If being stuck in Wildwood, NJ isn’t bad enough in the winter, then you can just imagine my stress level when the snowstorm hit. You know that old saying, “When the world gives you lemons, make lemonade?” I have one better… “Head to the movie theatre.”
Wonka
My daughter and I decided to brave the storm and actually go to the neighborhood theatre to see Wonka, the 2023 musical fantasy film directed by Paul King. This is the third film created from the Roald Dahl novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. My all-time favourite was the 1971 version in which Gene Wilder played the candymaker…with Tim Burton’s 2005 version starring Johnny Depp coming in second. To tell the truth, I wasn’t that interested in seeing a third version of Wonka. I wanted to see the film ISS, but a flip of a coin settled that argument.
I honestly was pretty sure that this Wonka ,which stars Timothee Chalamet as the candymaker, would be no different than the first two films. I’ve become quite morose since my isolation at Wildwood and was in no mood to watch an army of happy, cheerful Oompa Loompas singing about chocolate. I was surprised to see that we weren’t the only adventurers that had driven to a theatre during a snowstorm. The theatre we were in was almost packed with a huge cross section of ages from toddlers to older teens, to senior citizens.
In this Wonka, the storyline is completely different in the telling. We get to see how Wonka (Timothee Chalamet) began his quest for making chocolate, which includes flashbacks with Mama Wonka (Sally Hawkins) and their travels via boat to exotic areas to find the best chocolate. When the movie begins, we learn that Wonka is now an orphan with a strange suitcase, and big dreams of opening his own candy shop. Unfortunately for Willy Wonka, there is a chocolate cartel run my Messiers Slugworth (Paterson Joseph), Prodnose (Matt Lucas), and Fickelgruber (Matthew Banton) who bribe the chief of police (Keegan Michael Key) and the head of the church, Father Julius (Rowan Atkinson) with lots of candy.
Wonka’s troubles grow when he books a room with the local innkeeper Mrs. Scrubbit (Olivia Colman) and her enforcer Mr. Bleacher (Tom Davis). Unable to pay his rent, Wonka is forced to work in the innkeeper’s laundry along with a resourceful child named Noodle (Calah Lane), an accountant (Downton Abbey‘s Jim Carter), and a few other unfortunate souls who crossed Mrs. Scrubbit’s path.
Conclusion
Luckily for me, there was only one Oompa Loompa (Hugh Grant) and he was quite miserable, which added to the comedic give and take between him and Wonka. There are plenty of songs and dancing, including reprised versions of “Pure Imagination” and the Oompa Loompa song.
So, the question is this: Did this Wonka work its magic on this grumpy senior citizen? I am surprised to find myself saying yes. I actually enjoyed the film. A lot! Timothee Chalamet is closer to Gene Wilder’s Wonka, but he did have enough of Depp’s mischievous attitude to win me over. It’s a movie about candy, and as Wonka said, “Candy doesn’t have to have a point. That’s why it’s candy.”
Snowstorm or not, go see the film. We need more music and magic in our lives…and if you happen to be driving through Wildwood, come rescue granny.
