Good morning, starshine... the earth says hello!

Rating: 8/10 (29 January 2006)

Over the years Tim Burton has shown time and time that he has a knack for dark and morbid movies. He's also shown that he's not afraid to do something a bit different. Just look at Ed Wood; it's a movie about the worst director of all time. Or Mars Attacks? That was actually based on a series of trading cards. So why the hell is this guy doing a remake? Well here's the thing; he's not.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is NOT a remake of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It's actually an adaptation of the original novel. The only problem is that the Gene Wilder version is a cherished classic and one can't help but to make comparisons.
The film's plot follows the same basic path as the previous version while also including things from the novel that couldn't have been done before (the squirrel room for example). For those who don't know the story is basically it's about Wonka the famous candy maker inviting five children to his factory for a tour where they are picked off one by one through their character faults. The plot really doesn't hold many surprises if you're familiar with the first movie and even fewer if you've read the book but that's always the case with adaptations/remakes so succeeding in other areas of film-making is a prerequisite for success.
Luckily this film does succeed on many fronts. The most notable strong point would be the visuals; they're marvelous but not from a technical standpoint. In fact I say that the CGI is rather clumsy most of the time and you don't believe the effects for a second but the way these effects are used is breathtaking. Simple things such as the Bucket home are highly stylized with trademark Tim Burton flair. I was also quite impressed by the many different rooms in the factory which each sported a wonderfully unique look. Most impressive of all would be the room with the chocolate waterfall. Along with great set design we also have clever green screen effects which are used to duplicate actor Deep Roy hundreds of times per shot. His dance numbers are an extra special visual treat complimented by unbearably catchy songs.
Well now that I've mentioned Deep Roy's songs I might as well comment on the film's other music. It's dark yet cheery and used perfectly. I'm not kidding either, if this film got anything right it's the music. It might not be perfect but I have so many tunes stuck in my head from this film that I can't help but to commend Danny Elfman for his fantastic work.
Ah and now for the big question: how's the acting? People may argue that it's not very important in a film like this but I've seen Cheaper by the Dozen and I can't bear to see those kids running around in a Tim Burton movie. I'm happy to say that all the kids do a great job as do their "parents". Of course I doubt many people went to this film to see children and no-name adults perform (well except for Christopher Lee in a great role as Wonka's dentist father); no they came to see Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka. I personally found his performance to be a mixed bag that mostly leans to the genius side. He's definitely no Gene Wilder but then again nobody is and the fact that Johnny Depp doesn't just crumble under the pressure shows that he is a very talented man.
Johnny Depp actually plays it very smart by acting in a manner that is much different than Gene Wilder yet he's still playing the character of Willy Wonka. He's sort of a creepy game show host mixed with a bit of Michael Jackson (though I admit I only think that because of the obvious resemblance). I was actually quite impressed with this character even if he's played a bit too much like a comedian. I suppose the extra coldness to him even provides a bit more of a reward in the end.
Charlie in the Chocolate Factory is a wonderful family movie that is just as likely to appeal to adults as it does to children. I'm not sure if it will ever become a classic like the Gene Wilder version but it stands on it's own as a really great movie and to be honest that's a lot more than I was expecting.
My review from Frider Waves: http://friderwaves.com/index.php?page=charliechoc