Wonka (2023)
Director: Paul King
Screenwriters: Simon Farnaby, Paul King
Starring: Timothee Chalamet, Calah Lane, Keegan-Michael Key, Paterson Joseph, Olivia Colman, Matt Lucas, Matthew Baynton, Tom Davis, Hugh Grant

Willy Wonka is an enigma. In Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971), the original adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1964 novel “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” we don’t learn much about him, other than his desire to find an heir to his candy empire, as well as the cruel delight he takes in teaching naughty children a lesson. Wonka is charming and a little unhinged, paranoid from all of the years he has spent locked away in his factory, making sure no one gets their hands on the secret to his out-of-this-world sweets. With a devilish smile and a playful yet devious twinkle in his eye, actor Gene Wilder infuses Wonka with dimension, but we never dig too deep. He’s a nut that we never quite crack, and he works as a character because of that. There’s a reason why the original novel is called “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” after all – at the end of the day, it’s Charlie’s journey. Wilder’s performance hints at the layers inside of Wonka that we don’t need to unpeel, but nevertheless know are there. Wonka, the spiritual prequel to the 1971 musical classic, helmed by Paddington director Paul King, does unpeel those layers, but what’s found underneath is a deeply disappointing origin story that lacks the magic and edge that the original (and even Tim Burton’s 2005 remake) has in spades. Touted as a fun-for-the-whole family Christmas classic in the making, Wonka simply doesn’t have enough sparkle to ever hope to achieve that distinction.

Despite its tagline, which insists we will find out how “Willy became Wonka,” Timothée Chalamet’s version of the famous candy maker and magician doesn’t actually become anything. He just kind of already is.

The film begins with Willy, bright-eyed and bursting with optimism, atop a ship mast, where he begins his “I Want” song, “Hatful of Dreams”. Willy arrives in an unnamed city, fresh off the boat, ready to share his chocolate with the world, as his mother (Sally Hawkins) always hoped he would. Willy is earnest and determined, living on nothing but a dream. But the Galeries Gourmet is not what Willy initially imagined it would be. Instead of spreading his creations, he faces opposition and sabotage from three greedy chocolate makers, including Arthur Slugworth (Paterson Joseph), who will soon become his arch-nemesis. Willy then gets tricked into indentured servitude because he cannot read and fails to read the small print on his contract with Mrs. Scrubitt, played by Olivia Colman doing her best over the top Madame Thénardier impression. Aided by Noodle (Calah Lane), a fellow indentured servant and orphan who becomes Willy’s assistant, as well as the rest of the workers, Wonka bids to outsmart the trio and earn the freedom of himself and his friends.

Timothée Chalamet might be the only saving grace in the film, contrary to early assumptions that he may have been miscast. At times he’s charming, funny and endearing, but his performance is constantly in flux and dependent on the material and direction he’s given. When his jokes don’t land, his performance falls flat, even though he is clearly committed to the bit. Thankfully, he doesn’t try to do an impression of Gene Wilder, but he also doesn’t make the character enough of his own to really stand out. This isn’t his fault; he isn’t given much to work with.

All of the obstacles Willy encounters are external. Whether it’s Mrs. Scrubitt’s dishonest business practices, the antics of the greedy chocolatiers, or Hugh Grant’s Oompa-Loompa hijinks, the plot is always happening to Willy. He is almost entirely a reactionary character, and this is a problem in a movie that is supposed to be an origin story, the story of how he became who he is. It would have been nice if he actively participated in the narrative…

Willy’s desire to share his inventions with the world just as his mother hoped is sweet and admirable, but it simply isn’t enough to drive what we see. The writers, King and Paddington 2 co-writer Simon Farnaby (who also appears in Wonka as Basil), were backed into a corner considering Willy Wonka is a recluse by the time we meet him in the original movie. Telling that story would certainly be more interesting, but not very uplifting, so the filmmakers sidestep it entirely. As a result, there doesn’t seem to be any connection between Chalamet’s Wonka and Wilder’s.

