- Directed by: Paul King
- Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Calah Lane, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant
- Fantasy/Musical| PG | 1 hr 56 min
- 3.5 stars
By Reed Ripley
When Wonka was first announced, it was met with a collective groan. Why do we need another Wonka adaptation, and are we really going with Timothée Chalamet? It seemed like a desperate cash grab from Warner Bros.—let’s circle back on what we deem as a valuable piece of intellectual property and insert a huge up-and-coming star, and boom, we’ve got a hit. Yet, here we are, and Wonka is actually good.
Wonka is tough to evaluate from a completely objective standpoint given the importance of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, and that’s probably one of the reasons it was met with such skepticism. It’s one of the greatest children’s movies of all time, thanks largely to Gene Wilder’s aloof-yet-warm, dark-yet-joyful Wonka and brilliant production design that’s captured the pure imagination of young moviegoers for 50-plus years. There’s also Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which has dedicated fans in its own right, especially those who appreciate the film’s closer dedication to Roald Dahl’s book and who enjoyed Johnny Depp’s whimsical and slightly demented version of Wonka.
However, Wonka succeeds precisely because it’s not trying to step into either one of its predecessors’ shoes. Where Willy Wonka and Charlie engaged with the darker side of Dahl’s fantastical vision, Wonka is much purer of heart and clearly targeted toward a younger audience. It does come from the filmmakers who gave us the Paddington films, after all, and there’s an innocence that rings through Wonka. Admittedly, that yields a film that feels a bit surface level, although that’s not to say its emotional beats don’t strike a chord or two for kids of all ages.
None of this works without a capable lead, though, and Chalamet absolutely delivers on a younger, bright-eyed, quirky, and far less jaded version of Wonka. Honestly, that the film tended to move away from its lead at times is one of the film’s biggest drawbacks, as it spent way too much time on equally undercooked and uninteresting dual antagonist plots (a chocolatier cartel and a laundromat leveraging fine print for indentured servitude). Likewise, Hugh Grant’s delightfully campy performance as an Oompa-Loompa was perhaps the best part, but he only got roughly 10 minutes of screentime to cook.
Wonka isn’t great—it’s a true musical and the songs are mostly okay, and again, it really dragged at times that weren’t focused on Wonka. However, it’s perfectly enjoyable and worthwhile, and it’ll certainly be interesting to watch where this new franchise goes.
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