Wonka: A Review

I’ve wanted to watch Wonka since I saw the movie trailer in October (or was it even September?) of 2023. I’m a huge Roald Dahl fan, and my favorite Roald Dahl book is, not surprisingly, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was one of my most beloved books in grade school. I’d always read it around my birthday, or Christmas, or Halloween, or Easter, or any time I was given a lot of chocolate. Some of my happiest memories are that of being curled up on my tiny twin bed in my little bedroom eating snickers bars and reading Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I’ve read the book at least a dozen times. And so, my curiosity was piqued when I heard about Wonka. 

I walked into the movie theater with high hopes but low expectations. Modern cinema has disappointed me more times than I like to recall. What was I expecting? A poorly told story with unbelievable characters, humor that isn’t humorous, and a bad theme if not a selfish and immoral message. The reason I retained hope was that the director was the director of Paddington 2 (which I think was better than Paddington 1) and the producer was the producer of Harry Potter (which is about as high a compliment as you can get). 

I love our theater. It’s a family owned business, and though relatively new, is built like a 1920s theater. Walking in I feel like a posh Frenchwoman about to see the first moving picture. The seats are reclinable, and the old man who checks you in happens to be the same guy who checked my teenage Dad into The Lord of the Rings and Batman. As I walked into Wonka. I sat down, reclined my seat, and began to watch as the huge screen lit up. And…

The movie was fantastic. 

I give it a 9/10, and that is high, high praise from me. Among my friends and family I’m known as the picky one who judges movies and books by things that wouldn’t bother pretty much anyone else. 

~General Overview~

NO Spoilers

What the movie should probably be rated as: 7/10

My personal rating: 9/10

Age recommendation: 1 and up (really, there’s nothing objectionable in the movie)

~Actors~

May I just say that the casting was perfection? It included Timothee Chamalet as Willy Wonka (Laurie from the 2019 Little Women), Hugh Grant, Rowan Atkinson (Johnny English), and what I believe was a debut from a young girl named Calah Lane. 

I really liked how Chamalet portrayed Willy Wonka. He had just the right amount of quirkiness, sweetness, and gullibleness that a young Willy would have had. He also wasn’t creepy (I’ve heard the Johnny Depp version kind of is).

~Content~

There was nothing inappropriate in this movie! No “follow your heart” or “believe in yourself” messaging, no LGBTQ references, and no politicizing. Willy Wonka even says “Oh my gosh” instead of the alternative, which I really appreciated. There are one or two d-words, but since it’s set in early 1900s England, those would not have even been considered as swear words.

~Story~

When the movie first started, I thought, “oh boy, this seems cheesy”. But by the end I was blinking back tears and grinning like an idiot. Not everything in the movie technically “makes sense” in terms of the chocolate, etc. But here’s the deal: that’s because the movie is so Roald Dahl. If you had told me that Roald Dahl had written the story himself, I’d have believed you. Everything about it is in his style, and I think that’s the absolute best thing a movie can do for a writer. 

Remember how I said I didn’t expect it to be funny? Well, it really was. And the characters? Fantastic! 

~Theme~

For me three particular themes stood out in Wonka. They were:

1. The power of dreams

Before you roll your eyes and walk away, I feel the same way as you do. Do we really need another movie about following your dreams? But in Wonka it really was different. Dreams weren’t about selfish desires or going to any length to do what you want. Dreams were seen as a way of keeping a mindset of faith and hope, of seeing the light in the darkness.

1. Remembering to be a child

My very favorite part of the movie was how Willie Wonka repeatedly talks about remembering to be a child. In the song A World of Your Own (my favorite song from the movie, by the way) he sings:

Here is the child you left behind

Here is the kid with the curious mind

Here is the wonder we used to feel

Back when the magic was real.

A world of your own

A place to go when you’re

Feeling unsure.

Embrace the unknown

Enjoy the adventure.

This is your home

A world of your own.

