Actors: Brenda Bruce, Freddie Jones, Judy Parfit, Geoffrey Bayldon, Kate Dorning, Ian Wallace, Jonathan Cecil,
Directors: Barry Letts, James MacTaggart
Rated: Unrated
Studio: BBC Home Entertainment
DVD Release Date: March 12, 2013
Run Time: 66 minutes / 120 minutes
Alice Through the Looking Glass: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Alice in Wonderland: 3 out of 5 stars
When it comes to “Alice in Wonderland”, I am first in line. BBC is known for their classic productions of “Alice Through the Looking Glass” from 1973 and “Alice in Wonderland” from 1986. I was never a huge fan of the “Looking Glass”, the production is extremely low and not as friendly as “Wonderland”. I love the songs in “Alice in Wonderland” it’s not Disney quality but still fun for what it is. Both films definitely show their age but having watched them growing up they have that certain charm that still draws you in. If you did the same then I would recommend checking out at least “Alice in Wonderland” again for sure.
“Alice Through the Looking Glass” – Official Synopsis: Join Alice on her journey through the mirror in BBC’s fanciful adaptation of Lewis Caroll’s classic novel! In an alternate world, just on the other side of the mirror’s reflection, Alice finds herself in the middle of a life-sized chess game, where she encounters a variety of surreal scenarios and fantastical characters, including Tweedledee and Tweedledum, Humpty Dumpty, the Red Queen and others. To be crowned queen and return home, Alice must traverse all the ranks to the end of this massive chessboard-but will she make it?
“Alice In Wonderland” – Official Synopsis: This classic BBC production of the family favorite tale begins one summer afternoon as Lewis Carroll regales his picnic companions with the tale of young girl named Alice who sees a fully-dressed, talking rabbit run past her. She follows the 
rabbit down a hole and enters a nonsensical world where it seems the normal rules of logic do not apply. In Wonderland, Alice participates in a winnerless race, alternates between being tiny and giant, hears riddles at a “mad” tea party, plays croquet with live flamencos, and attends a trial where the Knave of Hearts is accused of stealing the Queen’s tarts. Featuring Doctor Who’s Elisabeth Sladen as the Dormouse, and filled with memorable characters and songs, this is a version the whole family is sure to enjoy.
I do not remember “Alice Through the Looking Glass” looking that incredibly cheap. They even have scenes that don’t match up with the overlay on the characters. The production on “Alice in Wonderland” is decent improvement on “Alice Through the Looking Glass” but that could have also been the 13 years between the two. Both films are presented in full frame with a 4×3 aspect ratio. The audio tracks included are a standard DVD stereo track, which works for the age of the films. Wasn’t looking for a DTS Surround track here. There are no special features includes on these DVD releases, which is a little bit disappointing overall. Nostalgia is going to determine the success of these release since time has revealed both of their ages.