Demystifying a character that works the best when we don’t know everything about him is a non-starter (as proven in Star Wars spin-off Solo), but the filmmakers didn’t give much thought to the supporting characters either. Lane and Chalamet work well together, and their friendship is a bright spot in the movie, but most of the supporting characters are so thinly drawn they barely register as real people. As for Hugh Grant’s Lofty, an Oompa Loompa who has been stealing Willy’s candy because he was excommunicated from Oompa Land until he can get back all of the chocolate that Willy stole, he’s surprisingly in very little of the film. The motion capture is jarring and unconvincing, but at least Grant’s contempt for the role, which he has expressed in several recent interviews, doesn’t show on screen.

Wonka, like the original film adaptation, is a musical, but not a very good one. The songs, written by Neil Hannon, King, Farnaby, and Joby Talbot, are unremarkable and lack passion, which is a shame considering Hannon’s exceptional work with The Divine Comedy. The songs in Wonka, especially Willy’s “Hatful of Dreams,” pale in comparison to those written by Howard Ashman, the songwriting genius behind the iconic tunes of The Little Mermaid (1989) and Beauty and the Beast (1991). By comparison, “Hatful of Dreams” lacks interiority or reflection. Perhaps the biggest faux pas in this regard is how Willy’s desire to sell chocolates in the hopes of reconnecting with the spirit of his late mother is barely mentioned. Songs in musicals should, in theory, take place when characters are so full of emotion that words no longer feel enough. And then, they must dance when singing doesn’t feel enough. But nothing drives the songs in this movie and they don’t feel needed. They are boring and directionless. Chalamet’s voice is fine, if a little weak and thin in places, but it’s worth noting that his best performance is when he sings “Pure Imagination”, a song not originally written for this film.

Wonka also strips away any of the melancholy or dark comedy found both in the 1971 movie and Roald Dahl’s overall work. The 1971 film feels a lot like “Alice in Wonderland” in that it is a dreamlike and slightly menacing descent into a magical world, but Wonka smooths all those edges out. As a result, the movie is sickly sweet and above all, nice. Which is ironic, because while the filmmakers were busy adding uplifting lyrics to “Pure Imagination” and simplifying the orchestrations, themes, and social commentaries of the 1971 film, they also made time to make several offensive and outdated fat jokes, aimed at Keegan Michael Key’s Chief of Police, who is dressed in a ridiculous fat suit and gets fatter and fatter the more he indulges in the sweets the greedy chocolate makers use to bribe him with. Using fatness as a shorthand for gluttony and greed, and having an actor who is not fat perform fatness, is hurtful and mean-spirited. It’s hard to believe such an antiquated trope is included in a film made in 2023 – especially one made about the wonderful taste of sweet treats – and it sours the viewing experience. For all of the niceness this movie tries desperately to exude, it makes sure to keep one of the only things from the original film that actually needed updating.

If Wonka is trying to say something, it’s hard to know what that something is. The film plays with themes of oppression, poverty, and greed, but doesn’t do much with them. It would be a losing battle to assume that Western filmmaking would trust its young audience enough to sprinkle in some adult themes, but it is equally weird to mention them in passing and not engage with them. Believing in your dreams and sharing those dreams with others should feel like magic, but the film doesn’t allow us to know these characters enough to genuinely care about them or their dreams.

The sets also leave something to be desired. When Wonka first unveils his factory in the original film, it’s a technicolor dream, calling to mind the reveal of the land of Oz in 1939’s The Wizard of Oz. It is bright and colorful and a little surreal. Wonka feels like a step down in comparison, and the filmmakers’ decision to set a good chunk of the film in the Galeries Gourtmet makes the world of Wonka feel like it’s just floating in space surrounded by nothing. It is small and claustrophobic.

Prequels bait us with the promise that we will get to see some of our most beloved characters become the people we love and remember from our childhoods. In Wonka, Willy may be younger and brighter and less mad than he will soon become, but if you are counting on the film to show you how that happens, you will be very disappointed. Instead, Wonka is a barely passable movie musical that is so sugary it ends up choking on its own sweetness.

