Disney: Alice in Wonderland: A Visual Companion (Featuring the motion picture directed by Tim Burton): Foreword by Tim Burton

by Mark Salisbury

Think you know the classic story of Alice and her adventures in Wonderland? Think again. Renowned director and producer Tim Burton ( The Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, James and the Giant Peach, Edward Scissorhands, Beatlejuice, Batman) has applied his signature stamp to this beloved tale, and will be sharing it with audiences in 2010! This splendid "Making/Art of" will take readers to the world behind Burton’s camera, revealing the secrets of performance-capture technology, the marriage of live-action and CGI technology, and displaying its singular style in a deluxe, artistic format. Fans will delight in reading about Johnny Depp's performance as The Mad Hatter, and Ann Hathaway as The White Queen, to name just a few of the star performances. And, of course, the book will chronicle Tim Burton's unique techniques. This gorgeous book is sure to be at the top of everyone's gift list!

Genres: Nonfiction, Art

256 pages, Hardcover

First published March 2, 2010

Reviews

[Parka · Rating 5 out of 5]

(More pictures at parkablogs.com)

This book is truly wonderful.

It's 256 pages thick and loaded with beautiful pictures throughout, from set photographs, film stills, sculptures and art. Every picture is in high resolution and printed satisfying big, showing off the intricate lavish details on the set, costumes, makeup, portraits and creature designs. There are just so many things to see and take in.

The writeup is mainly on the characters, Alice, Red Queen, White Queen, Mad Hatter and the various characters that appear. There's also an in-depth look at how this movie was produced using the green screen technology. It's all interesting to read.

I'm really impressed at all the character designs, specifically at how Helena Bonham Carter was transformed into the Red Queen. There are step by step photos showing how the makeup artists stitch the red head on. It's so flawless it's like magic except it's not because the whole process took 3 hours. There's also a picture at the back which is really fun. It shows the Tim Burton and the Red Queen chilling out on the set, playing with huge plastic toy guns.

Although there aren't any art book for this movie, it's difficult to see how each of the pictures in this book isn't art. There are a few stunning pieces of concept art included though. The White Queen's castle illustration by Steven Messing is my favourite. It's just magical. The other talented artists who contributed are Dylan Cole, Michael Kutsche, Dermot Power, Bobby Chiu and even Tim Burton himself.

This is a book even the Red Queen will be pleased with. Mark Salisbury (author), your head is safe.

Highly recommended.

[Andy Hickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Alice in Wonderland: A Visual Companion” by Mark Salisbury

Huge collection of fascinating behind-the-scenes and making-of photographs and personal interviews.

What I learnt:
“In 1865, Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson penned that tale, having told the tale on a river boat trip with reverend Duckworth and three young sisters.
1933 film version starred Cary Grant, Peter Sellers and Gary Cooper
“I think it falls somewhere in between an adaptation and a retelling,” says Anne Hathaway

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only read the words that were above a size 32 font. I learned from this Johnny Depp thought the movie was fantastic.

[Cel Kila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Magnifique livre au sujet du film "Alice au pays des merveilles" de Tim Burton. Tout y est retracé... l'idée et les volontés d'origine, le choix des acteurs et les directions données au scénario... et même les procédés techniques employés ! Un tas de belles photos, un tas de dessins magnifiques... tout y est, et j'ai découvert énormément de choses.

Seul bémol sur le livre en lui même, les textes parfois entrecoupés de 2, 4 voire 6 pages de photos/citations. Ça perturbe la lecture... mais c'est secondaire.

[nidah05 (SleepDreamWrite) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The movie was okay but the art style and different designs for the characters was interesting.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is nothing I love more than the "art of books" from Disney.

[τλιϓλ · Rating 5 out of 5]

أعلم أن هذا الفيلم قد صدر قبل فيلم:
Oz The Great and Powerful
لكنني قرأت كتاب أوز قبل هذا ربما لأنني أدخر القراءة عن إبداع جوني لوقت لاحق..
على هذا الاساس سيكون هذا الكتاب التجربة الثانية لي مع كتب الآرت التي تحوي رسوما وبشرا بعد كتاب أوز.
أقل مايمكنني قوله عن الكتاب أنه رائع، تقسيمه جيد وهناك اهتمام بكل التفاصيل من الألف للياء كما نقول. أنا فقط مستغربة لماذا تظهر أليس دائما كفتاة بشعر طويل برغم أن الفتاة التي بنى عليها لويس كارول القصة الخالدة كانت بشعر قصير بني اللون كما ذكر بعضهم.
كنت أتطلع لقراءة الكثير عن ماد-هاترز وعن القط ذو الابتسامة الشقية المشاغبة ولم يخب ظني، جوني متألق حقا في أداء الدور ويبدو أنه تغلغل إلى حد رائع في تقديمه لدرجة أن بعضهم قال أنه شعر كما لو أن المؤلف قد صنع الشخصية خصيصا له.
أما عن القط فحدث ولا حرج، نظرة المخرج تيم بورتن له كانت نظرة مختلفة فالقط بالنسبة له يمثل الغموض والغرابة ومتناقضات شتى وقد جاء تقديمه في الفيلم موفقا.
المشاهد وكيف جرى تنفيذها، الشخصيات وكيف تم إعدادها، الرسومات وغيرها من التفاصيل كانت كلها جميلة للغاية.
لقد أحببت الكتاب كثيرا وأعتقد أنني سأعاود قراءته بين آن وآن آخر.

One word to describe the book: stunning. It's really so wonderful book and must have one, I enjoyed reading it, rich in details, the amount of magic within the book is really great.

[Venetia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky to receive a signed copy of Disney: Alice In Wonderland A Visual Companion on Friday 26.03.2010 from Nucleus Gallery in California (http://www.gallerynucleus.com/detail/....

The books presentation is a lot better than I was expecting. The imagery and typography is absolutely exquisite.

The book features notes from Tim Burton, words from Linda Woolverton (the screenplay writer),the cast,concept and design artists and much more.

I found it to be a very interesting and inspiring read.To get a glimpse at how this film was made was wonderful. The amount of effort that went into creating Alice In Wonderland really made me appreciate the film a lot more.

[ꪶꪖꪜ · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding book showing the creative process and evolution of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. I loved every minute of reading it and it just really managed to capture and completely fascinate me just as much as the movie itself.

[Abigail Amor · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty nice ! this was once my favorite when im still little.. hehe