Ever been on a tour that went too fast?

Rating: 7/10 (18 July 2005)

That's what Charlie and the Chocolate Factory felt like to me. In the end I was left wondering where all the time went. I mean, the movie itself was long enough, so why did everything seem so rushed? In a flash the children had the tickets and were standing at the gates, and my girlfriend pointed out that everyone already knew this part of the story and maybe they wanted to focus on the factory. But even then, the factory never really got too much focus. The 71 movie had deeper character development of the children (I mean, with the exception of Mike Teevee, these kids weren't nearly as bad as the other ones) and the search for the golden tickets (the computer that refuses to reveal where the golden ticket is), as well as an insane amount of not always good musical numbers, and yet this movie was longer and had none of that. And what with the way Burton does visuals and the quick arrival to the factory, I thought for sure there would be tons more of the cool candy quirks from the book. And I'm not sure if there was a problem in the editing or what, but scenes that could have been more in depth by just having the scene run a few seconds longer were done so quickly that it was hard for me to sympathize or associate with the characters.
I've read the book and I've seen the 71 movie, and I understand that Dahl didn't care for Wilder's portrayal of Wonka, and that he disliked Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and that's OK. A lot of authors are disappointed by films adapted from their books, it happens, despite the fact that the film might be enjoyable but not true to the storyline. And while Burton's film is slightly truer than the 71, it still veers off on its own subplots that are not included in the book. I wouldn't have minded so much if it wasn't for the fact that every fifteen minutes the continuity of the film was interrupted by incredibly cheesy flashbacks. Couldn't they have come up with some other way to incorporate a back story for the chocolate genius? What was more unsettling than the flashbacks were the unnecessary narrations that did not contribute to the story.
The visuals were great, of course, and this is an era where the chocolate factory's elements, including the Great Glass Elevator, could be brought to life the way they deserved to be done. However, the gizmos and gadgets in this film were not, in my opinion, as creative and wild as the 71 movie, and seemed more coldly efficient.
I did love the parts of this film that did represent the book, the stories Grandpa Jo tells, the acquiring of the Oompa Loompas, and even the boat looks right finally. Also I love that we do get to see the end result of the children. Depp's Wonka was OK, he's done better in roles. He was hilarious, but he seemed a lot less excited than the Wonka in the book. Too childish. Wilder's Wonka was great, but he wasn't like the book Wonka either. No one's got that right yet.
This movie wasn't bad, it was pretty good, but I think the point is that it could have been a little better if the script had slowed down a little and developed each scene, instead of having to rely on several flashbacks. Not bad, but not great. So is life.