Disney’s live-action remake of Alice in Wonderland turned out to be a huge hit back in 2010. It’s one of the handful of films that have ever surpassed the $1 billion mark at the box office. With numbers like that and the fact that Johnny Depp hasn’t put on a funny hat in a movie for a couple years, it was only a matter of time before we saw a sequel. Now we have the first trailer for that sequel. Check out Alice Through The Looking Glass. James Bobin is directing the new film, though Tim Burton is on board as a producer. All of the usual suspects have returned for the sequel including Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway and of course Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter. We also get our first look at Sasha Baron Cohen as the villain this time around, Time. The trailer certainly gives us enough to know that the same fantastic world that we saw in the last film will be expanded upon in the new movie. We’ve got lots of bright colors as well as other, darker aspects to look forward to. If the last movie transported you to Wonderland (or Underland, if you insist), the sequel will likely do the same. While the first movie was called Alice in Wonderland, after the first novel by Lewis Carroll, it was actually a sequel to the original story when our lead character returns to Wonderland after forgetting she’d ever been there. It looks as though the sequel will do the same as Through the Looking Glass was the name of Carroll’s follow-up -- but the movie looks to have little to do with that story. That entire book was based around a giant game of chess, of which Alice became a piece, and while we do see a clip of giant chess pieces in the trailer (so that aspect will likely be referenced), the themes of this film appear to be more about the passage of time than moves on a chessboard. All in all, the film looks to be very much in tune with the first, which may, or may not, be a good thing. While the first film was a hit with audiences, it was less successful with critics. While this fact is likely not of the greatest importance to the folks at Disney who greenlit the picture, it’s not something that should be ignored. If the trailer is any indication, it does appear the Hatter’s role may be reduced as compared to the first film. Since we know the plot of the movie involves Alice trying to save the Hatter, it’s possible he spends more time off-screen in need of help. This could open up the rest of the world for more exploration, and be less focused on Johnny Depp in a funny hat
