The fate of movies is a mystery. Why should it be that certain mediocre films draw crowds large enough to wrap twice around the block, only to be just as soon forgotten, while others, marvelous films, never catch on at all, and end up lost through decades, waiting only to be rediscovered one day, when a DVD edition suddenly blesses them with a second life?DreamChild is a monumental work of art that rests on another monumental work. Of course, it helps that as a kid, I was fascinated by Lewis Carrol's famous adventures of Alice in Wonderland and Thru the Looking Glass, as well as the wild and often creepy, psychedelic universe beautifully rendered by artist Sir John Tenniel. It's worth noting that, to this day, we owe Tenniel most of the representations we have of the worlds and characters described by Carrol.DreamChild a beautiful film in so many respects. Deeply moving and inviting us, the viewer, to reflect upon the true forces that guide the murky, and sometimes tortuous process from which art is born. The screenplay by Dennis Potter is airtight, witty, often funny, but also dark and complex. Ian Holm as the Reverend Dodgson delivers one of the two best performances of his life (The Sweet Hereafter being the other). Curiously, both deal with the agonizing pain of holding back.Even little Amelia Shankley, who plays young Alice Lydell, the muse throughout the film, is deeply haunting and complex, juggling the tricky emotions that carry the entire picture through to its resolution.This was a fairly low budget production, shot entirely in the UK, but Roger Hall's masterful art direction can convince even a savvy movie buff that he is watching a pricey period picture set in New York City's Great Depression era. Gavin Millar, the director, is mature enough to let his camera witness a powerful story without artifice.There is not one bad choice in this picture, right down to a gorgeous musical score by Stanley Myers. Finally, Jim Henson and his team of artists recreated the wildest and most beloved characters of Alice in Wonderland as animatronic puppets which, thirty years on, hold up perfectly and allow the film to soar with its unique, organic, and at times theatrical charm.I saw this picture in New York City, in 1986, when it received a limited release, and I recall being instantly enchanted by it. I had to accept a poor videotape copy for years and years, until one of the film's crew members in the UK was kind enough to obtain a better copy for me, which I have cherished. But now, a DVD-R has been released in the film's original 1:85/1 ratio and I was recently able to watch it all again, at last in a perfect presentation. DreamChild is a great big film which only had a small life, but it is worth discovering on DVD. It's a picture that could well stay with you for the rest of your life. It did with me.

one of the things i've always felt was truly fascinating about the Reverend Dodgson's beloved literary classic, is the times in which it was written (iconology? iconography? can't remember which is which). the story of Alice's whimsical adventures was written during the stifling repression of Victorian England's mores.there really was a sort of dichotomy and disconnect between who the Reverend Dodgson was and his pen name of Lewis Carroll and the experimental photographer. it's almost like they were two different people. i mean lets face it. i love the work of 'Alice', it's my favorite work of art, and next to the Christian Bible, my favorite book ever published. but honestly, i do find it pretty strange reading. anyone who goes off babbling about Jabberwockies and says things like "twas brilling and the slithey toves", isn't really functioning with a full deck of cards. most of Carroll's wonderful book, as wonderful as it is, sounds like schizophrenic babble. maybe i'm just repressed and uptight myself, but i can't help thinking that observation. and i wasn't born yesterday. i know when someone sounds like they're crazy and a wing nut. i've been around enough crazies in my life. i suffer from mental illness myself and have been hospitalized with other wing nuts, so, hey, i know.big s--t. no biggie. most people are pretty crazy and we definitely know most artist and talented people can be pretty off the wall. in fact when you read about most actors and musicians these days, they seem like they are from another frickin planet. so i'm sure Carroll was in pretty good company with other great and famous people. didn't the Timbo Burton say "some of the best people are mad?". maybe so. dunno.'Dreamchild' is a incredible film and one of the very best 'Alice' films. it makes deep observations into the fictional story as well as the psychology of the real life characters. it's a brilliant juxtaposition of the unreal and the very real. it is also one of cinema's best films about the elderly and the reality of dying.Coral Browne also gives, in my opinion, one of cinema's best female performances. along with Amelia Shankley in this film, she is one of the very best Alices.all the performances in this film are exceptional, as is the exquisite direction by Gavin Millar.this film is really not for children. it's not that it's too racy or offensive, it's material is just way over the heads of children and most young adults. especially the idiot adrenalin junkies who think the lackluster Tim Burton version is the very best.adult filmmaking doesn't get much better than this or more mature and thoughtful. a breath of fresh air that reminds older, more mature audiences, that 'Alice', and entertainment in general, doesn't ALWAYS have to be aimed at a under 30 crowd.

Thanks largely to the touching performances of Coral Browne and Ian Holm this little film breaks through the border of simple story-telling to reach the heights of the profound.It will be missed by many viewers. But as you watch this film, pay special attention to the feelings and thoughts that are provoked within you at certain key moments, for example, at the scene of the picnic the lake or any of Alice's recollections. Your reactions should be complex, maybe conflicted, and at the conclusion of the film, you may be completely satisfied but not know why. But your heart will know.The subtle messages and meanings of this simple story cannot fail to move you, if you remain open to them. Do not be distracted by lack of drama or a mundane script. They are mere incidentals. The "truth" is there, and will astonish you.Enjoy.

Very moody and stylish movie - whose plot switches between three venues - the 1860s when Lewis Carroll introduced the Wonderland tales to young Alice and her sisters - the 1930s when the aged Alice visited the U.S. months before her death - and the surreal world of the Alice in Wonderland stories with story characters portrayed by wickedly designed Jim Henson puppets Four actresses stand out in my memory - Coral Browne as the starchy old Alice - Amelia Shankley as the young selfcentered Alice - Nicola Cowper as old Alices companion and love interest to the young American reporter played by Peter Gallagher - and - in a small role - Caris Corfman as a wistful newspaper reporter - in addition to many fine British and American actorsMy only gripe is Ian Holm's age - Holm was in his early 50s when he portrayed Lewis Carroll - who was closer to 30 when he first told the stories - there were concerns in his time about the purity of his interest in his child friends and photography subjects - such as Alice - Ian Holm brings that frightfully to lifeThis film took great care in evoking the respective time periods - using beautiful set designs and photography - as a result - the movie is itself an exotic journey into other times and places - with Alice still as protagonist