It’s A Dark Chocolate Factory

Well this past Sunday I managed to get myself out of the house to do a little shopping, but before that I went to see a little movie called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Rotten Tomatoes has their requisite meta-review up on their site.

Being as how this movie is directed by Tim Burton, and if you have seen any of the trailers, one expects this to me an enjoyable, if disturbing, ride. I have to say it was all that I expected. As always with Burton’s films, many of the visuals and set design were attention grabbing themselves. Several times I found myself looking beyond the characters to the scenery. That’s not to say the characters don’t draw your attention. Charlie and his Grandfather are two of the only people that really pass out of attention for long periods. I found myself being mesmerized by the colors and faces of the mismatched little troop of parents and children and their absurd leader. There are definite times when I wished to slap one of the characters and say, “Quit looking like that. Your freakin’ me out.” I also like the bit of dry, British, word based humor as well.

Johnny Depp does an excellent job playing one of our favorite confectionary geniuses. Gene Wilder will always hold a place for his original portrayal of the “Through the Looking Glass” Willy Wonka in the original movie. Depp, on the other hand, seems to remember a visit to Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch, if MJ were mildly retarded. Very different takes on the same character, but both interesting and disturbing in different ways.

In summary, If you like Tim Burton stuff then you should like this. If you like the original movie you should like it as well. I say go see it even, if you have to go during peak ticket price hours. Try to bring your friends as well, but watch out for the noisy children.