"Alice in Wonderland"

Although it may be called “Alice in Wonderland,” director Tim Burton and screenwriter Linda Woolverton (“The Lion King”) have taken substantial liberties with Lewis Carroll’s original stories, a decision that may infuriate purists but one that actually turns out to be somewhat shrewd.

Considering how many times filmmakers have put “Alice” in front of the cameras, it’s surprising how few of the adaptations have worked. The major obstacle is the scattershot structure of Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-Glass”: They’re primarily collections of whimsical anecdotes that don’t necessarily coalesce into a plot. So many screen versions of “Alice” have turned into little more than fanciful variety shows, with Alice meandering from one crazy character to the next.

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