Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Johnny Depp | ... | Willy Wonka | |
Freddie Highmore | ... | Charlie Bucket | |
David Kelly | ... | Grandpa Joe | |
Helena Bonham Carter | ... | Mrs. Bucket | |
Noah Taylor | ... | Mr. Bucket | |
Missi Pyle | ... | Mrs. Beauregarde | |
James Fox | ... | Mr. Salt | |
Deep Roy | ... | Oompa Loompa | |
Christopher Lee | ... | Dr. Wonka | |
Adam Godley | ... | Mr. Teavee | |
Franziska Troegner | ... | Mrs. Gloop | |
AnnaSophia Robb | ... | Violet Beauregarde (as Annasophia Robb) | |
Julia Winter | ... | Veruca Salt | |
Jordan Fry | ... | Mike Teavee | |
Philip Wiegratz | ... | Augustus Gloop |
When Willy Wonka decides to let five children into his chocolate factory, he decides to release five golden tickets in five separate chocolate bars, causing complete mayhem. The tickets start to be found, with the fifth going to a very special boy, called Charlie Bucket. With his Grandpa, Charlie joins the rest of the children to experience the most amazing factory ever. But not everything goes to plan within the factory. Written by FilmFanUK
If Tim Burton's out there I just want to thank him for bringing the spirit of the book's original illustrations to the screen. He even matched the facial expressions to the drawings, especially in the case of Charlie's family. Charlie himself looks like one of the drawings, and the Bucket house is so much like the illustrations it caused me to realize that Burton is as visual as any movie director can be. (Recent editions feature the work of a different illustrator. I'm talking about the illustrations from the 1960s. The difference between the older illustrations and the newer ones is the older ones feature a lot of cross-hatching. I imagine the older illustrations are still available, especially in a hardcover, but you'll need to search the net.) I don't know how he did it, but he got the facial expressions of Charlie's family and of Mike Teavea's father down perfectly. He also absorbed Dahl's sense of humor. The opening fifteen minutes or so, in which the winners of the golden tickets are announced one by one, really get Roald Dahl's sense of the ridiculous. I think Burton's addition of Wonka's childhood story fits well, although I'll agree that the way this is resolved is not completely in Dahl's spirit. Even in the resolution, however, Burton maintains sly humor. It is well-acted by everybody. I'd like to say that Julia Winter, who plays Veruca Salt, has turned in a truly well-observed comedic performance. Depp converts the novel's jaunty, precise Wonka into a quirky one, but it works well, because, as in the novel, Wonka's endearing traits contrast with the fact that he's a tyrant. Roald Dahl gets a rap for his cynicism, and this movie softens his message a bit. Dahl is a bit like Orwell. Both of them point out that man, given power, will exploit his fellow human beings. CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY the movie is not quite as dark as the book. But it comes very, very close.