Not as good as Willy Wonka- Yet Johnny Depp rocked!

Rating: 3/10 (6 September 2005)

At first, it was thought that the re-make of the renowned film "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" would be focusing on the highs and lows of the first adaptation of the book by Roald Dahl made in 1971, named "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" directed by Mel Stuart.
It was said to be a lot darker than the original film, which highlighted that the director was Tim Burton (director of "Nightmare before Christmas"). This showed that Burton had focused more on the book than Stuart. All the songs were focused on the children and the greed that they had. I found them surprisingly awful, and was expecting more from the film; and then to find out that the lyrics were written by Roald Dahl shocked me! Throughout the first few scenes the narrator tells a dark and deep story about where Charlie lives. The way the story unfolds grabs the audiences' attention, because they want to know what Burton has "up his sleeve". It then steams through the main plot; a bunch of repellent and greedy children who are horribly undone by their own character faults, throughout the adventures of the chocolate factory.
The iconography was surprisingly deep. Wonka was portrayed as a dark mysterious man, Johnny Depp played the character of Wonka extremely well; his characteristics and mannerisms were extremely original. Depp's performance was mad and outrageous; what stood out most of all about Depp were his glowing eyes and perfect teeth. Wonka' manic appearance suggests he has been in the factory for many years, with the strange um-pa lumpa men and the haunting memories of his father. Many audiences have come out of the cinema describing Depp by saying how much he is like Michael Jackson; or Jack Nicholson in The Shining.
The camera-work in this film used mainly mid-shots, and often used long distance/wide shots to capture the whole surrounding of the chocolate factory; then long shots were used to watch the characters moving. There were a few High angle shots from the direction of Wonka looking down at the children. Then occasionally throughout the shots of characters moving there were panning movements; or stills.
The editing was fantastic; until it got to the songs; and the digitalised mise-en-scène of the chocolate factory. It didn't seem realistic for the viewer; and this could have been brought across in a better way visually. There wasn't many "fancy" editing, but mainly cuts and fades, fade-ins and fade-outs were used for Wonka's childhood memories, and around the screen was a foggy mist surrounding the centered image.
The soundtrack was mainly diegetic. When the filming of the songs were shown; it was obvious the sound was non-diegetic because the dubbing wasn't clear. There was a voice-over at the beginning of the film, with a deep and dark voice, and it was unclear to what the narrator was saying; at the end of the film; we discover that the narrator was one of the um-pa lumpas.
The special effects were hilarious at the end; when the audience finds out what has happened to each greedy little child. The computer-generated images make a great end to the film as the audience laugh harder and harder after they've seen each child.
This film was similar to the storybook, and its suited mode of address aims itself at young children and teenagers aged 8-15. However Depp's performance brings the age category up a level and aims more towards an adult approach, perhaps an audience of 16-30 year olds. So there is a variety of young and old viewers; all different age gaps; and can be enjoyed by all.
Overall the film may have been more like the book, and Roald Dahl may have preferred this version; but I don't think that remaking the film made any justice for the audience.