Wonka, the prequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, weaves a magical story of delicious delights and the constant struggle between good and … human greed. Timothée Chalamet, of dark, sandy Dune, plays the opposite here, a bright, energetic, wide-eyed, optimistic soul who longs to share his gift with the world: chocolate. But it’s 1934, and the European city he arrives in already has a Chocolate Cartel who are hellbent on squelching any division of their power and therefore set their sights on Wonka as the enemy.
Director Paul King, who co-wrote the script, has a wealth of actors to work with like Keegan-Michael Key, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, Hugh Grant, and Olivia Coleman, as well as newcomer Calah Lane (This is Us). But the audience is drawn in by the openness of Chalamet’s Wonka, who skips around town singing, a sort of wide-eyed male Amelia Bedelia who believes everyone must be trustworthy and good. Of course, we know what Wonka doesn’t know (yet), that not everyone is good and not everyone wants to help you out. That’s particularly true of Colman’s Mrs. Scrubitt and her lackey Bleacher (Tom Davis), as well as the businessmen who make up the Cartel and their paid-for police chief (Key). Before too long in the city, the just-arrived, illiterate rube has signed his life away.
This is a prequel though, and we know that Wonka has to rise from nothing to something (before he kind of falls off to launch Chocolate Factory). He will, spreading the gospel of good chocolate, but it’s largely because he draws people to him who want to help him because he’s just a kind soul. Lane’s Noodle, an orphan under the thumb of Scrubitt, becomes his confidant, friend, and sidekick on their mission to liberate chocolate from the Cartel. They’ll sing, dance, and perform magic on their way to making this new world a reality.
Wonka really is a feel-good film that hints at the darkness of the real world without shoving our faces in it. It sets up why chocolate (and candy in general) would matter so much to Wonka, and it reminds us that there is much to be gained from sharing what we love with others. It’s a metaphor for generosity, but if sharing love is the way for a person to grow (and for the world to be changed), it’s hardly a stretch to see the parallels to Jesus’ message: love God, love others, serve, etc. It’s a beautiful film, colorful, bright, and full of song.
If you need a reminder of how joy can change your world, Wonka would be happy to remind you.
