Wonka

My sister and I finally had the chance to see Wonka last night and we both loved this whimsical and delightful prequel to the classic movie.  Willy Wonka (Timothee Chalamet) hopes to make his dream of sharing his chocolates with the world come true by opening a shop in the Galeries Gourmet.  He immediately runs afoul of a Chocolate Cartel comprised of Arthur Slugworth (Paterson Joseph), Gerald Prodnose (Matt Lucas), and Felix Fickelgruber (Mathew Baynton) who bribe the chief of police (Keegan-Michael Key) and a priest (Rowan Atkinson) with chocolate to foil Wonka's plans.  He is also tricked into indentured servitude at a lauderette run by Mrs. Scrubitt (Olivia Colman) and her henchman Bleacher (Tom Davis) because he fails to read the fine print.  However, he enlists the help of an orphan named Noodle (Calah Lane), the other captives at the launderette, including Abacus Crunch (Jim Carter), Piper Benz (Natasha Rothwell), Larry Chucklesworth (Rich Fulcher), and Lottie Bell (Rakhee Thakrar), as well as an Oompa-Loompa (Hugh Grant), and uses his delectable chocolates to defeat the Cartel and build his famous Chocolate Factory.  Chalamet is absolutely adorable as Wonka and I was quite impressed with his singing and dancing because I usually think of him more as a dramatic actor.  I especially loved his earnest performance in the songs "You've Never Had Chocolate Like This" and "A World of Your Own."  Lane is very affecting as Noodle (her duet with Chalamet in "For a Moment" is incredibly heartfelt and they have great chemistry together), Joseph is so much fun as the unctuous villain Slugworth, Colman looks like she is having a blast as a landlord straight out of Dickens, and it should come as no surprise that Grant is a hoot as an Oompa-Loompa.  The staging of the musical numbers is effervescent (I particularly enjoyed the use of a large balloon bouquet) and I loved the juxtaposition between the drab and dreary real world and Wonka's colorful imagination in the costumes and production design.  Both Marilyn and I were enchanted by this movie and I think it is perfect for families this holiday season.