Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Review
by Shane Burridge (sburridge AT hotmail DOT com)December 6th, 2005
CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY (2005) 115mins
1972's WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY was a relatively unknown property when it first appeared in cinemas. I say "relatively" because three decades later it is hard to imagine any child not being exposed to Roald Dahl's book somewhere along the line of their education. Gone now is the surprise of the factory with all its wonders, and the enigma of Willy Wonka himself, so what is there left for director Tim Burton and star Johnny Depp to work with? Unexpectedly, the new film follows the source material even more closely than the original (with the exception of flashback scenes - Willy Wonka does *not* need a backstory - provided as a lead-in to the story's altered ending), but still has to deal with the character made so memorable by Gene Wilder's distinctive turn in the original. The 1972 version's alteration of title from 'Charlie' to 'Willy Wonka' indicated who the film-makers thought would be the selling point of the movie: while the book allowed us to follow Charlie's journey through the mysterious Chocolate Factory, the film had Willy Wonka leading us by the nose.
It's only natural to expect the Factory itself to take center stage in any cinema adaptation, with Charlie having done his bit by getting us, the audience, in through the doors after the first act, and Wonka serving merely as tour guide. But if Charlie is upstaged by the factory, then the factory itself gets upstaged by Willy Wonka. In CHARLIE, Depp has done the unthinkable: after three previous collaborations with Burton in three completely different guises, he has stolen the movie from the director almost effortlessly. Fortunately, his Willy Wonka is a far remove from Wilder's, preserving the integrity of the original film for diehard fans who think remakes of classic cult movies are unnecessary. It's possible to enjoy both the 1972 and 2005 versions for what they are, thanks to the wonderful, singular performances by both actors. It's a tough call to say who is better, though I am inclined to side with Wilder, who makes his Wonka just as elusive but a little more human than Depp's. Wilder plays the character as if he is a philanthropic genius who has become disappointed by society, doesn't suffer fools gladly, but nevertheless hasn't lost the gleam in his eye. Depp is a quirky recluse, driven into the confectionary biz by obsession, harboring a deep-seated dread of family, but nevertheless retaining the gleam in his teeth.
It's enjoyable seeing just what Depp brings to the table with each of his film performances, even if, as in this case, he plays a character so broadly that audiences are bound to be confused by it. The only time he steps back is to allow the Oompa-Loompas (or Oompa-Loompa, since it is one actor duplicated by computer) to indulge in catchy musical numbers - you would think that these scenes would be Burton's chance to steal attention away from Depp but instead they appear to be composer Danny Elfman's chance to grab the limelight. It doesn't matter that Depp goofs around as Wonka as some kind of kiddie-show host parody because there's almost no such thing as a subtle performance in this film. The children and their parents, unlike the 1972 version, are obnoxious to the core (Mike Teavea's dad is the only one who doesn't come off so badly), and Freddie Highsmith, who is stuck with the role of goody-goody Charlie, should be relieved that he comes off simply as "inoffensive".
Burton's films tend to fall into two categories - pop and gothic. Among his colorful, wacky excursions we have PEE-WEE, BEETLEJUICE and MARS ATTACKS, while among his darker, operatic tales we have BATMAN, SLEEPY HOLLOW and EDWARD SCISSORHANDS. He could have gone either way with CHARLIE; the potential for a much sinister film is obvious in the tone of Dahl's work. In truth, I don't think I would have minded Burton taking the darker route, even though there seems to be too much of those hues in children's films of the new millennium; but I think going light was the right choice. There is a lot to enjoy, and Depp has many funny asides. But really: yet another 2001 monolith joke in the 21st century, complete with the theme music, already? Aren't we past that stuff now? Why not have Depp do a riff on the shower scene from PSYCHO while we're at it? Pure Imagination...not!
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