Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film)
| Year Released: | 2005 |
| MPAA Rating (USA): | PG |
| Director: | Tim Burton |
| Starring: | Johnny Depp Freddie Highmore David Kelly Helena Bonham Carter Noah Taylor Deep Roy |
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is Tim Burton's unique take on a concept that's been brought to the silver screen before, an adaptation of the book of the same title by author Roald Dahl. The original was titled Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and was regarded by many to be done in a way that wasn't totally in keeping with Roald Dahl's vision. This was mostly attributed to Gene Wilder's embodiment of Willy Wonka as more of a good hearted if quirky moralist as opposed to the more ambiguous character from Dahl's book. Johnny Depp attempts a more true-to-the-book portrayal of Willy Wonka for this 2005 adaptation.
The basic plot has been altered somewhat from the original movie in that Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) has a father as well as a mother and four invalid grandparents. However, the rest of the story unfolds mostly the same with Charlie miraculously finding the last Golden Ticket after the last supposed winner is exposed as a fraud. He joins the others to take a tour of Wonka's wacky and forbidden factory, a place full of as many twists, turns and surprises as in the original movie. Another noticeable change is the fact that the Oompa Loompas are all played by actor Deep Roy and digitally multiplied.
The comparisons between this movie and the book as well as comparisons between this movie and the original movie are inevitable. Be that as it may, this is an engaging effort that finally brings Charlie, Willy Wonka and the legendary chocolate factory into the 21st century.
