Weird; that’s the the most succinct review possible for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Tim Burton’s adaptation of the book by Roald Dahl. By Bill Andrews.
Take the main man, the chairman chocolatier, the confectionery king, Willy Wonka himself. Bearing an unfortunate resemblance to Michael Jackson, Depp’s character often comes close to scaring both the on-screen children and the audience. Randomly, he says, “Everything in this room is eatable. I’m eatable, but that, my children, would be called cannibalism, and it is frowned upon in most societies.” For the most part, though, Wonka is simply shy and nervous around children, and only scary enough to be eccentric; an interesting guy to have on your AIM buddy list, but not to actually hang out with. Johnny Depp clearly enjoys himself throughout the movie, usually only slightly more than we do.
This story was published on Wednesday, August 3, 2005.
Volume 125, Number 30. Copyright The Tech 1985-2003.
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