By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Director: James Cox
Starring: Carrie Fisher | Christina Applegate | Dylan McDermott | Eric Bogosian | Josh Lucas | Kate Bosworth | Lisa Kudrow | Val Kilmer
Country: canada, united_states
Year: 2003
Running time: 99
IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0335563/combined
Hilary says: “This bio-pic of John ‘Johnny Wadd’ Holmes will seem familiar to fans of BOOGIE NIGHTS, as the character of Dirk Diggler was based on Holmes. However, WONDERLAND suffers by comparison. The soundtrack and cinematography are great, the cast is full of familiar faces and Val Kilmer even gives a decent performance (a rarity, in my opinion), but something is lacking.
“WONDERLAND is the story of a star in decline. When we meet Holmes he hasn’t made an ‘adult picture’ in two years, is moving from motel to motel with his teenage girlfriend, and has a serious drug addiction. Kilmer shows both sides of Holmes, his casual attitude and bravado covering up for paranoia and insecurities. Deep down he’s still a loser married to a hard-edged nurse, Sharon (Lisa Kudrow), who has never divorced him although he’s been living with his teen paramour Dawn (Kate Bosworth) for years.
“The title refers to a multiple murder at the Wonderland Ave apartment of Holmes’ drug dealer pals. This grisly event (shown in shadowy abstract at the end of the film) follows on the heels of a robbery at the house of dealer/club owner/all-around-shady character named Eddie Nash (Eric Bogosian). This scene brought on the greatest sense of dejà vu as Nash runs around in a silk bathrobe, bikini briefs and gold chains, smoking crack and raving angrily just as ‘Rahad Jackson’ (Alfred Molina) did in BOOGIE NIGHTS.
“The question at the center of the film is, ‘Who’s telling the truth?’ Police officers investigating the murders hear two very different accounts from Holmes and David Lind (Dylan McDermott), another dealer/robbery conspirator who happened to be away on the evening of the murders. I wanted to be more interested in the answer, but ultimately the stylistic elements, such as inter-cutting between the action and actual Los Angeles Times headlines, triumph over the storyline. Writer/Director James Cox could direct the hell out of music videos. McDermott is great, redeeming himself following his recent laughable
performance as Peter Gatien in PARTY MONSTER. Josh Lucas is all unhinged intensity as dealer/victim Ron Launius and Tim Blake Nelson is good as always, but somewhat wasted as Launius’ partner in crime, Billy Deverell.”