Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
July 15, 2005
Warner Bros.
Children's, Musical, Fantasy
DVD
C

I don't think it's just that I'm Gen X is the reason why I enjoy this less than the 1971 Gene Wilder version.  I can see flaws in the earlier version and I would argue that there are three ways that this is actually an improvement.  The songs, taking Roald Dahl's original verse and pairing with a wide variety of styles (including disco!), are much better here.  Related to that, I prefer Tim Burton's Oompa-Loompas, including the device of them all being played by one man (through the magic of CGI).  Also, Charlie's family (including Burton's wife Helena Bonham Carter as Charlie's mum) is generally more likable here.  (Although the one dotty grandmother is mildly annoying.)

However, it is with Willy Wonka and his home life that Burton goes seriously awry.  Wilder played Wonka with a twinkle in his eye but he was also genuinely scary at some points.  Johnny Depp plays Wonka as both creepy and insecure, and we get several back-story flashbacks to his childhood with his candy-hating father.  Ten years ago, I found this to be psychobabbling derailment, and my opinion hasn't changed.  Can't Wonka just be inexplicably weird, rather than someone who just needs love and acceptance?

Also, with the exception of Freddie Highmore who's quite good as Charlie (and would do a bunch of other adaptations of children's books, none of which I own, but some of which I've seen), none of the children are as good as the '71 cast.  The parents are mostly forgettable, although Missi Pyle as Mrs. Beauregarde gives it her usual perky/crazy touch.  As for the look of the film, I'd say the movies are about equally good.

Nayef Rashed, under the name Adam Hussein, was Mohamad the Camel Seller in Ishtar and here appears as a Moroccan Market Vendor.  Nitin Ganatra, who was so memorable as Bride & Prejudice's Mr. Kohli, has a much smaller role here as Prince Pondicherry.

There are some minor Harry Potter connections.  Harry Taylor, who's the Station Guard in the first two movies, appears briefly as Mr. Gloop.  Lucy-Anne Brooks is a Factory Worker here and would soon be a Beauxbaton Student in Goblet of Fire.  Ray Donn had very small roles in both Bridget Jones movies, is a policeman here, and would be a Ministry of Magic Panel Member in Order of the Phoenix.  Brigitte Millar, who's a Journalist here, would be Emmeline Vance in Order of the Phoenix.  Tony Kirwood, who's Finckelgruber, would be a Death Eater in both parts of Deathly Hallows.

Bride & Prejudice

Bride & Prejudice
October 8, 2004
Miramax etc.
Romance, Musical, Comedy
DVD
B

This has obvious, surface similarities to Monsoon Wedding (2001) in that both are about large families living in modern-day India, and both films show the influence of Bollywood.  Also, as the titles suggest, weddings are important in both stories, although Wedding covers a shorter span of time, just the days leading up to and including a wedding, while here, in the Jane-Austen-inspired plot, much more attention is paid to how couples get together, and how they are sometimes separated, perhaps temporarily, perhaps not.  Besides the change in settings (not just India, but also London and L.A.), and such touches as email, the major differences from Pride and Prejudice are that Mr. Kohli is much more sympathetic (if still very comical) and the exact nature of Wickham's seductions and attempts is changed.  Other changes, such as the omission of Kitty Bennet, serve to streamline the movie, as the omission of various characters did in Sense & Sensibility (1995).

This came out shortly before the Keira Knightley P & P.  As with Paltrow's Emma vs. Clueless, I prefer the movie that is stylistically less faithful but more truly faithful to the spirit of the original novel.  The themes and the essence of the Austen novel are captured well, but there's also, particularly in the first third of the movie, a lot of what one song calls "color, light, and sound," the same dazzling elements seen in Monsoon, but with much better music.  The definite stand-out is "No Life Without Wife," where the four pajama-clad sisters are playful, romantic, and, well, sisterly, and the song is very catchy to boot.

Aishwarya Rai as Lalita (the Lizzy equivalent) is almost too perfect: witty and clever of course, but also devastatingly beautiful and of course musically talented, including playing the guitar.  She's also both feminist and proudly traditionally Indian.  In contrast, Martin Henderson as Will Darcy (equivalent to guess who) is a little bland.  It's a romance where I don't mind the main couple getting together but I don't feel terribly invested in it.  Luckily, as in the original novel, there are so many interesting side characters that it doesn't ultimately matter.