Il mondo di Alex

Alex in Wonderland (1970)

** (out of 4)

Paul Mazursky's second feature has pretty much been forgotten about. It centers on a film director (Donald Sutherland) who scores a hit with his first film and is now struggling to make a follow-up. He has several people pitching him ideas but the director is wanting to do something personal and a film that has something to say. ALEX IN WONDERLAND is pretty much a hippie version of 8 1/2 and I guess it should come as no shock that the highlight of this picture is a cameo by Federico Fellini who plays himself. I think it's pretty obvious that Mazursky was basing this film around his own life since he had just scored his first hit the previous year and I guess this was his attempt to tell people that he wanted to say something important. Self indulgent is something that films get called whenever they try to be smart or pretend they have something to say. Well, sometimes films do have things to say and they come across as a piece of art. When film's say dumb things they become self indulgent, which is exactly what this film is. There are just so many problems with this thing but the biggest one is that we really don't care about the director, his films or his vision of what his films should be about. Nothing that he says is all that interesting and especially when he constantly asks people if they were on an island what three foods would they want. Is that really your great vision? Sutherland gives a good performance in the lead but he really doesn't have to do very much. He pretty much just hides behind his long hair and talks about race or various movie stars. Ellen Burstyn plays his wife and does a nice job but the role doesn't give her too much to do. Besides the Fellini cameo we get another one with Jeanne Moreau, which is strange to say the least. ALEX IN WONDERLAND starts off somewhat entertaining but the more it tries to say something the more boring it gets.

It is so blatantly obvious that Mazursky is gently parodying the self righteousness of the hippie movement. When discussing the black uprising movie, it's the black dude who tells him it's a rotten idea. In a more stern observation, his wife is clearly upset and his family life is clearly hitting the skids and he goes on about an acid trip he and his friend took. His wife makes the incredibly accurate observation that he wants her to do what he wants her to do not what she wants to do.

Look I fly a little to the left of the left wing but to blather on about Hollywood being left wing when they want nothing more than to do movies where "things blow up real good" is kind of ridiculous.

The movie is good. It's not great. But it is a keen and well observed characterization of a creative man who is trying to keep his personal and creative life together and vibrant but falls prey to his own self doubts.

.....because I have fond memories around it. Yes...it is so very dated. But I remember the tender relationship Sutherland's character had with his family, his wife and two daughters, in this movie. I also remember how entranced I was with Donald Sutherland - the actor. He was so charming. This was the first movie I ever saw with him and the first movie I ever saw in the theater without my parents. It was the first time I was able to go to the movies with friends only, and what a time we had. All five of us silly, giggly, girls....and we couldn't take our eyes off of "THE Donald". So when you watch this movie now on cable or DVD, see NOT a movie of no value, but of a wonderful fantasy vehicle that five little girls took one Saturday afternoon in 1970. What a memory!

This is definately not for everybody. I found this really interesting and since I started combining forces of cable TV with IMDB I discover really nice films. After all THERE ARE nice, different & interesting american films, even in the seventies!

Anyway, this movie is not for people who like one-dimentional films. This is both serious and funny, both tragic and amusing. Even if its not too slow, it won't appeal to those who like it fast.

Basicly it's about an intelligent director who is starting to lose it a bit. This is depicted in a most realistic way. I dont know what it has in common with Fellini's 8-IN-1, as I havent seen it. Anyway ALEX IN WONDERLAND implies a straight effect of 8-IN-1 on it.

The dialog is the strongest about this one and people on stupid action films or those who dont like a dialog based flick wont find anything in this one.

i saw this for the first time last night and thought it was fantastic - the best Mazursky movie i've seen (by far). i come here and find it has a 5.0 and most people hate it... strange. must have hit me at the right moment. i've been interested in seeing it for 20 years - glad i didn't until now.

yes, portions are derivative and pretentious, but Sutherland's incredibly likable and the film has a free and easy feel reminding me of a kind of urban easy rider. it's more of a long poem than a standard movie.

the sequence at Mazursky's office is amazing.