"That's a nice-a donut."

Monday, November 21, 2005

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

After Hershey's chocolate, when most people think of chocolate factories they are often reminded of Gene Wilder in 1971's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Based on Roald Dahl's classic book, it is a magical fairly tale about a lucky boy and four other kids who win the chance to tour eccentric candy maker Willy Wonka's super fun factory. Gene Wilder's picture (officially directed by Mel Stuart, for anyone who cares) is warmly remembered by many, has a loyal following, and has dazzled children for more than a generation. So it came as a surprise to some when eccentric filmmaker Tim Burton dared remake the tale, and even went back to the book's original title, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

The main plot of the movie should be quite familiar to veterans of the original. Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) is a very poor, but good-hearted young boy who lives with his extended family - two parents, and four grandparents - in a very tiny, beaten-up old shack near the center of town. One day it is announced that Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp), the rich reclusive candy genius, will be offering five lucky winners (and one guest each) a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to tour his factory via five golden tickets that will be randomly hidden inside Wonka candy bars. Naturally, the first four winners are all spoiled rotten, no-good, gluttonous kids: overweight eating machine Augustus Gloop, selfish and sassy momma's girl Violet Beauregarde, rich spoiled princess Veruca Salt, and obnoxious and mindless video game player and TV watcher Mike Teavee.

Of course we wouldn't have a movie without poor Charlie miraculously getting the fifth ticket on the final day of the contest. And so he chooses his kind grandpa Joe (David Kelly), who used to work at Wonka's factory long ago before everyone was fired. And so the big day at the factory arrives. Charlie and Joe have the time of their lives, while the other eight people get their just deserts.

Let's just get this right out of the way: Depp is very creepy and very annoying as Wonka. He is a sick, sad, demented cross between sexually ambiguous rocker Marilyn Manson and sexually wrong Michael Jackson (and not the good Jacko from, say, 1983, but the eerie one from 2005). Why in the world did he ever think that would be a good idea for a children's movie? I'm sure some Depp fans will like what he does with it, and I appreciate that he tries to break the mold and do something different. But it's just awful. Further, I understand what they were trying to do by intermittently focusing on Wonka and his father via flashbacks, but it distracted from the main story and was an unwanted change of pace.

Burton does get some good performances from the other actors, however. I especially like Kelly as the jovial old man, who is optimistic in the face of long odds, and has clear love for his grandson and friend Charlie. Highmore is also quite adept in the title role, although I'd like to see the trend of preternaturally talented child actors come to an end. The other four kids do what they need to do, but the starring role might just be Deep Roy and the omnipresent singin' and dancin' Oompa Loompas. Through the magic of technology, Roy is the Loompas.

On the subject of music, composer Danny Elfman liberally uses his now-too-familiar notes from other such Burton collaborations as Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice. In fact, combined with the very familiar set designs, I was convinced that this was taking place in the Gotham City from Batman, with a little scenery from Scissorhands thrown in for good measure. Don't misread this though; Burton's chocolate factory is filled with plenty of wonderful and pretty visuals. Some of the sight and sounds are clearly high points in the film.

Interestingly enough, I always saw the 1971 version as being more about Charlie (though Willy Wonka was in the title), whereas this is more about Willy (though Charlie is back in the title). I was never a huge fan of the original, but appreciate it for what it is. This is a nice companion piece. Burton doesn't just redo the earlier work, but reinvents much of it - changing a few things and adding others. I just wish that he had chosen someone else as Wonka.

The Verdict: B-.

Michael Bentley 9:29 AM

"That's a nice-a donut."

Monday, November 21, 2005

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