Wonka

It is a dead horse I have no business beating at this point, but can Hollywood come up with nothing new? Even with all of the IPs out there, all the famous characters that could have a movie made about them, why did we decide on Wonka? See how Willy became Wonka has to be the most laughable tagline for a film in recent years, and I still have no idea what it means. Willy Wonka is his name, right from the beginning of the movie.

Even with the concept of it baffling me, I couldn't stop myself from seeing what Paul King had come up with here. He created Paddington and its masterpiece of a sequel, so I did have some faith going in. It's clear to see the similarities with King's last movies right from the start. We open with Willy landing in a city that isn't London but also is, as he comes looking to make his fortune as a chocolatier. Weirdly, despite this being an origin story, it seems Wonka's origins i.e. how he became a chocolatier, all the trials and tribulations he's gone through to make his wacky treats, have already happened, meaning this is the story of how he gets his shop and begins a chocolate monopoly. Not quite as wholesome as Paddington's goal of just being the nicest bear in town, but hey ho, here we go.

Timothee Chalamet as Willy Wonka is a surprisingly good casting. He's wacky and odd, which you might find cringe, but if you throw yourself into the movie you'll have a good time with it. He manages to be consistently engaging, even when the story has its duller moments. There's a lot of talent in the cast as a whole, with most of them being British outside of Chalamet. Olivia Colman, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, and of course Hugh Grant as our one and only Oompa Loompa. The cast is full of talent, but not all of them get enough time to really shine. Outside of Chalamet, the only other character I enjoyed every time they were on screen was Mr. Slugworth, played by Paterson Joseph, who managed to bring all his outlandish businessman wit from Peep Show to this role and made himself the perfect, cartoonish villain for this story.

Something that I did find missing is that darkness that presides over both the live-action Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movies. Willy Wonka is a weirdo. He's a recluse by the time we meet him in the Roald Dahl story, and there are darker undertones in his character that aren't explored in Wonka. Chalamet's Wonka is a pure-hearted hero. In one sense, you could argue that this makes his transformation into the character we see in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory a bit of a tragic fall, but I'm not convinced. It just feels like it's ignoring an aspect of the original tale.

Then again, this is a musical, and we can't expect too much darkness from one. A shame then, that despite there being so many songs in this movie, all of them can simply be described as average. I already can't remember a single tune, and compared to recent musicals, it's quite poor that not even one song is stuck in my head. It almost makes you question whether this movie should have been a musical at all. Instead of creating forgettable songs, there could've been more time putting together a tighter story. Wonka is a bit of a mess when it comes to its plot and pacing. We're teased about a potential heist within the first 30 minutes or so, and then have to wait well over an hour before anything is done about it. There's a weird subplot with Wonka being in debt to some hotel owners that just feels like padding, and there's barely any time to make Hugh Grant's character feel like it was worth the poor man getting in that mocap suit for hours on end.

Throughout it all, though, Wonka does remain fairly charming. Nowhere near the level of Paddington, but there was never really a chance of that happening. I don't think Wonka excused its existence, proving why we needed to see Willy Wonka's backstory, but it's mostly an inoffensive time-killer if you're looking to take the family out to the movies this Christmas. Kids will enjoy it, parents might get the odd laugh, but could very well get bored if they're not willing to listen down and quiet up. Wait, scratch that. Reverse it!