Canada, United States · 2003
Rated R · 1h 44m
Director James Cox
Starring Val Kilmer, Dylan McDermott, Kate Bosworth, Josh Lucas
Genre Crime
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On the afternoon of July 1, 1981, Los Angeles police responded to a distress call on Wonderland Avenue and discovered a grisly quadruple homicide. The police investigation that followed uncovered two versions of the events leading up to the brutal murders - both involving legendary porn actor John Holmes. You're about to experience both versions.
When you watch Wonderland, going back twenty years plus, you think you're in for some paleontological expedition. Yet, thanks to James Cox's considered and adept direction, a cast and script that never cheats the experience or realism of Hollywood's enigmatic underbelly -- the drama of the 1981 Wonderland murders is de-petrified.
The New Yorker by Anthony Lane
We are led through a murky and, it must be said, wholly uninvolving saga of substance abuse and related multiple murders. [6 October 2003, p. 138]
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
The murder-mystery plot is told in rough-and-tumble style, full of sound and fury but signifying almost nothing in the end.
ReelViews by James Berardinelli
Once you leave Wonderland, you may feel like you need a shower, but, while you're in the moment, it's a compelling journey into the depths of hell on earth.
Village Voice by Michael Atkinson
Jonesing for headlines and gossip-buzz, Wonderland is too look-Ma for its own good -- the simple story of a doomed hop-hog over his head in bad shit could've hit the nerve if left to tell itself.
The Hollywood Reporter by Michael Rechtshaffen
There seem to be some impressive performances here, though it's not always easy to tell because director James Cox is always feverishly cutting away to something or other.
Entertainment Weekly by Owen Gleiberman
When we finally do see what happened, it's a genuine shock, a nightmare vision of a hedonist who forged his own hell.
Rolling Stone by Peter Travers
Character gets sacrificed for just another true-crime drama.
The vaporous Wonderland never moves beyond its grungily romanticized view of the past.
Has absolutely nothing to say about its characters and their lamentable actions.
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