I haven't seen a whole lot of discussion around Wonka since it released. In fact, the most I have seen on it has been from posters here on Hive, throwing out their reviews and comparisons to the prior entries of that story. For me, I grew up with the original, the nightmarish and genuinely traumatising release of the 1971. By the time the 2005 release came out, I was already ten years old, still somewhat of the target demographic, but that film just didn't do anything for me. I guess I was more interested in the animation side of things, the Cartoon Network releases and, of course, the entire world of video games. I do remember owning the 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on the strangest of formats: the UMD. A format for Sony's PlayStation Portable. Now, at the age of 28, a new entry is thrown out. And, well, Hollywood hasn't exactly got the best history of creating reboots and remakes of franchises. I think the general fatigue in all of this is felt in all types of audiences after what felt like a decade of every much-loved franchise getting battered to death with the Hammer of Soullessness. When news broke out of Wonka, I felt nothing. I didn't really trust it, nor did I feel that Timothée Chalamet was suitable for such a story, with his background pertaining to a more arthouse side of things, and a clear talent in that area.
After news broke out of the film's upcoming release, I sort of never really heard of it again until recently. In fact, I'm not even entirely sure as to how this film performed in the box office. Though, this is a film that seemed to have a big budget and strong cast, thrown out into the world not too long after the whole insanity of the pandemic era. While I haven't had a whole lot of time as of late to watch new films, or any films for that matter, I did find myself growing increasingly curious as to how Wonka turned out, not being a particularly large fan of musicals, and cautious of a modern release of a story that I believe I just never have really had a strong connection to. The question arose as to how cinematic of a musical this could be; does it have the potential to go beyond the basic telling of the Wonka story? A quick glance over a trailer or two increased this curiosity. Especially with the consideration of this being a musical; a genre that is heavily hit-or-miss when it comes to their releases. And with entries becoming few and far between over the years with more risk management in the studios.
This review may contain a few spoilers here and there, though I tend to refrain from mentioning major moments in the plot. This here is merely a little warning in case you want to check out the film yourself first!
One of the first things I noticed with Wonka was its audio. It felt as if the very first set of dialogue, a song, was completely out of sync with the mouth placements. Sometimes not really matching the emotion displayed, or simply not matching mouth movements at all. For musicals, they're not always all that accurate as we can expect them to break out into song and dance at any moment and then act as if everything is normal the next moment; though this disconnect between audio and the expressions just felt a bit odd. Especially with instant use of special effects which showed our protagonist roaming through an environment, animated and not all that realistic in the movements. It felt like quite a weak introduction, but after this song, it definitely did feel as if things had picked up. At least, the song gave us some context into who our protagonist is, and what his intentions are as he just lands by ship to this new city. Desperate to grow something new, and start a successful business. I think the very quick addition of actress Olivia Colman helped improve things; her performance in Peep Show will never be forgotten by the British. Another Peep Show actor appearing, being Peterson Joseph.
With the fragility of the musical genre, I'm not really a big fan of the musical genre myself. I find it hard to stay engaged when those moments of song and dance pull you out of the immersion of the story. I couldn't help but feel this way with the film. Getting into the story, the cinematography, and the characters, only to have the songs pull me out of that and slowly lose me. Then, of course, to pull me back in later. I think it could have been a better film if it had not been a musical, instead focusing on the story. I mean, I don't think I felt a single song was all that memorable. Especially with how the film had these little elements of magic injected into it, it added to the world building, making the film seem more of a fantasy and magical thing, the connection of newfound types of chocolate that really impact the world.
I liked the way it told the story though. The ways in which Wonka finds himself in this city of alleged opportunity, where things are not quite what they seem. A lot of manipulation and deception. Wonka finding himself immediately burdened with the high cost and grifting of individuals of the city, forcing him into a place of manual labour to pay off his debts. Then slowly starting to spread the wonders of chocolate to those less fortunate. Those around him who are also in need. It gives more context into the character of Wonka, the struggles he faced before his empire. The love for chocolate and spreading cheer. It's all told in a decent pacing, too. Giving context to the side characters and who they are. I found it a nice addition that Wonka's inspiration ultimately came from his mother, something of her creation that he got to keep. The longing to bring back the feeling that she is still around, but also a continuation of her legacy. This is all thrown in between a war between classes. Those who want to keep the poor where they are, and not share the riches and luxuries of any sort, and the poor desperate to break out of what seems more like slavery.
Moving on, something I also found was pretty good was the directing. From a cinematography perspective, the film is actually very beautiful. I really liked the lighting, warm tones and very beautiful backgrounds. Wide angle lenses that added to the environments. The wide angles made the world seem larger and more magical. I have a feeling that the production used anamorphic lenses to achieve much of this. An assumption based on the bokeh in the backgrounds that were more oval. Background to foreground separation was also very smooth. With the actors looking nicely sharp that stand out from the background; smooth in the transitions and usage of depth through the focus pulling. With this, it also hid the cheaper side of the backgrounds well. The film didn't really feel cheap to begin with, but moments where it was clearly a stage, I think the cinematography incorporated the space well enough to make it look more real.
I have to admit that this film still manages to stand out. It's engaging enough to keep you interested in its two hours of runtime, with creative directing that doesn't make it feel so stale or soulless like most modern franchise reboots. There's attention to detail in the film, down to constant magical movements of snow in the scenes. Even in how the camera is used, I'd say it almost lends influence from the likes of directors like Wes Anderson. That style of composition, the usage of depth, the whole way it uses light to tell the story sometimes. Shadows or silhouettes in windows. Even down to the humour it utilises, sometimes being a little more adult rather than being too afraid to make implications or jokes about certain things. It has a degree of lighthearted yet dark comedy to it sometimes. I think this added a lot more to it, the idea that it refrained from super PG-13 approach. I'd have to say I think I do recommend the film!
Though it absolutely will be a struggle for you if you are not a fan of musicals. For me, there were times where I felt it was losing me as mentioned before. But I think there's enough good in this to keep you entertained.
