Tim Burton’s new Alice in Wonderland film is a delicious feast for anyone with a taste for the glamorous gothic aesthetic that Burton does so well. Alice is played by an adorable 20-year-old Australian actress (Mia Wasikowska) who bears an uncanny resemblance to Gwyneth Paltrow and is perfect for the role of “sweet young girl embittered by prim Victorian England.” Hence her upcoming role as Jane Eyre.

The sets are decadent and decaying abstractions that seamlessly blend reality with animation; the costumes are an enviable mix of antique lace, contemporary couture, and damsel in distress; the story line is a feminist one of a girl dumping a classic creeper to explore the world on her own; all the actors are in their elements, even the irritatingly omnipresent Anne Hathaway as the White Queen. Some stories never lose their luster, especially if they involve an escapist scenario to a land of drunken teatimes, psychedelic caterpillars, and a big Hollywood auteur director.

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