Directed by:
Paul KingCinematography:
Chung-hoon ChungCast:
Timothée Chalamet, Calah Lane, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant, Keegan-Michael Key, Paterson Joseph, Rowan Atkinson, Matt Lucas, Mathew Baynton, Sally Hawkins (more)VOD (4)
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Starring Timothée Chalamet in the title role, this irresistibly vivid and inventive big screen spectacle will introduce audiences to a young Willy Wonka, chock-full of ideas and determined to change the world one delectable bite at a time-proving that the best things in life begin with a dream, and if you’re lucky enough to meet Willy Wonka, anything is possible. (Warner Bros. US)
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Reviews (5)
This new take on Wonka and his budding chocolate factory is definitely not an embarrassment. Timothée Chalamet is the film's biggest asset, with everything else being nice but not particularly standout. The musical numbers are pleasant but a bit bland and conventional. The setting is charming and imaginative, in that distinct way director Paul King, known for Paddington, delivers. If you liked his style, you’ll probably be pleased with this film. Personally, I prefer Tim Burton’s darker humor, which always manages to surprise me no matter how many times I revisit his films. The biggest surprise here is Hugh Grant's role, though he unfortunately doesn't get much screen time.
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Excellent family comedy and Wonka's origin story at its best. It's imaginative, colourful and all the characters are downright great, both the evil chocolate cartel, where each of the three members has their role and fun, and the whole group around Wonka, all of whom were equally fabulous. There's a bit of humour (though not nearly as much as I would have liked) and the Umpalumpa makes an appearance (Hugh Grant is a stud!!!), though again, I wished he had a bigger role and more time on set, as he spiced up one top scene after another. But as a whole it works perfectly as a family fairy tale and this positive vibe resonated through the whole cinema, so a very happy four stars in which even Timothée Chalamet shone like a gentleman. Could it have been better? Yeah, probably. But for the moment, satisfaction prevails anyway. Oh, and Rowan Atkinson as the priest was awesome!!:D
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Very nice, almost magical. I've never cared much for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Johnny Depp's overacting is rather annoying. This one is more natural without American bullshit, and I can't remember when I've seen a nicer fairy tale crossed with a musical. The production design is charming, and Timothée Chalamet is a good casting choice (he sings nice too). The viewer eats up his whole adventure, the songs are nicely melodic and fit the plot, the idea of a chocolate Cartel is great, there is some humour here and there (Keegan-Michael Key as a policeman is absolutely wonderful and Rowan Atkinson and Hugh Grant are also good). It's got a very feel-good vibe this close to Christmas, and even the creators of Money Heist wouldn't be ashamed of the final heist. I was moved to tears. 8/10.
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I quite like Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; Mel Stuart's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is still in my drawer of unwatched films, and I haven't yet had my hands on Roald Dahl's book. So I've approached the latest film about Willy Wonka with some caution because of the somewhat unrewarding and often difficult function of prequels - whether they are based on the source material or are purely the imagination of the screenwriters. I was all the more surprised watching Wonka in the cinema: it is a endearing film with a universally likeable cast (perhaps the only thing I didn't like was the trio of "chocolate barons"), from which, apart from the Timothée Chalamet, I would single out the umpa-lumpa Hugh Grant, the piously venal Rowan Atkinson and the villainous duo Olivia Colman - Tom Davis. Wonka has appealing visuals that are not just about CGI but also about nice sets, offers great musical numbers and is heartwarming at the end thanks to its family-oriented story. I certainly wouldn't be opposed to seeing a (preferably qualitatively similar) sequel in three or four years.
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Timothée Chalamet plays a start-up entrepreneur who is hindered in selling magical chocolates with giraffe milk and the tears of Russian clowns by Hugh Grant in the role of an orange Oompa-Loompa and a chocolate cartel whose members meet in a hideout like villains from a Bond movie (it’s located under a church with chocoholic monks and can be reached only via an elevator in the confessional). Though Wonka has a generic, pseudo-Dickensian plot with by-the-numbers twists, strange jumps between scenes, a sticky-sweet sentimental ending and one-dimensional characters whose actions are not convincingly motivated, it is – in terms of its visuals and language (in both the dialogue and songs) – a captivatingly imaginative fairy-tale musical in the mould of Mary Poppins. It’s a shame that – in spite of a number of unhinged moments along the lines of The Mighty Boosh (and other British series represented here by their actors) – it is closer to the glossiness of classic Hollywood than it is to Dahl, whose children’s stories were not just extremely weird, but also very dark, which Wonka, as portrayed by the bland Chalamet, is practically not at all (unlike earlier adaptations by Mel Stuart and Tim Burton, which were based on finding a balance between light and shade). He doesn’t address the bigger internal conflict – teamwork, which he seemingly should have gradually grown into and which hasn’t been a problem for him since the beginning (he also involves all of his friends in the running of the shop). Wonka is rather a sweet treat made with ingredients of varying quality than a rich taste experience that will carry you away. (By the way, I have no problem acknowledging that, for example, the first Rambo is a Christmas movie because it takes place during the holidays, but in the case of Wonka, I can find no reason to classify it as such – is it enough for the movie to be released in December and for its characters to eat a lot of chocolate?) 75%
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Gallery (45)
Photo © Warner Bros.
![Wonka - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/168/906/168906652_yhe0lc.jpg)
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