Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Wonka 

This is one of the best films of 2023! Now the amount of pressure put on this cast and crew to deliver just a decent take on this character was massive. The fact it’s better than just decent and is actually an outstanding piece of film has amazed a lot of people. Now I kept telling people don’t underestimate Paul King he gave us the Partington films which are some of the hugest critically rated films in recent years. This film is a musical with so much heart, joy and fun Timothee Chalamet gives a great take on the character that never felt like a impression but made his own portrayal of the character that was fresh and really enjoyable. Wonka is a blast to be had. 

Firstly, Now as spoken earlier everyone doubted this film would be good due to it already being held up to such a high standard from the Gene Wilder film and even to a extent the Tim Burton take on the character. So when the trailer came out that one of the hottest actors working today Timothee Chalamet was going to be taking on the role their was a lot of hesitation if he could deliver a good performance of this very famous role. Not only did he do a fine job but I think he’s given the best take on this character that’s ever been brought to screen I’ll elaborate more on that later. What works so well for the film that the other films fall short is it’s not a remake it’s a origin story of Wonka so right off the bat we’re seeing something new and it’s not a rehash of what we’ve seen before which was such a breath of fresh air. As to my surprise it’s a musical which many people have been pleasantly impressed by as I have no idea why I was surprised it’s a music driven film since the last two versions of this character have both been music based. So the fact it’s a straight up musical once again I think really worked in its favour as its original songs that we haven’t heard before the only song that was a homage to the past films was the song pure imagination. Aside from that all the music is fresh and catchy fitting the characters and tone of the film amazingly well. As the tone of the film very much is in the same vein of Paddington which is unapologetically positive which is what the world needs more now then ever. Wonka has such a positive outlook on life and a careless nature to him that makes you smile and that kindness covers the whole scope of the film in a way that makes you feel so good while watching it. Now it never feels too sugary that it becomes annoying but there are deeper elements the film delves into of following your dreams, competition with other stores, corruption some are very deep but it’s the way Paul King tackles it in a honest but never bleak way that perfectly balances out the grand style of the film. As it never feels like the deeper themes are too sad but he also never makes it sugary to the point where it just can’t take a break to take itself seriously which it’s able to do many times in order to let the dramatic moments soar. The way the film is executed through music, story to the production you can see the labour of love the cast and crew have for this iconic character that many grew up loving and wanting to get it right and not let people down. They didn’t want to repeat what people have seen before but take a character and show his humble beginnings and struggles as a chocolate maker. Since we’ve seen the story of the golden ticket winners so many times showing how he got his start was a great way into the character and honestly i can’t imagine another person executing this film like how Paul King did. It’s able to be whimsical and magical but also keep its feet firmly placed in reality with deep themes that will touch your heart and move you and also have you signing along to the inspiring message the film has for the audience. It’s a high wire act that is pulled off excellently by everyone involved in a film that oozes joy and happiness with a childlike wonder to it that will have you in awe of what your watching the tone and musical aspect was such a brilliant mix that resulted in such a wonderful style that made the screen pop. It’s the strongest narratively we’ve seen this character in and that’s including the original film it surpasses any take on the character I have ever seen this film is the new standard for wonka films it is that good. 

Secondly, the performances are amazing! You have almost every famous British person in one film since love actually with wonka. You have the likes of Rowan Atkinson, Olivia Colman, Huge Grant, Matt Lucas but it’s the performance by Timothee Chalamet that will have you incredibly impressed. Timothee Chalamet delivers a performance of Wonka that is both magical and emotionally moving. He never tried to duplicate what was done before him but made his own spin on the character chewing up the scenery with amazing charismatic energy and charm that fit the performance so well he gives what I think is one of his strongest performances with his work on this film. Now as far as Hugh Grant goes many people told me he was a highlight of the film. Now I’m not saying he’s bad in the film but he’s not in it enough to talk about his performance for the very little screen time he has he was a delight for sure but I wish we had more from his character. Overall the cast all give stellar fun performances but it’s the performance by Timothee that really is the shining character  of the film that stays with you. 

