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Alice in Wonderland

Date: Apr 21 2010

Themes: Alternative

Grammar: Adverbs

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Intro

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There are certain directors whose style is so unique, you can recognize one of their films the minute you see it. Tim Burton is one of those filmmakers. His movies all have a dark, quirky look to them that has earned him a lot of fans. You can also recognize a Tim Burton movie by the actors who star in it. Burton loves to work with his friend Johnny Depp and his wife, Helena Bonham Carter.

Burton’s latest creation is Alice in Wonderland, a continuation of the original story about a girl who falls down a rabbit hole into a strange new universe. Johnny Depp plays the Mad Hatter in Burton’s film, and Helena Bonham Carter plays the evil Red Queen, who wants to destroy Wonderland. Find out if Devan and Ella are fans of Tim Burton’s work.

Dialog

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Ella

Devan

Ella: So with this Alice in Wonderland movie is it basically just like another, “Oh, here’s this story, let’s just redo it again with more cooler effects,” same story though?

Devan: I don’t think it’s the same story. I think Tim Burton’s smart enough to know that the first one is so good that you just don’t touch that, you know?

Ella: OK.

Devan: And this one is like returning, Alice returning after like now she’s 19 years old and she’s going back to the rabbit hole. And I have to say, like, you know, Tim Burton, I just feel like he’s gotten too into all the special effects and, you know, like the CGI and all that kind of stuff that’s not really my cup of tea. But I just went and saw an art exhibit of his, and I have to say, he really is a talented guy. He really has a unique point of view.

Ella: Yeah. His style is very particular. You don’t even have to know who made the movie or what it’s about, and you can tell it’s a Tim Burton movie.

Devan: So, yeah, I think that even though I loved the first Alice in Wonderland exactly the way it was, just because Tim Burton’s so unique and so captivating, it’d be interesting to see what he does with the story and those characters that we know one way in our minds, to see how he transforms them into Tim Burton characters, you know?

Ella: Yeah. And Johnny Depp’s in it, you know. That’s always a plus.

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

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Ella asks Devan if the new Alice in Wonderland is just a remake of the original Disney cartoon, but with more special effects. Devan explains that Burton’s movie uses the same characters and setting, but it is a new story that takes place when Alice is 19 years old.

Devan feels that Tim Burton has gotten too obsessed with using computer animation and CGI. She prefers his early films, when he did not use as many special effects. But she still thinks that Burton is a unique artist, and she likes his original style. She is curious to see Tim Burton’s take on the characters of Alice in Wonderland. Ella is also excited to see the movie, because she likes anything with Johnny Depp in it.

Are you a fan of Tim Burton’s movies? Do you remember when you first heard the story of “Alice in Wonderland” as a child?