Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

To me, this movie is perfection.

Good start, but then it gets ruined

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Good god how is this film given a rating above 6...It is beyond terrible.Are people really this tasteless?The musical acts sound like they've been pushed through a sound synthesizer by someone who hasn't got a clue what they're doing. The original musicals were pretty good, sung with appreciation and talent. Can't say the same here.Depp's performance, as bizarre as it is, is rather woeful. Reminds me too much of a Michael Jackson imitation and that's not what you want to be thinking about watching this film.The overall plot more or less follows the original in some ways, but really there's nothing to be gained from it. It wasn't ambitious enough, although the imagery was nice and splendid, it was sadly backed up by shoddy writing and direction.

Compared to the 1971 Gene Wilder version, this one beats it on visuals. And on music, if you like dance/pop music as the oompa loompa songs. The plot is also more true to the original source than the 1971 version. However, this one is inferior to Gene Wilders in every other way.The films biggest weaknesses is WIlly Wonka. Something about Johnny Depps performance is off from start to finish. He tries to behave in a weird, eccentric way, but unlike Gene Wilder he fails to add any charm to the character. He comes across as a rude and socially inept character. His whole performance seems forced, an amazing contrast to how natural Depp is playing Jack Sparrow. Someone else should have been cast as Willy Wonka.Charlie is also a problem here, he's a perfect saint like character, a Gary Stu. The charlie in the 1971 version was a good kid but he wasn't perfect. That makes him easier to relate to than the charlie in this version, who would never break any rules and altruistically puts everyone else before himself. Too goody two shoes, ugh. Veruca salts actor also comes across as forced. She's a spoilt brat but she never shouts or loses her temper, in contrast to the 1971 Veruca. This one just says everything in the same, monosyllabic tone. The other golden ticket winners come across more naturally as bad kids, as they should do. This film has some positive aspects, it looks impressive, the chocolate room in particular looks gorgeous, the ever lasting gobstoppers actually look like gobstoppers and it uses squirrels instead of geese. Violet turning into a blueberry is pretty hilarious. Unfortunately the film doesn't have enough hilarious moments. It plays very much as a "box ticking" film, it follows the source material competently but doesn't have much pure imagination of it's own. As someone who grew up reading Dahls books, i expected a bit more.

Although I have never watched Roald Dahl version of Charlie and the chocolate factory but I have read the book for that version. As for this movie it really lived up to Dahl's expectations the acting including David Kelly, Freddie Highmore and Johnny Depp were really good at doing there parts. Especially that cameo Christopher Lee had as Willy Wonka's dad/the dentist. This is a very fun movie to watch for both children and family. If you have not seen it yet I would definitely recommend it.

Charlie nails both the themes and spirit of the original story in a way that the previous version simply didn't manage. The book is, at its heart, a warning about materialistic excess and greed, using the Western world's slavering desire to consume chocolate as a cautionary tale of how modern society makes us lose sight of the most important things in life.Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a very respectable film that does have its issues such as the lack of a darker tone and a mostly very annoying soundtrack, but the characterization and storytelling are both excellent here, the flashback structure is well handled, the humor is great and the visual effects are expectedly terrific. May be someone like it, while other one don't. Hope you can enjoy this movie. ---Yidioo