First off, I genuinely love Keke Palmer, Johnny Lee Miller and Common.
With the expectations high I have to say that I may have set myself up for something a little grander BUT that certainly did not take away from what was a very enjoyable film.
There are parallels to The Village (2004) and Antebellum (2020) but they are mostly on the surface. I did guess 'The Village' bit very early on, but I believe that we were meant to, as there was a very obvious hint within the first 15 mins.
Where I think the story suffered a bit was how quickly it wrapped up as there clearly would be a lot for Alice to unpack when she becomes fully aware of her circumstances. Coming in at just over 90mins., I would've dedicated another 30 mins to this easily to flesh out the ending better.
The other reviews that seem to think that the influence of popular (and historical) African-American culture wouldn't have informed the protagonist are reaching. While a bit rushed, Alice indeed becomes informed from a pretty good balance of history and pop culture. And why wouldn't she model herself after the female icons of the time?
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery so I wouldn't discount the parallels too much from The Village, as indeed the movie takes that root from an actual recent historical event.
A few points shaved for the rushing to conclusion, and for a little unbalanced screen time for the antagonists to add some more weight.
The down-voting is an issue for me and those who follow my reviews are keenly aware of this. But, while I wouldn't upvote in response, the honest rating for Alice is 6.7/10 but the score and soundtrack will subsidize that back to a 7/10.
With the expectations high I have to say that I may have set myself up for something a little grander BUT that certainly did not take away from what was a very enjoyable film.
There are parallels to The Village (2004) and Antebellum (2020) but they are mostly on the surface. I did guess 'The Village' bit very early on, but I believe that we were meant to, as there was a very obvious hint within the first 15 mins.
Where I think the story suffered a bit was how quickly it wrapped up as there clearly would be a lot for Alice to unpack when she becomes fully aware of her circumstances. Coming in at just over 90mins., I would've dedicated another 30 mins to this easily to flesh out the ending better.
The other reviews that seem to think that the influence of popular (and historical) African-American culture wouldn't have informed the protagonist are reaching. While a bit rushed, Alice indeed becomes informed from a pretty good balance of history and pop culture. And why wouldn't she model herself after the female icons of the time?
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery so I wouldn't discount the parallels too much from The Village, as indeed the movie takes that root from an actual recent historical event.
A few points shaved for the rushing to conclusion, and for a little unbalanced screen time for the antagonists to add some more weight.
The down-voting is an issue for me and those who follow my reviews are keenly aware of this. But, while I wouldn't upvote in response, the honest rating for Alice is 6.7/10 but the score and soundtrack will subsidize that back to a 7/10.