You may find this hard to believe but the new flick Wonderland documenting the post porn life of John Holmes, dubbed “The King” of pornography, contains not a single bit of sex, nudity, or even the slightest bit of skin but it is true. But to make up for that we are given an entire slew of drugs and blood.
The endless piles of drugs that would even make Scarface jealous add to the nightmare that was John Holmes life and those he was involved with. So many scenes of drug use make this movie almost unbearable with so many syringes, piles of cocaine, and hordes of heroine that make your stomach turn.
Wonderland shows the dirty underbelly of Holmes life as he befriends local drug dealers Ron (Lucas) and Susan Launius (Applegate) along with their “business partner” David Lind (McDermott), who operate out of the Wonderland party house.
With Holmes high profile porn career in the crapper he finds himself out of his element in the life-and-death world of high stakes drugs and crime and he soon gets himself neck deep into trouble once his new friends take on the notorious gangster Eddie Nash (Bogosian).
The group’s robbery of Nash leaves them with $1.2 million in drugs, jewelry, and cash but the life of crime catches up to them as they fall victim to the slaughter at Wonderland. With their heads bashed with lead pipes the police soon begin their questioning and the truth comes out.
Val Kilmer has been virtually absent from the big screen since Red Planet (2000), but with Wonderland in the bag and seven movies coming up (The Missing, Mindhunters, Blind Horizon, Delgo, Spartan, and Alexander) he is announcing his return to Hollywood.
While Wonderland is disturbing and a gut wrenching tour through Holmes’ life Kilmer’s portrayal of the porn king is excellent as he always has been, but the consistent use of drugs and brutal violence don’t allow you to enjoy the performance.
Wonderland also has an excellent supporting cast such as Christina Applegate who is almost unrecognizable, Dylan McDermott and Kate Bosworth.
Lisa Kudrow turns in a great performance as Holmes’ estranged wife, but the fact that she doesn’t wear any makeup gives you a different view of the actress as she shows her real age.
Despite the cast and the subject the thing that hurts this film is the glamorization of drug use and the fact that it is never looked down upon, but more of a way of life. The seedy lives these people lead is never questioned as the speak openly to the police about their actions and the cops don’t blink or cringe as they hear the sordid tales they are told.
Wonderland brings hell to life and may not be the best film, but the fact that Kilmer will be back on the big screen is encouraging.
