Tim Burton Is The Candy Man!

Rating: 9/10 (1 August 2005)

Living in Germany, I had to wait a couple weeks to see the movie . I had to know if it lived up to the hype. The answer... Yes!
I was blown away at how good this film was. I am a huge fan of the original musical with Gene Wilder and I never thought a better movie could be made. I was wrong. Wonka was far more eccentric and mysterious, Charlie was a far better character, and the songs were freaking hilarious. The Oompa Loompas stole the movie.
The flashbacks were cleverly done through he eyes of Wonka. The audience really got to see how Willie Wonka saw the world. I saw no Michael Jackson comparisons. More like Captain Kangaro, as Johnny Depp said he based the character from as stated in interviews. He was funny, over the top, and cruel in all the right ways.
The two places where the movie wained was with the character Veruca Salt. She wasn't as good as the girl in the original. Hr father, however, was spot on. Veruca did get hers in the end when she messed with the wrong squirrel.
The other oddity in the film was Grandpa Joe. I like the guy all through the movie until he started dancing for no reason. This happened twice and it was very awkward. It did not take away from the movie too much.
A few cool additions was seeing the naughty children leave the factory after they had violated the Wonka's wishes and the trek of Wonka in Loompa Land. Abosolutly phenomenal.
I recommend this movie to everyone. The humor is spot on. I especially enjoyed the story of Wonka in India building a chocolate palace for a Prince, only to discover it would soon melt in the hot sun. Awesome!
Hats off to Tim Burton for making a beautiful movie with a beautiful story. He has got to be one of the best directors ever!