Like A Kid In A Candy Store

While I'm sure that director Tim Burton's soon to be on DVD updated 2005 version of Roald Dahl's now classic 1965 novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a feast for the senses, I resist seeing it though, because I know that no matter how good it may be, it will never hold a candle to the 1971 version and I want those special feelings to remain untouched. There are several films that helped to define my early childhood Mary Poppins, The Love Bug, The Muppet Movie, Star Wars ,Superman The Movie, and of course, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. In the Wonka case, it was a combination of Gene Wilder's sincere performance as the title character, those memorable songs, and its innovative look that made it work.

When Willy Wonka, (Wilder) a very reclusive candy man, decides to open his factory for the first time to the townsfolk, he turns the event into a game. Only five children who are lucky enough to find golden tickets hidden at random in his candy bars, will be allowed to enter the factory. Against all odds, Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum) is determined to find one of the tickets. The only problem is that his family is so poor that all they can afford to eat is cabbage water, candy bars are seen as nothing more than a rare luxury andfar too expensive. As fate would have it, Charlie finds a ticket and soon he and his Grandpa Joe (the late great Jack Albertson) enter the factory that had so long eluded their reach. Also along for this special trip: the glutton Augustus Gloop (Michael Bollner), spoiled brat Veruca Salt, (JulieCole) world-record holder for gum-chewing Violet Beauregarde, (DeniseNickerson) and the television-obsessed Mike Teevee (Paris Themmen). Everything in the factory, right down to the wallpaper, can be eaten and enjoyed. The eccentric, inventive candy man has some secret motives of his own for the special invitation. Soon, as everyone makes there way through the factory, not all is as it seems.

It has been quite awhile since I sat down to watch the film and even though my memories of it remained vivid, I had forgotten that the author had contributed to the film's script, while Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley, and Walter Scharf took care of adapting songs for the film. As I stated at the top, Wilder made this work for me, as he is Wonka (sorry Johnny Depp). From his soft spoken, childlike delivery, to his interaction with the kids, he is just great. Director Mel Stuart did a super job bringing this version to life in such a vivid way. The film holds up quite well despite its age and is still lots of fun.

The DVD extras are headlined by an audio commentary track that reunites the Wonka children, marking the first time in decades that they'd all sat in the same room and watched the film .All of the participants reminiscence about the production but offer little in the way of technical stuff. Lots of fun. The half-hour retrospective documentary, "Pure Imagination", which features contributions from Wilder, Stuart, and producer David L. Wolper, and the kids as they are today, offers the more traditional insight. A four-minute featurette from the early '70s is included as well, allowing for some vintage behind-the-scenes footage. Rounding out the disc is the theatrical trailer, a follow the bouncing ball sing-along--that small kids will like, and a photo gallery.

I can't say enough good things about Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. What a timeless classic that works for those from 8 to 80.