One of my sons favorite books right now is Charlie & the Chocolate Factory so I've been wanting to revisit this, and might the original film as well. What struck me the most watching this is how uninteresting Charlie Bucket is as a character. The film is so preoccupied with the spectacle of the factory that Charlie Bucket, even though we know he's a virtuous young man, basically just survives and because he isn't a massive douche like the other kids, he wins. It's the most affirming. That said, it's pretty magical to watch, it just doesn't have a story that really takes hold of you and makes you stand up and cheer. Kind of thankless. Johnny Depp is stellar as Wonka - I particularly enjoy the way he seems to dislike everyone around him. I find this film amusing more than anything else. Worth checking out if you've read the book and haven't seen it yet - not sure it really works otherwise. Not to bad-mouth it, that's not my intention, it just didn't really grab me the way I was hoping it would. Alas.
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