Lastly, Wonka is one of the best and fun films I’ve seen this year that had me smiling and crying! Paul King pulls off a brilliant take on the character that is fresh, different and magical while also giving so much heart that it’ll have you wrapped up in each frame of the film. He once again shows people why he is one of the best creative voices for spreading joy and wonder in his films with such fantastic emotion as he brings that to Wonka in a genius way. It has fantastic songs that service the narrative and a story  that we’ve never seen before with this character and an inspiring message that young and old will appreciate. Wonka is as sweet as one of the characters candies it’s a film that the whole family will love I recommend everyone go run and see this film. 

This film tells the story of Wonka in his humble beginnings getting his start as a chocolate maker 

Rated PG : Some Violence|Mild Language|Thematic Elements

Timothee Chalamet : Timothee is absolutely brilliant in this film! Now again I cannot stress enough the sheer amount of pressure he was under to deliver a good performance and he not only gave a good performance he surpassed good and gave a terrific performance that packs a powerful punch. He appears onscreen with such a fun electricity to the character that makes you smile within seconds of seeing him. He brings this positivity and sheer happy outlook on life that is infectious on the audience as despite his situation he never lets his missteps get him down he always finds a way to look at it from a positive angle. The way Timothee approach’s that way the character carry’s himself was brilliant as he finds the best way to express his joy and way of thinking through song and you also see how sensitive he is though too when people question and doubt his dreams as he is so sure of them he’ll do whatever he has to to make them a reality. To such an extent his giddy optimism surpasses all the people that try multiple times to pull him down. Even when an obstacle is thrown his way he just looks at the situation from a different view and overcomes it in a way that way he approaches conflict is inspiring in a way. Their is a charm and wit to his performance that gene Wilder and Johnny Depp lacked in their performance I know it’s bold statement to make but I think his performance is the best take on the character that’s been done. As Genes version came off very mysterious and at times psychopathic, Depp’s was the most accurate in terms of the book but Timothee isn’t restricted by the book so he can make up his own version without having to worry about being bound to the book. He still gives a faithful and respectful version of the character the author wrote but he wants to create what he thinks a younger version of him would be which I love. When he sees people sad or upset he will swoop in with his happy optimism and pick up their mood through song or an inspiring chat and you can see the sheer joy radiating through his body. At the same time he also is driven by not letting his mother’s hope in him die. The only way to his heart is when he begins to doubt himself but when he does his friends are there to lift him up as he has lifted their spirits so they return the favour. He has this fast way of speaking and glint in his eye that will have you swept up in every scene he’s in Chalamet knew the exact amount of energy that was needed to inject into this character to make his version memorable and he did just that in what I think is one of his most heartwarming and charming performances of his career. It may sound silly to say but I think it’s among his best work as he’s able to be magical and emotionally sincere within moments in his performance and it’s fantastic Chalamet is outstanding as Wonka. 

Paul King : King brings Wonka to the screen in a terrific way that is astonishing! He amazed audiences years ago with his brilliant adaptation on the Paddington character which garnered a sequel which got even higher praise than the first. So yes many people myself included were eager to see how his take on this character would look like. After seeing how he tackled this beloved character I am in total amazement as not only did he do a great job he explored sides to the character we had never seen before in a fresh telling of the character that really locked audiences into the film. By introducing new songs that are totally original and using them to express the characters current feelings in such a colourful and exciting way that not only is able to communicate through the characters feelings through song but also captures the positive and whimsical atmosphere through music which really was a strong suit for the film. Then Paul also is able to show the fantasy element of Willy Wonka’s chocolate making in a way that both is magical but also realistic as Paul brings that childlike quality to the film but shows that something like this could still happen though. So he is able to explore both sides of that in a way that never feels like one is out weighting the other and he can inject humour that lands but also didn’t feel corny or out of place it worked at certain scenes and he knew exactly when to place the jokes in a scene when it needed one. The direction is actually incredibly strong as then lastly the dramatic side of the film is felt throughout the course of the story but sure their are moments where the comedy and music slows down and he lets the characters really bare their hearts and I love that as he wasn’t afraid of exploring all sides of these characters and letting the tone of the film adapt and change throughout the film without it feeling messy because Paul King knew how to balance it all. The magical fantasy aspect is well brought to the screen, the music is fresh and fitting, the humour lands and then the emotional punch hits you right in the heart exactly when it needs too and I cannot praise Paul King enough for how well he did at showing his signature style on Wonka while also exploring deep themes that young and older audiences can pick up on without it feeling heavy handed. Paul King does a magnificent job at bringing this story to life.