Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971)

 

Before there was Johnny Depp... There was Gene Wilder. And that can only be a good thing.

It is cool in a children's movie to have the sinister-looking Günter Meisner as Mr. Slugworth (was there ever a more perfect actor for a dark leather coat and a swastika on his arm?) mysteriously show up and whisper in the children's ears. As for the child actors, some are good, and some less so (Cole and Nickerson particularly awful). Peter Ostrum as Charlie is decent (in his only film ever), at his best when acting against Jack Albertson. Albertson easily the best actor on show until Wilder. 

Wilder's entrance is the stuff of legends and his overly friendly demeanour towards his guests is a big improvement over the later Jackson, uh I mean Depp. It also leaves room for giggles and laughs as his more mischievous sides appear. And he really has a callous and direct side, made so much better by his warm smile and polite words. Furthermore, Wilder's body language is amazing. Something for all to study as seemingly every little movement has a meaning. His timing of the lines the same. A talent forgotten, unfortunately. 

Though CGI was unavailable in the 70's, they've managed to create quite the Wonka-world, and it makes me smile just thinking about all the creativity that went into all the minutiae details. 

As this is a musical, some of the film's quality will be dependant on whether or not you like the actual tunes. Personally, it's a bit hit-and-miss for me. Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley are good at the playful tones, but the ballads are a bore. It doesn't help the music that much of the cast are quite mediocre singers, and only Albertson can make up for it in charm.

So this film lacks CGI and decent child-actors, plus it has a few songs I definitely could have gone several lifetimes without hearing (though I've had to suffer through "All I want for Christmas is you" most Christmases so I guess it could be worse). What it does have is an ingenious Gene Wilder and a tight direction by Mel Stuart. Plus all the charm a wondrous tale for children (with plenty of joy for the adults) should have.

8/10