Charlie in the Chocolate Factory -- SPOILERS

ok, first off, I LOVED the original and have seen it about 1000 times. I think Gene Wilder was a genius in the role way back when the original was made so I went in with a tainted idea that it could never be as good......

Well, it didn't totally suck! The real star of the movie was the set designers and FX people who really made the chocolate factory come to life (as you would expect in a Tim Burton film). Other than that, the performances were pretty good, including Depp's portrayal of the eccentric chocolatier as a creepy cross between Michel Jackson and Mr Rogers. When I wathced the previews, I saw glimpses of it and how they made him to be over-the-top, socially inept and disturbing, but in the movie they give some insight into his character, including a look at his childhood and his family -- an interesting twist on it. Not that original or mind-blowing, mind you, but a nice addition from the original.

The story stays true to the original in most instances, you still have the 5 bratty kids (albeit a parent switch for Violet and Mike TV), the chocolate river, gum that tastes like blue berries, the wonka-vator, and everlasting gobstoppers but they are all updated with better FX and slightly diffetn than their original predecessors. Also, of course are the more modernized version of the oompa lumpas, which I have to say was the one thing I did not like. Their 'songs' were very modernized and mainstream which I didn;t care for. I missed that droning, annoying lil chant of old!! ** sigh **

Gone this go round are fizzy lifting drinks, Willie's singing, and the chocolate laying giant geese (the 'replacement' though is very clever and cool though) as well as how the story ends. Of course, its a happy ending and the end result is the same, but happens a lil differently.....

Overall, not a bad movie. Not as good as the original, but if the original was not around, I'd still think it was worth the price of a ticket --- a matinee ticket that is, not a Golden Ticket!

LF