book, especially the illustrations. Of course, my wife has put her foot down and won't let me read the book to our yet-to-be-conceived children. Dammit.

puhleeeeease

[Anonymous Coward]

get real. "american mcgee's alice" was only cool cause it was a video game. trippy movie remakes of alice in wonderland have been done to death.