Unbelievable

Rating: 1/10 (1 March 2008)

This movie was unbelievable. Tim Burton took a great story and absolutely destroyed it. This was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. I have to be honest and the fact that I love "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" and were constantly comparing the two contributed highly to my opinion. I am sure i would have disliked the film either way, but I hated it when I compared the two.
Willy Wonka, instead of being a nice but eccentric individual, is portrayed as a sadistic, mentally retarded man. The OOmpa LOOmpas, instead of being cute and benevolent, are portrayed as futuristic and violent troublemakers. The biggest disappointment however is Charlie Bucket himself. In the 1971 film, Charlie was portrayed as a gentle child, very poor, living with his mother and two sets of bed-ridden grandparents. Most importantly, his character was believable. In the 2005 film Charlie is apparently supposed to be the perfect child. The performance is so over-the-top and sappy that it's not even remotely believable.
To top everything off, for some reason Burton decided that adding a back story about Willy Wonka's relationship with his father was a necessary addition. Unfortunately, this just made no sense, was completely irrelevant to the story except to add a Hollywood ending where everybody reconciles and live happily ever after.
The bottom line is that after watching the 1971 film, I have a feeling that I just watched something magical. From the story, to the characters, to the design, everything about the 1971 film makes me feel good. On the other hand, after viewing the 2005 film by Tim Burton, I literally felt physically ill. Frankly, if it weren't for the fact that I wanted to compare both films, I never would have watched the entire thing. I could tell it would be a horrible film after the first few minutes.
Don't buy this film unless you need a shiny new frisbee or coaster.