“Curiouser and curiouser,” Alice says in disbelief after falling through a hole to Wonderland. However, there is nothing “curious” about the success of Tim Burton’s version of “Alice in Wonderland.” The reimagining of Lewis Carroll’s classic tale definitely lives up to, if not surpasses, standards set by previous Burton films.

Mia Wasikowska plays the lead role of Alice, with Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen, and Anne Hathaway as the White Queen. The movie also utilizes the voice talents of Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall and Christopher Lee, just to name a few.

When Alice falls into the hole after escaping an engagement party, she ends up in Wonderland. There she meets the characters of the fairytale land: The rabbit, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, The blue caterpillar, and Cheshire Cat. They then reveal to her the destiny she is to fulfill: to slay the Jabberwocky, a large dragon like creature. Alice must then retrieve the sword “Vorpal” from the Red Queen’s palace, return it to the White Queen and become the champion of her court. However, this is not Alice’s first time in Wonderland as it would seem. She went there as a child as well, but passed it off as a reoccurring dream.

Burton’s 3-D film opened March 7 and grossed $116.3 million opening weekend. This shatters the record set by James Cameron’s “Avatar,” which earned $73 million for its opening weekend Dec. 18, 2009.

“Alice in Wonderland” is available in both a 3-D and 2-D version, though the 3-D format of the film is far superior in terms of entertainment. The 3-D version does cost more, but is well worth the extra money. The soundtrack, composed by Danny Elfman, is remarkable, making audience members feel the emotion of the scene. All in all, “Alice in Wonderland” is definitely one of Tim Burton’s finest films to date. “Alice in Wonderland” gets a 10 out of 10.