Chalamet charms as young Willy Wonka
In 2018, writer/director Paul King’s Paddington 2 earned the coveted number one spot on my Top 10 list. After a few years working in television, King has returned to the big screen with his Paddington 2 co-writer Simon Farnaby to bring us Wonka. The picture is a similarly delightful and warmhearted holiday treat.
King and Faraday unspool an origin story of the confectioner Willy Wonka, first introduced in Roald Dahl’s 1964 classic children’s novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and later immortalized on film by both Gene Wilder (1971’s Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) and Johnny Depp (2005’s remake Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). Oscar nominee Timotheé Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name; Beautiful Boy; Dune) now dons the chocolatier’s purple coat and top hat, and they fit him well. As the young Willy, Chalamet effectively channels the eccentricities of Wilder and Depp’s creations while making the character his own. Chalamet gives us a youthful, innocent Wonka who embodies earnestness and kindness, even as his hustle and drive foreshadow Wilder’s slightly more jaded, adult candy factory owner.
But in Wonka, that candy factory ownership is a long way off, as young Willy is desperate to realize his dream of making chocolates in his own little shop. He’s thwarted by three greedy, monopolizing chocolatiers dubbed “The Chocolate Cartel” whose common goal is to ensure Willy’s failure. An evil landlady and her sidekick (Olivia Colman and Tom Davis) throw more obstacles in Willy’s way after they trick him into forced labor. And with that, we have the plot of this fairy-tale musical: Willy leads a quest to secure both his freedom and that of his fellow unwitting indentured servants so they can each achieve their dreams. Thin though this narrative may be, the story not only works, but genuinely enchants, thanks to the cast’s effusive warmth and charm.
In addition to Chalamet, whose good-natured Willy is an absolute pleasure to watch (even when his singing is slightly shaky), Colman and Davis steal every scene they’re in, calling to mind Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen’s petty and mean Thénardiers from Les Miz. Colman’s Mrs. Scrubbit even has a ward, the orphan Noodle (Calah Lane), who becomes Willy’s ally as they orchestrate their freedom. Shades of yet another movie musical are thus apparent, as the vibes of not only Les Miz, but also Annie, permeate the picture. Lane and Chalamet have terrific chemistry, and rooting for them becomes effortless and enjoyable.
In smaller but no less important roles, Hugh Grant gamely gives us the backstory of Chocolate Factory’s Oompa Loompa helpers, as a CGI miniaturized thorn in Willy’s side, until, of course, he isn’t. And Keegan-Michael Key has fun playing a chocolate loving policeman, whose expanding waistline is another wink to what befalls several of the children in the original story. Sally Hawkins is also lovely as Willy’s mother, in a few flashbacks that reveal where Willy got both his chocolate-making skills and his compassionate heart.
The performances shine even when the dialogue doesn’t–too many pronouncements about never giving up on your dreams feel a little overdone–but the film exudes such affection and feel-good spirit that forgiving a little too-sincere messaging is easy. Afterall, I’m sure Paddington himself would agree with the film’s sentiment that “it’s not the chocolate that matters–it’s the people you share it with.” Ditto goes for this sweet movie.
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Wonka opens today at Bay Area theaters.
