Product Description

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.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12786 in DVD
• Brand: LGF
• Released on: 2007-02-06
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.20 pounds
• Running time: 104 minutes

Customer Reviews

Thirteen Inches Better Than You Think
Basically, this film suffers from having been released after Boogie Nights. Where that film was loosely based upon the life and deeds of John Holmes, Wonderland attempts to detail the last public burst of attention Holmes received and why such came to pass. It is a Rashomon-like retelling of the Wonderland Avenue murders, from the viewpoints of Holmes and sometime accomplice David Lind. A third version of Holmes' involvement, that of a police detective investigating the murders, is briefly alluded to, but is relegated to an end-of-film "what if" thread. The viewer must be warned that a certain bit of dramatic license has apparently been taken by the creative team behind the film, as written and other documentary sources seem to allude to other specific details of the actual murders which either are not included in Wonderland or have been slightly altered. What is depicted, in all its sleazy, pathetic glory is the intersection of porn, drugs, and the cult of personality that grew around such "performers" as John Holmes. Where Boogie Nights leavened the first half of it's narrative with humor and a tongue-in-cheek viewpoint, Wonderland dumps the viewer headlong into a boiling stew of cocaine, prostitution, violence, guilt, and desperation. None of the acting performances can be faulted, but Val Kilmer's turn as John Holmes and Lisa Kudrow's as his estranged wife stand out in particular. Still, even with an unusually strong acting troupe and a compelling story, Wonderland just doesn't seem to come together as it should have. It's still a good film, and definitely worth a look, if only to see what the world of porn and drugs was really like at the turn of the Eighties. If possible, get the two-disc version, as it contains the documentary Wadd: The Life and Times of John C. Holmes as a bonus feature. This film documents Holmes' rise and fall in excruciating, heartbreaking detail. No matter what one's opinion of pornography is, Holmes' story is ultimately one of tragedy, and his collapse into himself is one of the cautionary tales of our time, one that should be passed on to anyone who thinks that they're going to become a "star" by following in his footsteps. This is only my opinion; yours on the subject may be far different. However, Wadd is a riveting documentary and alone is worth the price of admission.

Interesting But Flawed Account of the Notorious Wonderland Murders
In the 1970s, when pornographic movies became increasingly available to mainstream consumers, John Holmes (1944-1988) parlayed his supersized endowment into stardom. Those who knew him well describe him as likeable but somewhat dim; when his stardom began to fade he had nothing on which to fall back, and he became just another drug-addicted has been, trading on what was left of his dubious celebrity for a line of cocaine here and a line of cocaine there. In 1981 Holmes tended to bounce between big-time drug dealer Eddie Nash and a group of smaller-time dealers who lived on Wonderland Avenue in Los Angeles--and found himself greatly over his head.

Police described the Wonderland murder case as the most gruesome murder scene since the 1969 Manson family killing spree. Although theories differ in details, they are consistent in outline: Holmes set up Nash for robbery by the Wonderland dealers; Nash responded by having Holmes set up the Wonderland dealers for a mass hit, carried off by people weilding pipes. Four people died, one survived with serious injuries and without memory of the attack. The 2003 film WONDERLAND attempts to portray both the crimes and the conflicting stories that Holmes, Nash, a Wonderland insider, and others gave during the course of the investigation.

Val Kilmer is unexpectedly convincing as the whining John Holmes, unable to focus beyond the next score, coming up with one silly idea after another. Lisa Kudrow is particularly memorable in the role of Holmes' estranged wife, Sharon; Kate Bosworth equals her as Holmes' current girl, Dawn Schiller. Although the movie is littered with cameos that actually tend to distract--Paris Hilton and Carrie Fisher, among others--the supporting cast is also quite fine. But the script, editing, and overall concept lets them down: it begins well and finishes well, but the middle portion of the film is weak and the overall movie lacks emotional or psychological depth.

