Wonka

In this freshest musical adaptation of Roald Dahl, filmmaker Paul King creates a mesmerising, splendorous world of magic and wonder through a finely moulded film. 

Based on the extraordinary, iconic character at the centre of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, one of the best-selling children’s books of all time, the screenplay was crafted by King and his writing partner Simon Farnaby with whom he has collaborated with for several years, particularly Paddington and Paddington 2.

Timothy Chalamet is skilfully cast as the young wide-eyed, idealogue (and a bit nutty), chocolatier, Willy Wonka, who invites the audience on his bitter-sweet journey to fulfil his dream of opening his own chocolate shoppe. 

Supported by a brilliant ensembled cast of the likes of Keegan-Michael Key, as the arm of the law, the Chief of Police, Paterson Joseph, as nefarious Chocolate Cartel head Slugworth, Matt Lucas as less-than-sharp Chocolate Cartel member Prodnose, Sally Hawkins as Willy Wonka’s Mamma, Olivia Colman, as the scheming and entrepreneurial Mrs Scrubitt, Hugh Grant, as the Oompa Loompa and Calah Lane, as Noodle, Chalamet carries the narrative with his childlike, naïve charm and convincing colourful outlook on life, that any problem, no matter how vast, can be overcome through sheer determination and a little imagination.

Backed by a feet-tapping musical numbers like, You’ve Never Had Chocolate Like This, Scrub, Scrub and the endearing, For A Moment, that will stay with you long after the end credits roll, the film also boasts a whimsical production design, so tangible to the audience, with delectable creatively crafted sweets, introduced by the hilarious, ‘hoverchocs’, moulded together with imagination and love, so much so, that you can taste it. 

With heartfelt moments and perfect comedically timed sequences swirled together, the film’s ultimate charm lies in its main character’s relentless quest to overcome great odds and keep a promise he made a long time ago.

And even if you don’t indulge in Wonka’s overzealous creed that your dreams, no matter how unattainable they might seem, can come true, you can still otherwise indulge in his philosophy that chocolate can still offer relief from your worldly problems, even for just a moment.

-Dirk Lombard Fourie