In 2024, Cléa van der Grijn released her first feature film, The Disembodied Adventures of Alice, a new take on the classic story surrounding Wonderland. A year later, van der Grijn is now releasing another feature that carries heavy references to historical works, Elisa in Wonderland. The film surrounds Elisa (Nora Ní Anluain Fay), who, upon returning to her ancestral home, grapples with anxiety and other mental health conditions. As the film progresses, her state of health worsens alongside her sense of reality. The film itself is carefully crafted by van der Grijn to deliver this narrative, offering references to historical works of art and poetry to showcase Elisa’s state and her isolation from the world around her.
From the very beginning, audiences are clued in to the fact that Elisa does not fit into the world around her. Her home is in an extremely isolated castle, to which she arrives with a neon bag and large fur coat, a stark contrast to the housekeeper Mary (Hilary Bowen-Walsh), who dresses in a two-tone outfit. Throughout the film, little conversation is spoken between the two, aside from a specific scene where Mary repeats “a dream within a dream”, a reference to Mary’s condition as well as Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven”, a work that inspired the film. Additionally, Mary moves similarly to a robot at first, another hint as to Elisa’s isolation. The castle itself is consumed by artwork, with many of the recreated works within the film on display in Elisa’s room. These recreations are used to describe Elisa’s mind and emotions at that point within the film.
The film features references and recreations of seven artworks and the poem “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe. The film draws from the poem in its representation of being consumed by mental health conditions and the inclusion of a Raven character to interact with Elisa, as well as a moment of Elisa reciting the poem itself. Instead of repeating a phrase as Mary did, the Raven offers Elisa a substance that alters her mental state, even more than she is already struggling with. Additionally, the artworks depict a portrait of Elisa’s mental state. In recreations of work such as Henry Fuseli’s The Nightmare, we see that Elisa feels tormented is struggles greatly. The inclusion of this work speaks to Elisa’s inner battle as well as the role that dreams play in the film. Elisa is not spared from her mental health battle, and is constantly at war with herself. Another powerful recreation within the film is Frida Kahlo’s The Two Fridas. This reference points to Elisa feeling torn and distressed within her mind. One of the Elisa’s is crying and struggling to maintain a sense of reality, while the other is more held together. This recreation portrays Elisa’s inner conflict of who she is and how she is perceived.
Elisa in Wonderland also features specific artistic color choices regarding sets, costuming, and color grade. Throughout, Elisa is dressed in more vivid blues and oranges, while other characters are dressed mostly in black and white, apart from Elisa’s hallucinated other beings within the castle. These emphasize the separation that exists and is felt by Elisa between herself and those around her. Additionally, in many scenes and shots not featuring Elisa, the world appears more bleak and less saturated, with many areas within and outside the castle being more pale. Elisa does not feel connected to the world around her or to herself.
Elisa in Wonderland paints a powerful picture of the human mind and the battles within it. Van der Grijn utilizes art and directorial decisions to create a unique and compelling story that audiences will certainly feel deeply.
Elisa in Wonderland screens at the 2025 New Jersey International Film Festival on Friday, May 30 – Online for 24 Hours and In-Person at 7PM in Voorhees Hall #105/Rutgers University, 71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, New Jersey. Elisa in Wonderland director Cléa van der Grijn will be on hand to do a Q+A with the audience at after the in-person screening. For more info and to buy tickets go here.
The 30th annual New Jersey International Film Festival will be taking place between May 30-June 13, 2025. The Festival will be a hybrid one as we will be presenting it online as well as doing select in-person screenings at Rutgers University. All the films will be available virtually via Video on Demand for 24 hours on their show date. VOD start times are at 12 Midnight Eastern USA. Each General Admission Ticket or Festival Pass purchased is good for both the virtual and the in-person when both are offered. Plus, we are very proud to announce that acclaimed singer-songwriter Mike Kovacs will be doing an audio-visual concert on Friday, June 13 at 7PM! The in-person screenings and the Mike Kovacs concert will be held in Voorhees Hall #105/Rutgers University, 71 Hamilton Street, New Brunswick, NJ beginning at 5PM or 7PM on their show date. General Admission Ticket=$15 Per Program; Festival All Access Pass=$120; In-Person Only Student Ticket=$10 Per Program.
For more info go here: https://2025newjerseyinternationalfilmfestival.eventive.org/welcome
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