Malice in Wonderland (2009)

Johnny Depp eat your heart out.

Malice in Wonderland

A twist on Alice in Wonderland (!), Malice stars Maggie Grace as Alice, who after running out in front of a taxi cab and getting knocked out, loses her memories, and goes on a magical journey in Wonderland to try to get them returned.

Sounds pretty normal, right?

Nope.

The taxi driver, Whitey (Danny Dyer), is clearly suffering from some mental issues (honestly, as are most of the cast), the magical journey is the result of taking "substances" given to you by someone you just met, and the present for the Queen of Hearts is a tie.

A Thai

Drug-fueled, and very adult in places, Alice runs from pillar to post in a dark gangland version of Wonderland, full of murder, drugs, and mobile prostitution. Director Simon Fellows does a solid job, although has little on his resume. Star Maggie Grace does a fantastic amnesiac Alice, although you do wonder about her motivations sometimes. Grace, of course, having a solid TV career both before and after with the likes of Lost and Californication.

That leads me to the UK cast. The supporting cast of Matt King (Peep Show), Gary Beadle (Eastenders), and Paul Kaye (Game of Thrones) are all great. They play off-kilter fantasy versions of traditional English mobsters.

But that leads me to Danny Dyer. Dyer gets a bad rap largely. Sure he's done some pretty bad films, but he's always good, and he has done some pretty good films. Like this one. Leave the poor lad alone. And follow him on Twitter. He's great.