WONDERLAND's characters are not likeable, and director and co-writer James Cox doesn't even attempt to find a means of bringing us inside their heads and lives in a way that makes them understandable, much less sympathetic. The film instead attempts to jump from character to character and idea to idea while also sliding back and forth in time--and in the process never quite stays in one place long enough for you get a firm grip. Everything does eventually link up, but all the same you'd better not blink too often as the movie plays out: if you do, you'll be lost when the final credits role.

The film is also plagued by a lot of hand-held-camera cinematography, presumably in order to convey the drug-laden atmosphere through which the characters move; there are also quite a few graphics, split screens, and so on. I find that a little of this goes quite a long way, and between the camera tricks and the constant shifts WONDERLAND looses focus and at times becomes a little wearing.

Even so, WONDERLAND still manages to be an interesting film, the sort of film that you wish had been undertaken by a great artist instead of director and co-writer James Cox, who would be most gracefully described as somewhat unpolished. There are at least two DVD issues of the film, one that is the film alone, another which also includes a documentary on John Holmes that is actually more interesting than the movie itself; if you have to pick between the two, go with the latter. Recommended, just don't expect too much.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

THE SEEDY SIDE OF HOLLYWOOD
True life crime stories based on real events often make for a compelling and yet disturbing experience. Such was the case years ago when television viewers first experienced the horror that was HELTER SKELTER. That movie came to mind while I was watching this one. I was horrified at the story unfolding before me, but felt that I had to watch at the same time.

Don't let the hype be the only thing to draw you in here. Most publicity focuses on the fact that porn star John Holmes was involved in the murders that took place on Wonderland Avenue. But the story is so much more than that.

In the summer of 1981, four people were brutally murdered on Wonderland Avenue. Another victim survived. The truth of what happened there has been pieced together and charges filed, but the results of those charges and trials were far from satisfying to the public.

The movie takes the tact of telling the same story from various points of view, beginning with that of Dawn (Kate Bosworth), the current girlfriend of John Holmes (Val Kilmer). An addict just as Holmes was, her focus is on the next fix and the attention that Holmes showers on her when he can see straight. She is young and in love and that is all that matters. What is actually happening around her is only caught in glimpses.

The second set up is seen through the eyes of a biker hoodlum named David Lind (an almost unrecognizable Dylan McDermott). Lind was not at the scene of the crime when it took place, but claims to know what went on to cause the events to unfold. His take revolves around Holmes being the center of the storm, the whole person responsible for the murders. Of course, his girlfriend was one of the victims and he has a grudge to bear.

The last full look at the crime comes through the eyes of Holmes' himself. As portrayed by Kilmer, Holmes' is actually a sad character, filled with insecurities and unsure of himself, relying on the small amount of celebrity status he has yet embarrassed by it at the same time. He looks at the world around him as a group that takes advantage of him while the viewer sees up close the user that he was, using drugs and people to get whatever it was he needed.

The film ends with a tie up of all of the stories and viewpoints that give us a possibility of what truly happened. This version includes information all parties concerned haven't given to the police via Holmes' wife Sharon (Lisa Kudrow). What happened that night at Wonderland affected her as well, even though for all purposes she and Holmes' were separated.

What makes this film one to watch is the raw look at what went on behind the scenes there in Hollywood. No look at the glitz and glamour, no look at the world of pornography, but a look at the seedier side, the low level criminals and how the operated, what they were interested in. It looks at how people involved with one another, offer no amount of loyalty to one another, always looking out for number one.

And perhaps the most simple of the reasons we watch is that innate sense of wonder that we all share, rubbernecking as we drive by an accident, afraid of the gory details, yet for some reason compelled to look. And in that sense, we are offered a glimpse into the world of Wonderland and what happened.

My expectations for this film were to find one that relied on the sensational image of John Holmes and not on the events of that summer evening. Instead I was given a solid film that told the story of a night filled with murder and what paved the way for that event. And in that story is a chilling tail that deserves to be watched.