Every reality hangs in the balance.Issues with intelligence Agencies...Celebrities... Meet People:good & evil...WONDERLAND IS THE BOMB! Adventure,experience that it is intrigue and that it are bound by action and it seems the more questions you have the more answers that you have understood...good and evil trapped in a historical fiction wrapped around the absurd stuffed in a "film"..

This hard hitting movie is effectively gritty and seedy and does reasonably well at delving into a true crime story, from two different perspectives: first, that of David Lind (Dylan McDermott, sporting a different look for him), a biker type who gets caught up in a heist and loses his girlfriend in a later massacre, on L.A.'s Wonderland Avenue, that was a result of that heist. The second perspective is that of fading porn legend Johnny Wadd, a.k.a. John Holmes (Val Kilmer), during a decline in his life in which he was also implicated in the heist and murders. Two detectives, Sam Nico (Ted Levine) and Luis (Franky G) do their best to investigate the crime(s).There's a lot of familiar faces here, but some of them have pretty small roles. Still, it's an impressive showcase for both Kilmer and McDermott, as Kilmer and filmmaker James Cox give us a glimpse into what the life of Holmes was like during the early 80s period. Kate Bosworth also does well in the role of Holmes's young girlfriend Dawn. Sometimes Cox's filmmaking is a little too high-style, and it may take a viewer out of the movie at those points. Ultimately, though, this may prove to be compelling for any person interested in real crime stories, as it introduces us to all of the key players involved, including a crime boss, played by Eric Bogosian in one of his better big screen roles. Also appearing are Carrie Fisher, Josh Lucas, Tim Blake Nelson, Janeane Garofalo, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Scoot McNairy, Christina Applegate, Faizon Love, Chris Ellis, Lisa Kudrow (as Holmes's estranged wife Sharon), M.C. Gainey, and Paris Hilton."Wonderland" is good stuff overall, and does leave one wondering in the end just how deeply the troubled, drug addicted Holmes was involved. It's good at serving as a portrayal of the sleazy side of L.A. at a specific point in time. Text at the end reveals the fates of the key players.Seven out of 10.

"Wonderland" is an ugly, hard to watch film that gives us so many bad people ruining their lives with drugs that you have to wonder why it's an important crime story. Probably because the acting is so intense, it's the cinematic equivalent of a crack pipe you can't put down, even though it's burning your hands and you can't get "high" anymore. Be thankful when this is over that you don't have a drug habit. And if you're using, get help now!Val Kilmer is so in tune with the broken down wreck of a porn legend who can't do much more than destroy himself and cut his ties with the straight world that his portrayal is truly horrifying. He meets his criminal match for out of control indulgence in the gang of dealers and robbers that live in or visit the house on Wonderland Avenue. Josh Lucas, Dylan McDermott and Tim Blake Nelson are the brazen trio willing to rip off anyone for a fix and the great Eric Bogosian is the ultimate prince of darkness gangster they foolishly cross. What happens next is not good!Detective characters based on Bob Souza and Tom Lange, the two men that had the dead end assignment of trying to solve this hell on earth of a case, try to separate the lies from the brutal facts. Ted Levine, playing the older partner, is especially intense, as in the words of director James Cox. "Look at that guy, man. That guy can make gum chewing interesting!" Yes, he does. If anyone plays a cop who's seen too much better than Levine does here, give them the award for best performance as an LAPD Robbery-Homicide veteran.Much of the script is verbatim from Holmes' and David Lind's (McDermott) own words. It becomes a duel of two sociopaths each trying to establish their version of events as the on the record account of what "really" happened back in the summer of '81.Holmes' one redeeming link to the truth is his soon to be ex-wife, Sharon, where Lisa Kudrow turns in her best work ever. She's a woman in a predicament. The man she still loves emotionally needs her to save him from his cocaine based purgatory and finds she won't end her life in normal society to enter the witness protection program with him and his girlfriend, Kate Bosworth. (Before Tina Fey became forever linked with Sarah Palin, I thought the role of Sharon would have suited her! She has a resemblance to the photos of the former Mrs. Holmes shown in the documentary "Wadd".)Why did Holmes live when so many others didn't? He didn't really escape, as AIDS related illnesses and his continuing drug abuse finished off the remaining years (he died at age 43 in 1988). An amusing urban legend about Holmes actually being "Leave It To Beaver" actor Ken Osmond was debunked many years ago by Osmond himself, who ironically became a cop after his acting days ended. But if Holmes ever had a "legit" acting career, "Eddie Haskell" is exactly the kind of role he would have naturally fallen into, the congenital liar who knew how to pacify authority figures with a gleam in his eye and dishonesty in his heart.

Val Kilmer and Dylan McDermott are terrific. I have seen Kilmer on The Doors, however his interpretation of John Holmes is superb. Nothing compared to Boogie Nights which was kind of slow. Wonderland is a movie which is able to show you a horrible crime story from the perspective from a guy who is just indulged in his drug vice and indolent of what ever happens around. At the same time, the John Holmes character shows a very clever hustler who is able to pass through the nastiest and ugliest situations almost unharmed. The movie deserves being watched more than once. The seventies ambiance sensual and full of drugs is amazing.