Score: 12/24

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Gene Wilder played Willy Wonka in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

The film is to be directed by Paul King, who is best known for directing the recent live-action Paddington movies, both of which proved to be hits critically and commercially. Wonka will see King re-team with his Paddington producer David Heyman, who has produced a range of films including the Harry Potter franchise.

Not much is known about the story aside from that the film will focus on a younger Willy Wonka before he becomes owner of the famous chocolate factory. The film will therefore not be directly based on a specific Roald Dahl novel, as opposed to Willy Wonka’s previous screen appearances.

The script was co-written by King and Simon Farnaby, based on a draft by Simon Rich (An American Pickle). 

It is currently unknown who will play the role of the titular character. Previous incarnations have seen Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp portray the extravagant chocolatier. A source for Collider has said that Warner Bros. are currently eyeing either Tom Holland or Timothée Chalamet, with the hopes of creating a franchise. However, this is not confirmed.

Holland is best known for his role as Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with the third instalment due to release in December 2021. Outside of that, fans can expect to see plenty more of the actor this year as he has three additional films schedule to release. First is the much delayed Chaos Walking from director Doug Liman (Swingers; The Bourne Identity). The sci-fi film will see Holland star opposite Daisy Ridley (Star Wars) and was originally intended to release in March of 2019. The film will finally hit cinemas in early March 2021. Shortly after comes the crime drama Cherry, directed by Joe and Anthony Russo (Avengers: Endgame), an Apple TV exclusive due to release in late March. Finally, Holland will play Nathan Drake in the video game based movie, Uncharted.

As Holland dominates the world of blockbusters, Chalamet has been appearing in more awards friendly films. Chalamet received an Oscar nomination for his role as Elio in Call Me By Your Name. He has also appeared in many critically successful indie films, like Greta Gerwig‘s Lady Bird and 2019 novel adaptation Little Women. As for upcoming projects, Chalamet will appear in Wes Anderson‘s The French Dispatch, Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up and will play music legend Bob Dylan in James Mangold‘s Going Electric. In addition to these awards centric films, the upcoming Dune remake will see the actor stepping foot into blockbuster territory, seeming to indicate that Wonka is not outside the realm of possibility.

While neither actor has expressed public interest in Wonka, both would seem like a good fit for the role if Warner Bros. do wish to spawn sequels due to their star power.

The film is currently scheduled to film in September, though this could change depending on permits, laws and licenses imposed by the pandemic.

In this list, we’re counting down every film from this truly unique director’s filmography and ranking them from worst to best, so put on your best striped apparel, muss up your hair and accompany me in a long and elaborate tracking shot into the Burton-verse…

19. Planet of the Apes (2001)

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter, Tim Roth, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti

Plot: An astronaut crashes on a planet where apes have out-evolved and enslaved humanity. He befriends a chimp who has become a lonely outsider by protesting the inhumane treatment of the subjugated humans. The two begin to organise a rebellion…

The poster-child for when Burton gets it wrong, Planet of the Apes is pretty good to look at (which Burton movie isn’t?) but it’s completely soulless and almost impossible to engage with in any meaningful way – the main thing that has allowed the original Planet of the Apes to age so well is its wealth of ideas and the filmmakers’ abilities to give them room to breathe. Despite being more action-packed and significantly pacier, Burton’s take feels rushed and confused, and very little stays with you beyond Rick Baker’s flawless makeup effects and the best efforts of Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Roth. The bottom line is that it’s boring; the only Burton feature you could really level that criticism at.

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18. Alice in Wonderland (2010)

Starring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Mia Wasikowska, Anne Hathaway, Stephen Fry

Plot: Alice Kingsleigh, whose determination to retain her independence has made her a lonely outsider in Victorian high society, returns to Wonderland having forgotten her childhood adventure. There she finds the fantastical realm is a shadow of its former foolish glory.

Who else thought that this would be perfect material for Burton?

The portions that faithfully recreate Lewis Carroll’s endearing nonsense are good, but sadly most of this is confined to brief flashbacks and instead we’re left with a new story that for some reason is trying to turn Alice into a fantasy epic. Alice isn’t The Lord of the Rings. It’s not even Narnia. Nor should it be.

