Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
(A or 4/4 stars)
'Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory' (directed by Mel Stuart & based on Roald Dahl's popular children's book) stars Gene Wilder as reclusive candy mogul Willy Wonka; an eccentric inventor who long ago locked himself in his factory & hasn't been seen or heard of since. But for reasons that only become apparent at the end of the film, he decides to come out of hiding and hold a contest to open up his factory to 5 lucky winners. Inside 5 Wonka Bars he has hidden Golden Tickets worth a free tour inside his enormous candy factory, including a lifetime supply of chocolate. And the world goes crazy trying to find the tickets.
The 1st person to strike gold is teenager Augustus Gloop, a gluttonous German boy who is ... always eating. The 2nd person to find a golden ticket is Veruca Salt (Julie Dawn Cole), a rich, selfish, spoiled brat; and that's putting it lightly. The 3rd person is Violet Beauregarde, a pushy, bad-mannered girl who holds the world's record for chewing the same piece of gum {ick}. The 4th is Mike Teevee, a rude smart-aleck, who ignores his mother by watching TV all day long. And the 5th winner is our protagonist, Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum), an impoverished, but honest, loving, hardworking young lad.
Charlie is so poor that he lives in a 1-room shack with his mom & both sets of grandparents - the 4 grandparents occupy a single bed that they haven't gotten out of in years. When Charlie finds his ticket, he's allowed to take 1 person with him & chooses his 'ole Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson); as Joe is not only his grandpa, but he's also his best friend: "Don't worry, Charlie, you'll find a Golden Ticket," he says, NEVER giving up hope for his grandson.
Once inside the factory, Wonka is not like any human we've ever met, & you can tell that Gene Wilder has a blast playing a character with a bit of a screw loose. The role makes terrific use of Wilder's playful, manic energy. And I love watching the utter composure he holds as each child is deliciously dispatched - one goes up a chocolate flue, another goes down a "bad egg" sorter, another is turned into a huge blueberry, & a 4th disintegrates into television atoms. See, during the course of the tour, Wonka punishes the 4 nastier children in these diabolical methods because they have violated the ethics of his factory & need to learn by being punished, not rewarded. In the end, only Charlie & his grandpa are left. But it's anyone's guess as to what Wonka has up his sleeve for our good-natured protagonist.
From a production design standpoint, 'WW&tCF' is a wonder. The room that the characters step into that is 100% made of candy & chocolate is ... INCREDIBLE. Anyone with taste buds will salivate at the plentitude of sugar-coated treats that we see the characters devouring. And there are songs: The Candy Man (joyfully sung in a sweet shop), I've Got a Golden Ticket (sung by Grandpa Joe), Pure Imagination (hauntingly sung by Willy), Oompa-Loompa-Doompa-De-Do (a theme song for Willy Wonka's orange dwarf helpers ... yes, I really wrote that), & I Want It Now (sung by the little girl we love to loathe, Veruca Salt).
On the whole, there's a slightly mean-spirited feel to the proceedings {which I like}. And there's a bizarre scene midway through where Wonka takes his guests on a wild, psychedelic, gory boat ride through his circus-like factory. That said, the film's overall intention is for positive, playful fun. 'Willy Wonka …' provides great family entertainment, visual splendor, & enough wit for adults & most children. There's good humor. Good acting. And the last 5 minutes has a great pay-off; offering up what I typically like to call ... "movie magic". The whole film is a joy from beginning to end.
The 1st person to strike gold is teenager Augustus Gloop, a gluttonous German boy who is ... always eating. The 2nd person to find a golden ticket is Veruca Salt (Julie Dawn Cole), a rich, selfish, spoiled brat; and that's putting it lightly. The 3rd person is Violet Beauregarde, a pushy, bad-mannered girl who holds the world's record for chewing the same piece of gum {ick}. The 4th is Mike Teevee, a rude smart-aleck, who ignores his mother by watching TV all day long. And the 5th winner is our protagonist, Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum), an impoverished, but honest, loving, hardworking young lad.
Charlie is so poor that he lives in a 1-room shack with his mom & both sets of grandparents - the 4 grandparents occupy a single bed that they haven't gotten out of in years. When Charlie finds his ticket, he's allowed to take 1 person with him & chooses his 'ole Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson); as Joe is not only his grandpa, but he's also his best friend: "Don't worry, Charlie, you'll find a Golden Ticket," he says, NEVER giving up hope for his grandson.
Once inside the factory, Wonka is not like any human we've ever met, & you can tell that Gene Wilder has a blast playing a character with a bit of a screw loose. The role makes terrific use of Wilder's playful, manic energy. And I love watching the utter composure he holds as each child is deliciously dispatched - one goes up a chocolate flue, another goes down a "bad egg" sorter, another is turned into a huge blueberry, & a 4th disintegrates into television atoms. See, during the course of the tour, Wonka punishes the 4 nastier children in these diabolical methods because they have violated the ethics of his factory & need to learn by being punished, not rewarded. In the end, only Charlie & his grandpa are left. But it's anyone's guess as to what Wonka has up his sleeve for our good-natured protagonist.
From a production design standpoint, 'WW&tCF' is a wonder. The room that the characters step into that is 100% made of candy & chocolate is ... INCREDIBLE. Anyone with taste buds will salivate at the plentitude of sugar-coated treats that we see the characters devouring. And there are songs: The Candy Man (joyfully sung in a sweet shop), I've Got a Golden Ticket (sung by Grandpa Joe), Pure Imagination (hauntingly sung by Willy), Oompa-Loompa-Doompa-De-Do (a theme song for Willy Wonka's orange dwarf helpers ... yes, I really wrote that), & I Want It Now (sung by the little girl we love to loathe, Veruca Salt).
On the whole, there's a slightly mean-spirited feel to the proceedings {which I like}. And there's a bizarre scene midway through where Wonka takes his guests on a wild, psychedelic, gory boat ride through his circus-like factory. That said, the film's overall intention is for positive, playful fun. 'Willy Wonka …' provides great family entertainment, visual splendor, & enough wit for adults & most children. There's good humor. Good acting. And the last 5 minutes has a great pay-off; offering up what I typically like to call ... "movie magic". The whole film is a joy from beginning to end.