Alice in Wonderland - Johnny Depp and Tim Burton continue to make movie magic together

http://www.blacktree.tv

Johnny Depp went into great detail at the "Alice in Wonderland" junket on Saturday (Feb. 20) to explains his affinity for -- and his development of -- the madcap milliner, the Mad Hatter.

Seems the hatter's crazy behavior -- and the phrase 'mad as a hatter' has a basis in fact. The mercury used in the trade of hat-making caused irreversible brain damage and it was common for hatters to develop mental, physical and emotional problems.

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The mercury solution was used -- not in the glue -- but in the process of turning fur into felt and was subsequently breathed in by the hatters, who would exhibit trembling, loss of coordination, slurred speech, loosening of teeth, memory loss, depression, anxiety, etc.

Depp decided to explore the tragic nature of the Mad Hatter: "This guy was damaged goods, physically and emotionally obtuse. He decided that as opposed to being a "hyperactive nutty guy," we should explore "all sides of his personality at extreme levels, from levity to... dangerous rage."

And the mercury also explains why the Hatter was "investigating things beginning with the letter M."

"It was interesting trying to map it out," Depp explains. Burton then jumps in, "Being a Disney movie, we decided not to focus too much on the mercury poisoning aspect." Cue nervous laughter.

There are still modern concerns about mercury poisoning coming from higher levels found in the fish we eat, as well as in paint, pesticides, mercury tooth fillings, cosmetics, floor waxes, batteries, air conditioning filers, fabric softeners, talc and body powder.


Alice in Wonderland should have enchanted cinemagoers this spring and earned tens of millions of pounds at the box office as the latest 3D blockbuster. Instead, the Disney film could disappear down the rabbit hole, as a boycott means that it may not be coming to a cinema near you.

A dispute between Disney and two of Britains biggest cinema chains, Odeon and Vue, means that the film will not be shown in about 40 per cent of cinemas. Today is the last day that a compromise can realistically be reached, because cinemas must start allowing customers to make advance bookings for films, but neither side is likely to break the impasse.

The dispute began when Disney stated that it would bring Alice out on DVD within 12 weeks instead of the customary 17 to try to stem the abrupt decline in DVD sales, traditionally the biggest earner for studios.

A shorter gap between the films launch at the cinema and on DVD would mean that advertising campaigns would be fresher in consumers minds and could also curb sales of pirate DVDs.

RELATED LINKS
Curiouser and Curiouser
Innocence, obsession and the making of Alice
Cineworld drops boycott of Alice in Wonderland
MULTIMEDIA
GRAPHIC: relative takings
Bob Iger, the chief executive of Disney, believes that he must break cinemas insistence on strict DVD delays and has chosen Alice as his battleground. He knows that British cinemas are more powerful than their continental counterparts (they take about 60 per cent of box-office receipts compared with 50 per cent elsewhere in Europe) and is using a film that would be expected to perform well in Britain.

Directed by Tim Burton, Alice was partly shot here and features a British cast including Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman and Stephen Fry.

While other studios wait to see if Disney is successful before adopting a similar strategy, cinemas are outraged after spending millions of pounds on 3D equipment in the belief that studios terms would remain the same.

They are also irritated because, while DVD sales in Britain declined by about 10 per cent last year, cinema takings were up by 11 per cent. A senior cinema executive told The Times: There is nothing wrong with our business model. [The studios] are coming to us and saying, Weve got a broken model on our side and we want you to pay for it.

Cineworld, a third British cinema chain, has angered rivals by refusing to join the boycott after a visit from Bob Chapek, Disneys president of distribution, who reassured it that Disney wished to shorten the window for only two or three films a year. The DVD release for Alice was extended to 13 weeks.

Odeon issued a tart response, saying that it was dropping plans to show Alice as a result of Disneys insistence on reducing at short notice the theatrical window on a major 3D title.

]Disney tried to shorten the window for Up, the Pixar animation, last year, but relented when cinemas said that they would drop Up and A Christmas Carol.

Disney declined to comment, but is understood to be resolute. A cinema industry source said it is prepared to risk about £10 million in lost revenue.


http://www.blacktree.tv

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Alice
• in
• Wonderland
• mad
• hatter
• johnny
• depp
• edward
• scissor
• hands
• disney
• 3D

[simericanpie]

Everyone knows this movie isnt about aice. the rough title of this movie is johnny depp in wonderland. DUH everyone knows they paid attention to him in the movie than alice.

[CarlixAnnx]

BEST MOVIE!!!!!! i love johnny depp in it!! XD

[Dvpainter]

HOLY DICK 13 MINUTE AD? not skipping =3

[VoiceofDarkness00]

@simericanpie SOO TRUE!

[mountaingoat2002]

i need a pig here 0:53

[MultiGakka]

she woke up :D

[MultiGakka]

my sista :D she is sooo lucky that she didn't get married with the prince :D because of some reasons :DDDD hahahahhahaa

[p3gal723]

hbc: i love a warm pig belly for my aching feet

jd: ahahahahahaha

hbc: stop that.

jd: .___.

[Llulagan]

lol i luv johnny depp

[danishAEF]

Alice looks like Lyra from The Golden Compass...

[noodledrummin1]

@goondel uh, because the book was creepy. and this one was supposed to be based off of through the looking glass which is like being high without taking anything.