Burton gets bogged down in clunky exposition and portentous talk of prophecy and destiny, and the world, while admittedly colourful, feels too fake even for a dreamland. This film makes it really easy to miss the days when Burton played in big, ambitious movie sets rather than in front of a greenscreen.

Mia Wasikowska is admittedly a great Alice, equal parts bewildered and strong-willed, and Stephen Fry makes a perfect smug Cheshire Cat, but everyone else in the cast is just treading water.

17. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

Starring: Johnny Depp, Freddie Highmore, David Kelly, Helena Bonham Carter, Noah Taylor

Plot: Dirt poor but positive young Charlie Bucket finds a golden ticket that grants him a tour of the reclusive, lonely outsider Willy Wonka’s weird and wonderful chocolate factory.

Maybe Burton should leave the adaptations well alone.

The famously distinctive director never seems as comfortable bringing someone else’s established world to life, even if he’s coming at it as a fan. No-one’s denying that this is a more faithful adaptation of Roald Dahl’s book than the Gene Wilder movie, or that Burton’s visual flare and strange Anglo-American neverwhere movie world makes an impression, but the movie references peppered throughout are a really weird grab-bag, the borderline colonialist tone of some of the fantasy sequences leave a bad taste and Depp’s take on Wonka with daddy issues is just plain irritating to spend any length of time with.

Can you believe they actually trained squirrels to shell nuts on camera?

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16. Dark Shadows (2012)

Starring: Johnny Depp, Eva Green, Michelle Pfeiffer, Chloe Grace Moretz, Helena Bonham Carter

Plot: Centuries-old vampire Barnabas Collins awakens in the 1970s to restore his descendants’ former glory and seek revenge on the witch who cursed him, but can this family of lonely outsiders find their place in the world again?

Johnny Depp doing a funny voice in a wig and makeup? Check. Gothic sensibility? Check. Comedy of awkwardness? Check. This represents mid-to-low level Burton, the kind of thing he could make in his sleep: perfectly watchable and by no means inept but offering very little that’ll stay with you. Okay, it’s got a sex-fight-scene between Depp’s vampire and Eva Green’s witch, and there’s also some pretty good effects work as the aforementioned witch is losing her powers and seems to fracture like pottery. But… elsewhere it’s just oral sex jokes that are borderline inappropriate for the film’s certification and Depp pulling faces.

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, made in 1971 and directed by Mel Stuart, feels like an afternoon film to watch with the family. It also indicated, from the title, that this is Willy Wonka’s story but in fact it is Charlie Bucket’s. In Tim Burton’s imagining of the story, the title is the original, but the movie feels the opposite as it’s more about Wonka than it is about Charlie. The story, which is the same in both films, is about an eccentric chocolate maker who had closed his factory for years after a spy tried to get in and steal his world famous chocolate recipes, but who one day announced that he’d be opening his doors to just 5 people lucky enough to find the 5 golden tickets hidden inside the packaging of his world famous chocolate bars. The winners are from Europe and America, four of whom are awful and one who is good. They are taken on a tour of the factory and one by one fall foul, with some of them reaching fates as severe as disfigurement as a result of not listening to Wonka’s simple but strict rules. The only one to (mostly) obey these rules is Charlie Bucket who is rewarded with Wonka’s factory by the man himself, who was actually holding the competition in order to find an heir to his life’s work. He invites Charlie and his family to live in the factory and everyone lives happily ever after.

