Charlie & the Chocolate Factory Movie Review:


Director Tim Burton is at it again. This time he is tackling the new adaptation to the children’s book, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”. A movie he seems to have been born to make.

Eccentric chocolate tycoon Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp) hasn’t been seen in nearly fifteen years but his huge factory still churns out its delicious candy all over the world.

When Wonka announces he is sending out five golden tickets wrapped in his candy bars, the world becomes transfixed. The boy or girl who finds each ticket will be awarded a grand tour of Wonka’s mysterious factory and each winner will be eligible for a secret grand prize.

Lowly and very poor Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) hopes that by some twist of fate that he can go on the tour of Wonka’s factory. But alas his only hope lies in the wrapping of his birthday’s chocolate bar.

Meanwhile the other four tickets have been snatched up by some of the strangest and spoiled children you will ever meet. Will Charlie make his dream come true?

Tim Burton’s version of this classic tale is all vintage Burton from the film’s score, direction and offbeat characters. But what will surprise a lot of people about Burton’s adaptation is how he was able to build on the classic story and make it all his own.

This is especially evident with Johnny Depp’s amazing performance as Willy Wonka. Depp’s mannerisms, jokes, tirades and antics bring a whole new look to the character. Depp’s version of the classic character gives the icon more much-needed depth.

In the original theatrical version, Gene Wilder played Wonka, as a lonely and confused man but we really never got to know what really made Wonka tick. There is some new light on this subject in the Burton version.

I loved the Oompa Loompa’s which are all performed by actor Deep Roy. The songs they sing are hilarious and amazing to watch. It was also great to know that the lyrics were all created by the story’s creator, Roald Dahl and set to music by Danny Elfman.

I found the kids to be more annoying in this film than in the original and I am not sure if that was there to accent Wonka’s persona or by accident. I really enjoyed Freddie Highmore as Charlie, who seems to be growing as an actor after his last performance alongside Depp in “Finding Neverland”.

I have to say Tim Burton is a director who never disappoints and this film is yet another testament to his on-going genius. It is also a throwback to his dark fables of old like “Edward Scissorhands” and in some ways “Pee Wee’s Big Adventure”.

So Says the Soothsayer



Dean Kish

Like a 21st century Wizard of Oz, this inspired combination of Roald Dahl, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp is sheer magic, with a twisted, involving subtext that keeps it from being merely a goofy kids' movie. Yes, it's pretty hilarious, but it's also delightfully deranged in all the best ways.

Young Charlie Bucket (Highmore) lives in fairly picturesque poverty with his parents (Bonham Carter and Taylor) and grandparents in a leaky shack positioned in the shadow of the Wonka Chocolate Factory. Now after years of secrecy the mysterious Willy Wonka (Depp) is opening his factory for five lucky children: spoiled brat Veruca Salt (Winter), high-achiever Violet Beauregarde (Robb), chocoholic Augustus Gloop (Wiegratz), videogame addict Mike Teavee (Fry) and of course Charlie. They really could never imagine what they'll see and experience inside.

While the film's structure is a bit rigid (the set-up is a Burton-meets-Dickens cliche, the factory tour is too episodic), the outpouring of sheer imagination and moviemaking skill is thoroughly jaw-dropping. Every scene looks gorgeous, with a playful approach to design and effects that constantly surprises us. But it's not an empty spectacle; the design is in constant service to the fanciful story and vivid characters. And it especially lives in Depp's marvellously warped performance as the untrustworthy child-man with a tortured past (cue another outrageous flashback). Highmore is terrific if a bit underused. And the supporting cast adds perfectly pitched notes to every scene, often with just a widening of the eyes.

This is the kind of densely packed comedy that keeps adults' attention even while amazing the young ones. Film references, witty asides, running gags and both audio and visual jokes abound. Elfman's score is terrific, as are his imaginative stagings of Dahl's songs, although it's annoyingly difficult to catch the lyrics. Roy gives an amusing and, literally, multi-layered performance as all the Oompa Loompas. Dahl's blend of humour and horror balances perfectly. And there's enough subtext (before the cloying "Family Is Everything" message) to add some real meaning along the way. So much fun you just want to eat it.

Rich Cline

After almost fifteen years since closing its doors to the public and firing his entire workforce, chocolatier Willy Wonka (Depp) has broken his silence and sent out five Golden Tickets. Hidden inside normal Wonka Bars of chocolate, the ticket entitles the finder to visit the Wonka factory and receive a lifetime’s supply of chocolate. For one of the lucky five, there will be a special price but Willy Wonka won’t reveal that until the end of the tour. As the world clambers to get hold of the winning Wonka bars, Charlie Bucket (Highmore) dreams of being one of the lucky winners but his family are so poor, he only gets one bar a year, on his birthday.

With the 1971 movie starring Gene Wilder considered a classic, can this new version be as sugary sweet or will it leave a sour taste in your mouth?

Tim Burton’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ is just as much fun as the first dramatisation, been in parts better and in parts worse but both films have their own merits. The 1971 movie was driven by the performance of Gene Wilder as the chocolatier Willy Wonka and this version is no different, with Johnny Depp stealing the entire show. The films and the book are supposed to be about Charlie but it is Willy Wonka that is the fascinating character and the reason that the tale is so loved.

Chameleon Depp transforms himself into the eccentric confectionary inventor and has some real fun with the character. A man-child, with no comprehension of the real world outside of his factory, Depp creates the larger than life character to have a real dislike of people but longs for some attention. Much of this is brought to the forefront by a new storyline added by Tim Burton and screenwriter John August. Realising that Wonka is by far the most interesting character, he now has a backstory that reveals more about his childhood, he reasons for his chocolate obsession and why he doesn’t like people and especially families. This allows Depp to introduce quite a dark edge to the character, as he watches with glee as each of the competition winners become consumed by their own petty fascinations. This again proves that Johnny Depp is one of the best character actors to ever grace the silver screen, as he effortlessly breathes life into another brilliant creation.

Supporting Depp is an excellent mixture of adult and new child stars. Freddie Highmore is cementing himself into the category of one of the best male child actors working in cinema at the present time. As Charlie he conveys all the sense of wonder and magic that you want to see in the character as he tours around the factory. He works well with the more dramatic elements of the script as he realises that his family is more important than any golden ticket. The rest of the child actors and actresses are also good with Annasophia Robb, Julia Winter, Jordan Fry and Philip Weigratz bringing Violet Beauregarde, Veruca Salt, Mike Teavee and Augustus Gloop to life, each getting their character’s vices and obsessions spot on. The adult cast is also good with Noah Taylor and Helena Bonham Carter playing Charlie’s parents, David Kelly doing an excellent job as Grandpa Joe and the always-excellent Edward Fox standing out as Mr Salt, the man who just can’t say no to his daughter.

Besides Johnny Depp, it is the performance of Deep Roy as the Oompa Loompa’s that really stands out. Playing every single Oompa Loompa you see on screen, Deep Roy sings and dances his way through all the songs and still manages time to make the chocolate.

The movie itself sees Burton’s visual flare and obsession with the surreal really come to the forefront. The whole film is a feast for the eye, from the dank and dingy look of the outside world, to the colour and splendour of the inside of the factory. This is the world, as Roald Dahl would have imaged it, as it looks good enough to eat.

‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ is supreme family fun that is only dogged down by the inclusion of the new Wonka backstory. This seems to slow the pace of the movie down and extends it for far too long, as we have to see Wonka face his past and the fears that come with it. Aside from this, Tim Burton has produced a film that will delight all the family but only time will tell if it becomes as loved as the Gene Wilder movie.

Jamie Kelwick

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