Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - 2005 Review

I couldn't wait to see this movie. Having grown up watching Willy Wonka over and over, I was excited when this came out. I was even more excited to hear it was playing at the IMAX. The anticipation was so great that I knew it would either be fantastic or a great disappointment. Luckily it exceeded my expectations.

I cannot write this review without comparing it to the original (Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory -1971), therefore, I plan to throw in some comparisons throughout. I will refer to the original movie as WW1. FYI - I have never read the book.

Plot
Willy Wonka loves candies of all sorts. He was becoming the greatest candy man of all time when suddenly spies started to infiltrate his organization. They were stealing recipes for things like chewing gum that let you blow huge bubbles and other treats the kids could not resist. Because of this, he closed his factory - never to be open again...

Charlie is a boy who also loves chocolate, although he only gets it once a year on his birthday because his family is poor. They live in such a small house that his 4 feeble grandparents are forced to stay in the same bed. However he has big dreams and a great attitude. He's a real sweet kid who simply loves his family.

One day, an announcement is made. The elusive Willy Wonka will allow 5 children to enter his factory, which no one has been seen coming in or out of for years. He has planted 5 golden tickets inside of his candy bars. The 5 lucky kids to find the tickets will be allowed to come to the factory. I wouldn't want to ruin the movie by telling you who got the golden tickets (but it is called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...) so I'll stop here for anyone who doesn't know the plot.

..Comparison.. WW1 had a similar beginning, and much of the same plot throughout. However, don't be worried about being bored! This movie has a little twist here and there. The main difference being you get to find out why Willy Wonka acts so.. weird!

The Stars
Johnny Depp was a great Willy Wonka! He didn't look or sound like Johnny Depp throughout most the movie. He really got into character and was great at being.. weird! and he is still one of my favorite actors. ..Comparison.. Gene Wilder in WW1 was very different, but still great. Both actors portrayed the character in different ways, but both made the part excellent in their own way!

Willy Wonka: Everything here is eatable. I'm eatable, but that my children is called cannibalism and it is frowned upon in most societies

Freddie Highmore was the perfect Charlie. He's a sweet young English boy and I can't imagine a better choice.  ..Comparison.. I preferred Freddie to Peter Ostrum from WW1. He seemed sweeter for some reason.

David Kelly was a great Grandpa Joe. He didn't even have to fake being old as he was in his 70s in real life. He was fun! ..Comparison.. Although both actors were great, I prefer the original, Jack Albertson. But that's probably just because sometimes whoever does it first does it best!

The Rest
What's great about this movie AND WW1 is that all the characters have huge personalities. Each one is either really spoiled, or really pigish, or really weird! They choose great fits for this movie to play the other 4 kids. Some even looked like the originals from 1971!  The Oompa Loompa (as portrayed by Deep Roy) was very cool as compared to WW1. There weren't just 5 Loompas with facepaint, there were hundreds of them. Their songs were modernized along with their dance moves and costumes.

Genre
Comedy, Fantasy, Children. This movie is all about colorful fun everywhere you turn. Each room in the factory contains a new and exciting machine or candy that is beyond anyone's imagination.

..Comparison.. This is not a musical like WW1. The only songs happen when the Oompa Loompa's do their thing. Although WW1 is a classic and singing fit there, this movie was modernized and singing randomly wouldn't have made a lot of sense.

Visuals/Audios
Special effects were awesome, and as should be expected they were much better than WW1. That might be because they didn't have the technology back in 1971 to pull all this off. Colors were fabulously bright, machines were real high tech looking, and Loompas were everywhere! Really a treat for the eyes, especially at the IMAX.  The music was a good fit. Danny Elfman's name is found on a lot of the songs and, if you didn't know, his name is also on a lot of movies and TV shows such as Spider Man, Chicago, and Big Fish. He's a great musician.

For Who
Obviously it's for Kids! They will enjoy the flashy colors and funny things that happen, but probably won't really care about the plot until they are older. It seems more geared towards adults, especially adults that grew up watching the original. It's a fun movie for any age really. There is no swearing (not that you can hear anyway) and no real violence.

What else can I say?
I don't know how you possibly wouldn't be convinced to see this after reading from above. But here's another reason.. Willy Wonka is a brilliant man. After all, he's known for saying Chewing gum is really gross. Chewing gum I hate the most. Which is absolutely true. How can anyone chew gum all day.. yuck!

You can decide which one you like better. I would have to say I like them both the same amount. WW1 because it is a classic, and this one because it is a fantastic remake of the classic! Enjoy! And go catch it at the IMAX if it ever comes back.