The 1971 classic, as it is indeed a classic, follows this story roughly to a tee. The film is also a musical but actually only has a few songs, most of which are sung by the mysterious Oompa Loompas, the workers in the factory. It is in Gene Wilder’s performance as Willy Wonka that the film truly excels. In my opinion, his performance is simply perfect. As a comedic actor, he portrays the humerous moments with a sinister edge; exactly what the role calls for. The cast of children and parents are good, but don’t leave a lasting effect, meaning that once they meet their demise, they are easy to forget. You tend to remember how they disappeared, each in a more disastrous way, which brings focus to the story and the plight of its wonderful protagonists. The sinister factor in these disappearances are made worse when you realise that you never see the children at the end – I guess we were all too distracted by the Great Glass Elevator to care! A particular favourite scene of mine that questions the sanity of the factory owner is the trip on the Wonkatania boat through the tunnel. The strange images and singing from Wilder makes you think twice about the film being for children. In fact, having a film about children being mutilated or put in near-death situations could be seen as questionable, but with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, this uneasy feeling is subdued by music and different ways you can ingest candy. Unfortunately, the film does show its age and arguably feels somewhat dated. The typical 70’s family film feel is there but, as an adaptation, it lacks depth past Wonka’s exciting character.

Tim Burton’s version of Road Dahl’s beloved classic, made in 2005, was rather more in-keeping with the overarching and intertwining stories. For example, Veruca Salt, the little brat from London, does in fact end up in the nut room, unlike in the 70’s films where she is deemed a ‘bad egg’ in the chocolate egg room. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is also a brighter and more colourful film, though it still manages to show the darker side of the story. The Oompa Loompas sing their songs, but the characters point out that the songs sound rehearsed, as if they predicted these events would happen. It feels as if Willy Wonka planned the demise of the children, setting them up. He knows Augustus is greedy so he would be first to go. He knows that Violet could not resist new gum, that Veruca is spoiled and would demand something impossible, and he knows that Mike is just a mean child who would try anything related to technology. This last point is thin but also valid: the dark side and purpose to the Willy Wonka character is better played out in the Tim Burton film, but there are still several aspects of the film that don’t quite fit together. I’m referencing the added storyline about Wonka’s past, his difficult relationship with his strict father, a dentist, who despises candy and chocolate as it rots teeth. His father never agreed with what his son wanted to become, a chocolate maker.

The question of where the factory is in the world both infuriates and puzzles me – all of the inhabitants are obviously British, they even dress like they’re British. It might just be me who thinks this, but the British have a somewhat ‘down to Earth way of dressing’ that is slightly more reserved than those in other nations: jumpers, tattered coats and plain colours. So, they’re all British, but they have American words coming out of their mouths, like ‘candy’ and ‘dollars’. It’s not ‘candy’ it’s ‘chocolate’! I don’t understand why Tim Burton did this. Is this film set in an alternative future where America invaded the UK? Or is the factory and the town actually in the USA? It’s not quite clear.

Apart from the shiny and new look to Tim Burton’s film, the film does have an excellent cast. All the children play their parts to a high standard, as do the well-matched parents. Of course, Charlie Bucket is sickly sweet and Grandpa Joe is an enthusiastic old man, but there is one role I didn’t take to and he really was a deal breaker… Johnny Depp’s Willy Wonka. He was a crazy character and no doubt played on the dark side of the story very well, but he came across as simply too weird and I could not empathise with him at all. Having detached himself from his father, Wonka seems to be a child in an adult body, and with added social issues. He plays games, says random things and does not want to be touched by any of the children or their parents.

I’ve read somewhere on a list of childhood films that the author believed Gene Wilder’s Wonka looked and acted like a serial killer and you wouldn’t leave your children alone with him. In my opinion, Johnny Depp’s Wonka had the serial killer tendencies and should in no way have be allowed to see the light of day. Wilder’s Wonka was how I imagined a Roald Dahl character to be. Wonka has a heart and is eccentric but he has a sinister side, like all Dahl creations.

Verdict: If the story hinges on pure loyalty to the original books, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would win this battle. Added Wonka father issues aside, the characters, story, mishaps, and even the songs fall in line with Roald Dahl’s story – it feels like the pages of the book have come to life. But, if this was about the film and just Wonka himself, Gene Wilder and his orange-faced Oompa-Loompas would win. Nostalgia is a powerful thing and can persuade people’s choices. The winner of this round is Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Written by Katherine Hogan

10. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

Although hugely popular, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has only made number 10 on this list. It is a bright Burtonesque retelling of a children’s classic, and although it may not quite live up to the original, Burton has certainly left his mark on this one. His imagination truly came to life inside the chocolate factory, as it is a stunning setting for this story. To top it all off Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Willy Wonka is mesmerizing, therefore it simply had to make it onto this list.

