A round-up of the more obscure Film and TV productions

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1984 - ALICE UNDERGROUND - KATE KLINE MAY

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his 1984 production from Gratuitous Films was directed by Kate Kline May (her brother is actor Kevin Kline).    An independent low budget affair without sets, scenery or costumes and with no special effects at all, it opens with Alice entering a subway system following a 'white rabbit' in Bermuda shorts, knee socks and scarf, a tattersall vest and a Snoopy Red Baron hat.    The film uses hard contrast black and white scenes along with infra-red shots and abrupt time-change sequences to present a surrealist reconstruction of a girl's memory of her childhood exposure to Carroll's book. Thanks to Mark Burstein for providing background information and a description of this film .

LIVING IN NEON DREAMS Marilyn Manson is supposedly to play the Queen Of Hearts in an upcoming re-working of "Alice In Wonderland" dubbed "Living In Neon Dreams". The film apparently began shooting in South Africa for release in 2005. Described as a modern-day retelling of Alice in Wonderland in which a girl enters a fantasy land after a car accident puts her into a coma. The actors will play multiple roles, appearing in both the real world and the fantasy world. Sigh! Another one. How (un)original.

Cast: Alan Cumming Marilyn Manson Daryl Hannah Jonathan Pryce Nia Vardalos

Daniel Frampton has written in to say that those of you who watch the Nickelodeon channel might want to look out for a recent episode of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" which has an Alice in Wonderland theme.

STAR TREK - original series episode 1.08b "Shore Leave" The crew of the Enterprise are exploring an idyllic planet. It appears to be the perfect choice for a little bout of rest and relaxation. The situation rapidly becomes unnerving when Doctor McCoy sees Alice from Wonderland (played by Marcia Brown) and the White Rabbit, then is killed by a knight on horseback… This episode has been described as "One of those incredibly stupid episodes where they haul all the old fancy dress costumes out of storage and write a story around them. This may well be the worst Star Trek ever made." Other people disagree entirely, so I'll leave it to you to make up your own mind.     Produced specially for a convention, this print (right) connects "Alice" with Star Trek again, including the starship Enterprise reflected in a mirror behind the figures.

LICJA   This 1982 musical fantasy was built around the Alice concept, taking the characters and placing them in modern day surroundings and situations. Sophie Barjac starred as Alice, who enters Wonderland when she faints after seeing the attempted murder of a jogger named Rabbit (Jean-Pierre Cassel). When she awakens, she finds herself in a dream-like fantasy world, where she begins to fall in love with Rabbit. A Polish production, little seen and by all accounts very strange, directed by Jerzy Gruza. The cast includes Susannah York, Paul Nicholas, and Dominic Guard. Lulu, the British singer, supplies the singing voice of Alice.

WES CRAVEN'S "ALICE" This production has been mooted for a couple of years now, with no signs of it going forward. Recent interviews indicate that the rights have now passed to another company, which probably means it will never happen. Originally planned as a "big CGI picture", it was to be based on the same premise as the Electronic Arts 'Alice' computer game where Alice awakes in an asylum ten years after being traumatised in an accident.

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