Mel Stuart’s take on Roald Dahl’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory may have been usurped in the public’s consciousness by Tim Burton’s curious update from a few years ago, but while the visual invention and superlative effects work caused eyes to pop there was a substantial dearth of the key ingredient present in abundance in the 1971 film – magic.

Charlie Bucket, the boy Dahl placed at the forefront of the source material – here removed from the film’s title, escapes his familial poverty for a day and joins four other children on a tour of the most famous chocolate factory in the world, and meet its eccentric owner – Mr Willy Wonka. While Charlie is almost too twee to bear his innocence and genuine delight in the weird and wonderful rooms of the factory and the dizzying display put on by Wonka places him apart from his fellow golden ticket winners, all of whom meet satisfyingly nasty ends in true Dahl fashion.

It is a light morality tale, dunked in the most sumptuous of children’s wish fulfilment, dusted with some sugary songs and wrapped up in a well told tale with a neat line in the more subversive elements a childhood comprises of, though the sharp edges were dulled in the adaptation. It is, as the song has it, a world of pure imagination and benefits gratly from a brilliant central performance from Gene Wilder, who is as cantankerous, cold, unpredictable and charming as the character Dahl wrote (though the author apparently was not a fan of Stuart’s film) and in walking the line between magician and hermit Wilder mesmerises and delights.

I loved the film as a child and saw it more times than I can recall and when reviewing this DVD I watched it with my two and half year old son who sat in rapt attention breaking out often in a huge smile, a reaction I can remember very well. It’s a timeless story but I knew that already and the look of the film is dated, but only superficially and the reason this film works is that it doesn’t seek to instruct, merely to convey the underlying message with subtlety and humour – life is sweet, but too much too fast can make you sick. I had a lot of fun revisiting it, found myself able to quote the majority of it and felt the distance in my affections between this film and Tim Burton’s version increase greatly.

The 40th anniversary DVD has no special features, despite the existence of a number of documentaries and retrospectives out there. It’s a  shame, but for a cheap film to whip the kids (and the kid in you) into a pre-Easter chocolate haze look no further.

Film: ****~ (4/5)

Disc: ~~~~~ (0/5)

Enter a world of pure imagination this Easter and celebrate the 40^th anniversary of the classic childhood film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, with an extra special copy of the DVD. To celebrate, we’ve five copies of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and the 2005 adaptation, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, up-for-grabs for five lucky readers.

Directed by Mel Stuart and starring the legendary Gene Wilder as the unforgettable and eccentric chocolatier, Willy Wonka, the film has enthused and inspired generations for four decades.  Its mischievous and whimsical narrative captured the hearts and minds of audiences worldwide and firmly established the film as a cult classic that all the family can enjoy again and again.

Whichever version you prefer, there’s something to keep the whole family entertained this Easter…and beyond! One lucky winner can also be in with the chance of winning a £10,000 prize with a Golden Ticket to be found in every copy of the DVD purchased in UK DVD outlets throughout April and May.

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory are available on DVD, Blu-ray and to download. You can order your copies here.

To enter our competition, simply answer the following question using the form below:

Who played the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?

1. Gene Wilder
2. Charlie Bucket
3. Mel Stuart

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 19th April 23.59 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

©2011 Warner Bros. Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

This week sees the release of Fantastic Mr. Fox in the US, an adaptation of the classic Roald Dahl children’s story. Wes Anderson directs. Best known for adult themed, quirky comedy dramas, there is a question over whether he has been able to craft a movie with his unique style of humour that also appeals to a younger audience.

Whilst past Dahl adaptations like Matilda and James and the Giant Peach have been firmly aimed at children, it has been proved that his stories can be made to appeal to both young and old. The brilliant Gene Wilder stars, as we look at 1971′s Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Willy Wonka opens with Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum). The youngest member of a truly working-class family, Charlie lives with his hard-working mother, and two sets of bedridden grandparents. The definition of paupers, they all struggle to exist on little more than cabbage water, with a simple loaf of bread considered a luxury item. Big hearted Charlie works a paper route after school, to contribute what little he can towards his families meagre existence. It’s an ordinary day at school for Charlie when word comes in that Mr Willy Wonka is opening the doors of his factory for one day only. The world famous chocolatier has been a recluse for many years, since a fallout with now rival Slugworth. No-one ever goes in or out of Wonka’s factory, and it’s a mystery how he manages to produce vast volumes of wonderful chocolate.

The whole world goes Wonka mad, as literally millions of bars of chocolate are bought up, everyone hoping to find one of just five lucky golden tickets that entitles the bearer entry to a confectionary paradise. Charlie is no exception, and dares to dream that he has a chance as good as anyone’s, despite not being able to afford more than a couple of bars of Wonka’s favourites. Four lucky children find tickets, could Charlie possibly be number five?

Willy Wonka is almost a game of two halves. Charlie’s under privileged existence, and his dreams of sampling just some of the luxuries others around him take for granted, is heart wrenching. His love for his family, and particularly his Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson) are touching. Charlie inevitably finds his ticket, and the scene where Grandpa Joe staggers out of bed for the first time is genuinely moving, his song ‘I’ve got a golden ticket’ beautiful, despite his lack of a good singing voice. The first thirty minutes of Willy Wonka, the story of a poor hard working young boy achieving his greatest wish, are almost Dickensian.

Then Gene Wilder turns up, and the story is turned on it’s head. What starts off as a story of childhood innocence becomes a cutting look at what is wrong with the ‘youth of today’. Gene Wilder’s song, and the beautifully realised confectionary garden replete with chocolate waterfall are awe inspiring, a children’s fantasy land brought to splendid technicolor life. But despite the brightly coloured scenery, the tale takes a decidedly dark turn. Augustus Gloop’s gluttony, Violet Beauregarde’s passion for gum are their downfall, the greedy and spoilt Veruca Salt and square eyed Mike Teevee also get their just desserts.

Firmly a product of a more innocent time, Willy Wonka is none the less still relevant for our time. Ok, so the idea of the world coming to a stand still for a glorified Cadbury’s World tour is a little out of touch. And the wonderment of seeing people with brightly coloured hair and orange faces is now a mundane experience to anyone who frequents Essex nightclubs. But the concerns over greedy, overweight ASBO teens, obnoxious, addicted to TV are more pressing now than ever. Slugworth’s attempts at industrial espionage are an everyday occurrence in corporate America and Britain. And the idea of promotional chocolate wrappers was ahead of it’s time, today products of all kinds are subject to this style of marketing.

There are some good performances here. Peter Ostrum as Charlie Bucket is almost TOO sickly sweet, and most of the children and parents are passable. But Jack Albertson as Grandpa Joe is wonderfully confident and understated. And the stand out performances by Gregg Kinnear and particularly Julie Dawn Cole as father and daughter Salts far outshine the other members of the tour party. But Gene Wilder owns the screen from his first appearance to the end. Known for great adult comedy roles, it’s perhaps ironic that his greatest performance came as a character in a children’s story.

A touching children’s story with wonderfully written songs, and a darkly comic undertone make Willy Wonka an amazing movie, with much for all ages to enjoy. If Anderson’s Mr. Fox turns out half as good as this, it’ll be well worth watching.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is on general release in the UK now, and opens in the US this Friday 13th November.

Bazmann