9. Mars Attacks (1996)

Mars Attacks was a little step away from the norm for Tim Burton. Although it was truly weird in nature, it was much more colourful than what we usually see from the director. The star studded, sci-fi cult film was something other than the dark Gothic tales that Burton usually brings to the table, but it worked none the less, and as always you can clearly see that it is a Tim Burton creation.

8. Corpse Bride (2005)

Corpse Bride was Burton going back to what Burton does best. Where this may not quite be Nightmare Before Christmas, it does show off Burton’s artistic talent and the wonders he can do with stop motion animation. Corpse Bride is Burton going back to his routes, creating beautiful, artistic characters from scratch, and putting them into a fun, heartfelt story that the viewer can completely engage with. This film completely demonstrates Burton as an artist in the more typical sense, reaffirming that his talents go further than his typical role as director.

7. Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Sleepy Hollow is a Tim Burton film that I feel often slips under the radar, and yet it is one of my personal favourites of his. While still being clearly stamped with Burton’s style (as all of his films are), Sleepy Hollow has more of a traditional Gothic element to it. It is bringing to life one of the most famous horror stories of all time, and while it is quite scary at times, it also has a sense of humour, and Johnny Depp’s Ichabod Crane is an awkward and sensitive yet brave character that you can’t help but love.

6. Batman (1989)

This was the first film of the Batman reboot, and Burton basically reinvented the caped crusader. Instead of the cheesy and over the top camp Batman that we knew from the 1970’s, this was a whole new and much darker look for Gotham City. While this was still quite colourful compared to the second installment in the series, also directed by Burton, it was a far cry from the grey and yellow spandex that we had grown to recognise.

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5. Beetlejuice (1988)

Weird, wonderful, creepy and beautiful, Beetlejuice has become iconic when it comes to Tim Burton films, and to cult classics for that matter. If there was a film to sum up the style of Tim Burton it would be Beetlejuice. It is one of the few films on our list that does not star Johnny Depp, but with a performance like that from Michael Keaton who cares? Beetlejuice used to terrify me as a child and yet I loved it all the same.

4. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

If anyone was going to bring this Gothic stage musical to life and do it any sort of justice it had to be Tim Burton. Sweeney Todd is probably one of Burton’s most popular films and it is by far one of his best. Along with staples to his films, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, he gathered together an all-star cast to make this film a triumph. Yes, Depp’s London accent maybe questionable and yes most of the cast are not the great at singing, but in the end the film is so good that these are just minor facts that are easily overlooked.

Every Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Song Ranked

3. Ed Wood (1994)

Ed Wood is probably Burton’s most underrated film, but in my opinion it is some of his best work. It is a film about film-making, based on the life of director Ed Wood and how he was dubbed ‘the worst director of all time’ for making Plan 9 From Outer Space. The entire film is shot in black and white, a bold style choice considering the time it was released. Johnny Depp plays the eccentric, cross dressing, character to full Johnny Depp potential, making this an outstanding film.

2. Batman Returns (1992)

Batman Returns is quite possibly the best of the Batman series from the early 90’s. Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman is sexy and exactly how Catwoman should be, and Burton’s vision for the portrayal of The Penguin is close to perfect. The film is dark and Gothic and is clearly a Burton film in the way it looks, but it doesn’t lose the fact that it is a comic book film, and the meshing of the two styles gives us number 2 on our list.

1. Edward Scissorhands (1990)

I have to admit that I may have been a little biased when picking Burton’s 1990 film Edward Scissorhands as the number one on this list as it is one of my favourite films of all time. However, I do believe that it is Tim Burton’s greatest creation. It is heartwarming and heartbreaking, weird and wonderful, with a complete fairytale feel to it. Edward is a character that you can fall in love with. Not only are the characters interesting, and the story compelling, the entire film looks beautiful, and it is in completely the style of Burton, making it the number one Tim Burton film.

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