This is something I can relate to so much. We all miss the child we were, and we all need to remember the childlike wonder and magic we used to feel. In the song Sorry, Noodle he also sings,

I just wanted it

To feel the way that it did

When I was a kid.

1. Longing for eternity

I won’t say why this theme struck my family and I for fear of giving the movie away. All I’ll say is, what Willy finds at the end made us think of how we all long for eternity and how all the best things will last forever.

~Music~

This movie is a musical. Confession time! I’m not usually a huge fan of musicals. Yes, feel free to throw things at me. It’s a fault, I know. Because I haven’t seen a ton of them, I can’t compare the music to that of other movies like this. 

I’ve already talked a little bit about the lyrics of some of the other songs, so you can probably guess that I loved the soundtrack! I’d give it a 10/10. I’m listening to it right now, of course. 

Wonka was definitely based off of the Gene Wilder Charlie and the Chocolate Factory version, as Willy sings Pure Imagination at the end of the movie. I love the Gene Wilder version, so I was very happy with that.

~Historical Accuracy + Consistency~

There were a couple inconsistencies I found, but they didn’t affect the story and weren’t too noticeable at all. 

Historical accuracy was kind of a meh. There wasn’t anything blaringly untrue, but there were a couple things that didn’t make too much sense for the time: the dialogue, etc. But again, this is a Roald Dahl movie. Not everything needs to make sense.

~Finally…~

I highly recommend Wonka! It’s a sweet, well-told story that satisfied me at pretty much every level. I’ll probably put it on my list of favorite movies. 

It’s a great family movie option. 

Parts of the Movie I Loved

SPOILERS: Do NOT under ANY circumstances read if you have not seen the movie

Are you still reading these words and haven’t seen the movie??? FOR SHAME. LEAVE RIGHT NOW. I’m doing this for your own sake. You’ll thank me later. Off you trot. Scroll down to the bottom of the post to leave a comment. Do not read any of these words.

Phew, now that they’re gone we can have some real fun, huh?

~My favorite songs from the movie~

1. I’ve already said that A World of Your Own was my top favorite. The lyrics were just…so fantastic.

2. Pure Imagination is a classic. It was great that they included it.

3. I love a Hatful of Dreams. It was a great start to the movie. It’s catchy, whimsical, and kind of…relatable? 

I really like all the songs, though. What were your favorite songs? Comment below and let me know!

~My favorite character~

WILLY, of course! What kind of a question is that? 

~My favorite moments of the movie~

Chocoholic monks. Are you kidding me? That’s genius. AND THEY’RE SITTING OVER A SECRET VAT OF CHOCOLATE? DOUBLE GENIUS!

I love how at the end when Willy finally finds the message his mother left him, he then proceeds to break the precious chocolate apart, sharing it with everyone around him. My heart melted (pun intended). 

I LOVED the plot twist of Willy not being able to read. That was super clever.

The way Willy encourages and lifts up Noodle and the way she then in return uplifts him later in the movie was really sweet, and I really enjoyed it.

And finally…Okay, I had wayyy too much fun watching Hugh Grant as a tiny orange man dancing and singing as an Oompa Loompa. Wayyy too much fun. 

~How My Family Reacted~

That night as we were getting ready for bed, I asked my 8 year old brother what he thought of the movie. 

“That was one of the best movies I’ve ever seen,” he said. “You know the part where Willy Wonka said he wished his Mom’s chocolate would last forever? Well, that made me think about how God lasts forever.”

I believe that’s the best thing a story can do: make us think about God. And if anything, I love this movie even more because it made my little brother think about the wonderfulness of God.

Meanwhile when my Mom was listening to the song that plays while Willy Wonka and his Mom are on the boat, my three year old brother said, “Mom can I give you a kiss? It would be really sad if I didn’t have a Mom.”

~Finally Again…~

If you’ve seen the movie, I’d love to talk about it with you below! Please comment! And if you haven’t seen it and do end up watching it at some point, I’d love it if you'd come back afterwards and let me know what you think of it.