Movie Haiku - Charlie And The Chocolate Factory

www.chocolatefactorymovie.com


Dir: Tim Burton


Cast: Johnny Depp, Freddie Highmore, David Kelly, Helena Bonham Carter


Finds golden ticket

Willy Wonka shows them round

don't touch squirrel's nuts


So Tim Burton decides to "re-imagine" another classic story after disappointing fans with his interpretation of Planet Of The Apes (although I have to admit, I was in the minority that really liked it). Thankfully with his muse, Johnny Depp, on board as Willy Wonka he can't go wrong this time... can he? Charlie And The Chocolate Factory sticks to the original Roald Dahl book pretty well, aside for a tacked-on ending. We meet Charlie (Highmore) squashed in a tiny house with his parents and grandparents, dreaming of finding a golden ticket in a Wonka bar. Willy Wonka (Depp) has secreted five lucky tickets in his chocolate wrappers which will grant the winners a guided tour of his chocolate factory - with one of them receiving a very special extra prize! Of course Charlie finds the last golden ticket and with Grandpa Joe (Kelly) as his guardian, assembles with the other kids - ungrateful scumbags the lot of them - to meet Willy Wonka. As the story unfolds and we tour the factory the other kids' greed takes over and one by one they're dispatched by foul and comedic means, with the help of Wonka's army of little helpers, the Oompa Loompas (all played by one actor, Deep Roy). Well, it's all good lightweight fun and is delivered with Burton's usual style and sense of humour. Depp is great as Wonka, playing the role like a big kid, and whilst his creepier moments suggest - some would say - Michael Jackson, in his camper moments he comes across more like a 70's era Freddie Mercury (check out that hair!) Highmore's wide-eyed innocence serves Charlie well, and there's great support from the likes of Kelly, Bonham Carter, Noah Taylor (surely a dead cert if they ever make a Nick Cave biopic) and Liz Smith as his loving family. After the emotional resonance of Big Fish, Burton portrays the relationships within the family unit with much love and respect, and these scenes are a joy to watch without ever being too saccharine. Once inside the factory the emphasis switches to the other children who each have their own scenes. Some of these (Violet and the blueberry gum, Veruca Salt and the squirrels) are well executed, whilst others are less engaging (Mike Teevee's character is particularly poor). As always with a Tim Burton film, the production design is outstanding and distinctive, peppered with bright colours, costumes and original ideas. Regular contributor Danny Elfman again provides the music, and also performs vocal duties on the Oompa Loompa songs... I'm not sure if they really work within the film, but they do get more inventive and entertaining as the film goes on. The movie's finale, with Charlie taking Wonka to make peace with his father (Christopher Lee) is a rather predictable conclusion to hammer home the story's message about the importance of family. Overall Charlie And The Chocolate Factory is a candy bar of a movie, all sweet and satisfying but without a long-lasting amount of substance.

soulmining rating: ***