A well-scripted and eye-catching movie

Rating: 8/10 (13 August 2005)

By creating a beautifully crafted town and mysterious chocolate factory with the loving Bucket family struggling to make a living, the audience was treated to a wonderful journey  both artistically and sentimentally.
The contrast between the shabby, tilted and weather beaten house and the kind-hearted Bucket family (3 generations) living inside was huge. Charlie's quest for one of the five golden tickets to the chocolate factory was never smooth and easy. His heart (so did the audience's) sank lower each time the news announced another ticket found elsewhere and he himself unwrapped another ticketless bar. The atmosphere was intense when Charlie's grandparent sent him to buy one more bar with his own last coin. When the screen darkened as the grandfather closed his eyes, the audience suspected that the grandfather was just gone for good. Not so, fortunately.
The second part of the movie took us to watch how the children, succumbed to temptations, were eliminated one after another (reality show?). In the nut sorting room, when the squirrels sensed the threat of the approaching girl, stopped and ready for attack was creepy.
Charlie's grandparents and parents, with their big screen shots, have displayed their love of Charlie well. But it was Freddie Highmore who was natural in portraying the young and determined Charlie who would not give up his family for anything else. Johnny Depp, with his sinister look every now and then at the unlovable traits of "sophisticated" children, built up an unpredictable and secretive atmosphere around him.
The movie succeeded in that the people were always placed at the centre and were not dwarfed by the special effects and the colorful props. Does it appeal to the child side in every person? Absolutely. Does the film appeal to the adult side in every one? To some extent. Yes. A delightful treat the movie is.