Wikipedia

Alice and the Land that Wonders

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Alice and the Land that Wonders (original title: Alice e il Paese che si meraviglia) is a 2020/2021 Italian language arthouse experimental fantasy film by Giulia Grandinetti. Based on her 2011 stage adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Alice books.[1] The film depicts in a non linear timeline, the world perceived by the character of Alice (Veronica Baleani) a 18 year old experiencing alienation at her birthday party who falls into a dream state, where she becomes Lewis Carroll's character and experiences adventures in a strange clinic. The film features music by Bernard Bursill Hall, and is produced by Giulia Grandinetti and Paolo Grandinetti. The film was completed via crowdfunding in 2019.[2] It has received various nominations and awards. It was distributed in Italy, the UK, and the US in 2021 by Amazon Prime Video.

Alice and the Land that Wonders
Original titleALICE NEL PAESE CHE SI MERAVIGLIA
Directed byGiulia Grandinetti
Based onAlice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass
by Lewis Carroll
Produced byGiulia Grandinetti
Starring
CinematographyValerio Martorelli
Edited byNiccolò Notario
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed byAmazon Prime Video
Release date
  • 2020 (2020) (Italy)
Running time
100
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian
Budget€60,000

Premise

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Alice (Veronica Baleani) feels deeply alienated at her 18th birthday party at a lavish nightclub. Between her family (Martina Badiluzzi, Marit Nissen, Massimiliano Vado) 's expectations, the sourness of fake friends, and the wondering eye of her boyfriend. Overwhelmed by the disastrous night, Alice locks herself in the staff toilets, publishes a call for help on social media, and is drawn to a bottle of vodka. She falls asleep and becomes trapped in a dreaming state, splitting into three versions of herself. The film itself freely associates and flips between these three narratives after Alice falls asleep in the staff toilets.

These dream versions of Alice and narrative strands are:

  • Alice (Veronica Baleani) at the party she was just at, but in a distorted, unreal version of it.
  • A sad shaven head Alice in a therapist's office, with a therapist who is trying to figure out why she made the call for help on social media.
  • Alice in "Wonderland", the main protagonist for much of the film (Maria Vittoria Argenti, a braver version of the party Alice who has bizarre yet familiar adventures in a strange clinic, ruled over by a doctor called Queen. The film implies this world is reached at the bottom of a large sculptural hole, although Alice's descent into Wonderland is never shown.

Production and release

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The stage production was performed in various theatres from 2011 to 2013, by the company Compagnia teatrale Piccola Pietra, with a different cast to the film.[3][4] The film was shot in Rome from 2016 to 2019, following crowdfunding completion.[5][6] The scene where Alice realises she is at the bottom of a massive hole was filmed at Rampa Prenestina.[7]

The film was released on Amazon Prime Video in various countries in 2021.[8]

Reception

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The film has been described as an "interesting and suggestive travel inside the mind"[9] and "a reflection on social suicide".[10]

Main cast

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Source:[11]

  • Veronica Baleani and Maria Vittoria Argenti as Alice

Cast in the real world section:

  • Martina Badiluzzi as Sorellalice (Alice's sister)
  • Lucia Batassa as NonnAlice (Alice's grandmother)
  • Marit Nissen as MammAlice (Alice's mother)
  • Massimiliano Vado as Padre Alice (Alice's father)
  • Tommaso Arnaldi as Dodo
  • Roberta Stellato as Rosa

Characters in Alice's dreams:

  • Gabriele Falsetta as Dr. Oreste
  • Giacomo Bottoni as Biagio
  • Salvatore Lanza as Nico
  • Ilaria Gattafoni as Pin
  • Silvia Gattafoni as Pam
  • Teodoro Giambanco as Re
  • Azzurra Rocchi as Cat
  • Alessia Sala as Cosetta
  • Ilenia Sbarufatti as Luce
  • Riccardo Vianello as Cappello
  • Sabrina Paravicini as Regina

Festival selections and awards

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Official Selection

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  • White Night Film Festival 2021 in Saint-Peterburg, Russia
  • Kalakari Film Festival 2021
  • NewDelhiFilmFestival 2021
  • Festival del cinema di Cefalu, 2020

Awards

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  • Best Director, Best Feature, Cambio International Film Festival, Berlin, 2021.
  • Best Experimental Foreign Feature, American Filmatic Arts Awards, 2020.
  • Best Feature film, best director. Around film festival Amsterdam, 2020.
  • Azzurra Rochi, best supporting actress, best feature film, Under the Stars international film festival, 2020.
  • Best film, Global film festival awards, 2020
  • Best Experimental feature, Dreammachine International film festival, 2020.
  • Best editing, Montreal international wreath awards film festival
  • Winner, Port Blair International film festival 2020.
  • Best Editing and Best Photography at the Montreal Film Festival[5]
  • Lazio Critics Award[12][13]

References

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  1. ^ "Alice and the Land that Wonders - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  2. ^ "ALICE E IL PAESE CHE SI MERAVIGLIA". Produzioni dal Basso. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  3. ^ adamaccademia (2013-04-27). "La malattia della fantasia, Alice nel Paese che si meraviglia". home l'adamo (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  4. ^ Censi, Gabriele (2013-04-19). ""Alice ed il Paese che si meraviglia"". Cronache Maceratesi (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  5. ^ a b "Il film di Giulia Grandinetti". Il Resto del Carlino (in Italian). 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  6. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  7. ^ "Prenestina Immagini - Sfoglia 185 foto, vettoriali e video Stock". Adobe Stock (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  8. ^ "Alice and the Land that Wonders". it-it.facebook.com (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  9. ^ GianDrewe (2021-01-07). "Alice and the land that wonders, interessante e suggestivo viaggio nella psiche - La recensione". JAMovie (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  10. ^ "Alice e il Paese che si meraviglia - 2020 - film usciti 2000 - 2023 - film & docu". Filmitalia (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  11. ^ Alice and the Land That Wonders (2020) - IMDb, retrieved 2024-02-11
  12. ^ Curcio, Di: Dario (2021-10-06). "Itff 2021, Grandinetti vince il premio della critica". TRC Giornale (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  13. ^ "L'International Tour Film Festival potrebbe sbarcare a Taranto. A dirlo Andrea Stranieri reduce dal successo della 10ª edizione". Giornale Armonia (in Italian). 2021-10-11. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
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