Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

A movie about candy and kids that’s not too sweet, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory didn't do well when it came out in 1971, only to become a cult favorite for parents and generation after generation of children. Gene Wilder’s quirky, inspired performance as the candy impresario is among his finest.

Children the world over are frantically buying candy bars in hopes of finding a golden ticket, one of five that will allow them to tour the super-secret Wonka chocolate factory, and compete to win a lifetime supply of the world’s best chocolate.

Hewing closely to Roald Dahl’s marvelous children’s book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the tour becomes a cautionary tale, warning children and their parents against the evils of gluttony, too much television, constant gum-chewing and all-out spoiled brattiness. It’s all set against the magically preposterous workings of the factory and its fantastic products, from gum that tastes like a three-course meal to edible tea cups.

The first half of the movie is spent setting up the golden ticket winners. It’s not hard to see who will prevail among the contestants: poor-but-honest Charlie, overeater Augustus Gloop, spoiled rich girl Veruca Salt, gum-smacking loudmouth Violet Beauregard and grating, play-gun toting TV addict Mike Teevee. It’s seeing the wretched little monsters get what they deserve that makes for all the fun.

Do the children actually die in the poetically just “accidents” that befall them in the wondrous Wonka works? Of course not, but kids won’t learn that until the end, and in the meantime, the ambiguity is...delicious.

Wilder is magical as Willy Wonka. No one can be as menacing, mad and absolutely adorable in the same breath as Gene Wilder. He insisted on making his entrance with a slow and painful limp, only to arrive at the factory gate with a somersault flourish. He wanted the audience to constantly wonder whether his character was lying, and it works.

He’s an untrustworthy hero, twinkling with inventive genius and warmth one moment, and surreally threatening the next. In a single motion, he sweeps his cane with gesture of delight and welcome that turns into a nasty, warning snap for a pushy parent. He goes from dreamy idealism to a full-on screaming rant in an eyeblink. His best line readings are his indifferent calls for help when the rotten children get into trouble and his less-than-urgent pleas to stay out of danger. “Oh, no. Don’t. Stop. I beg of you,” he mutters insincerely.

The rest of the cast is fine, but largely unremarkable. Charlie is a charming, artless blonde boy played by newcomer Peter Ostrum, with Jack Albertson as his loveable Grandpa Joe. The rest of the children and their parents are exactly the stereotypes they’re meant to be. Charlie’s laundress mother, played by Diana Sowle, has an early, unremarkable ballad that really just delays the proceedings until we get to the good stuff.

The most startling stars are the Oompa-Loompas, little people with orange skin, white eyebrows and green hair, Wonka’s factory work force. They sing and dance to the finger-wagging. lesson-learning songs that follow each child’s factory disaster. The filmmakers scoured Europe to find enough little people to take the roles, and communicating with the non-English speakers was a challenge.

‘Willy Wonka’ - Sets and Music

The film was made on a $3 million shoestring in Munich, which had a fairy-tale feel and was far less expensive than the U.S. The sets are inventive and imaginative, with goldbergian candy-making machinery, various contraptions and a chocolate waterfall -- but it all looks a little cheap, more like H.R. PufnStuf than Wizard of Oz. Part of it may be due to the fact that producer David Wolper was known for television, not movies. It’s okay. The factory feels like a marvelous, magical place to a kid, and more like a cheesy theme-park ride to an adult. It works.

The music is another story. Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse wrote the songs, including the bona fide hit “The Candy Man Can,” loved by many and despised by many more for its cutesy quality. Wilder sings the hauntingly lovely “Pure Imagination,” but that’s about as memorable as it gets. The rest of the score is pleasantly forgettable.

However, "The Rower's Song," based on Dahl's original poem and recited by Wonka on a terrifying boat trip is terrific. It's the creepiest part of the movie, with several truly disturbing, surreal images projected on the walls of the chocolate river tunnel. Be warned.

Willy Wonka has a strange pedigree. It was conceived less as a movie than a giant promotional device. Producer Wolper was talking to the Quaker Oats company about a vehicle to showcase a new candy bar. At the same time, director Mel Stuart’s daughter read the Dahl book and asked her father to ask “Uncle Dave” (Wolper) to make it into a movie. Quaker Oats, not any studio, put up the money, and voila! Oddly enough, the chocolate bar failed. It had a faulty formula and melted to goo on store shelves.

The movie had more staying power. While not a great success in the theaters, it earned positive critical reviews. Repeated TV showings and home video sales made it a classic children’s movie.

‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’ - the Bottom Line

Worth it for Wilder’s darkly funny performance alone, and an excellent antidote to a Disney sugar rush.

Just the Facts

Year: 1971, Color
Director: Mel Stuart
Running Time: 100 minutes
Studio: Paramount

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