Wonka
Year: 2023
Rating: PG
Length: 116 minutes / 1.93 hours
Wonka (2023) was one of those movies that I had low expectations for. A prequel to a well-known IP, there’s only so much that can be done that’s not just straight call-outs to the source material—and this includes knowing how things will end to set up films like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971). Still, with these low expectations, I had quite a bit of fun watching Wonka. It’s not extraordinary, but it delivers on most of its nostalgia factors in ways that are modern and entertaining.
With the real world crumbling all around us, it was encouraging to see a movie like Wonka that embraced the grit needed to survive and thrive. The hope gained through forming a community and the endless optimism of Wonka (Timothee Chalamet) were contagious and uplifting. The creativity of the different candies and the funny running gags (like the bribed Chief of Police (Keegan-Michael Key)) helped with its entertainment factor. Still, there were a few elements that stuck out as being inconsistent—not only within this movie alone, but with the greater lore of Willy Wonka.
I appreciated the whimsical musical approach Wonka started with. After all, there were many songs present in the original 1971 film. However, neither is really a musical, and Wonka seems to forget that it could use songs to convey information about half-way through. And while an optimistic titular character is more of an uplifting way to tell this story, it seems inconsistent with the mad, bitter, and reclusive Willy Wonka that Gene Wilder played in 1971. This was the same disconnect I got with Cruella (2021), where they were so focused on telling an original story that they forgot to consider what the character eventually becomes (and is mostly known for).
A fun bit of entertainment that sometimes forgets where it’s going or where it came from, I give Wonka 3.5 stars out of 5.
1/2
