Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)


Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Director: Mel Stuart
USA 1971
100 min


Nobody in the world has had the chance to set their foot in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory for many many years, since he closed it for visitors after people trying to steal his secret recepies.

However, one day Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder) stunns the world by hiding five golden tickets for a factory tour in his chocolate bars, and a craze is breaking out. Everyone wants to have on of the golden tickets, both children and adults!



A poor boy named Charlie (Peter Ostrum), who is so short of money that bying a chocolate bar causes his grandfather (Jack Albertson) not being able to by tobacco, has the fantastic luck to win one of the tickets and brings his grandfather to the chocolate factory tour.

Willy Wonka and his chocolate factory shows to be beyond everybody's imagination, and one after one the children faces milder disasters due to their curiosity and greed.




Scene: The psychedelic boat trip in Willy Wonka's factory.




The moral of this weird and colourful saga is not too hard to guess - Do not spoil your children, turning them into little repulsive monsters. And that, of course, the secret behind Willy Wonka's glorious chocolate will remain a secret by all means necessary.

The film is really wonderful, as all drug inspired children's movies from the 1970's are. Too bad, though, is that there is only one song in the entire film that is good, and that is of course The Oompa Loompa song. All the other songs were just uninspired, brought the tempo down and wouldn't be able to remember even if one pulled my nails out.
Well, grandpa's song when he gets out of bad isn't exactly bad either, but I sure as hell don't remember it.
Otherwise - fabulously sick film that everyone should see at least once a year. To keep the ecstacy of the mind alive.


Scene: The Oompa Loompa song.





Quotes:


Mr. Turkentine: I've just decided to switch our Friday schedule to Monday, which means that the test we take each Friday on what we learned during the week will now take place on Monday before we've learned it. But since today is Tuesday, it doesn't matter in the slightest. Pencils ready!


Violet Beauregarde: Well they can't be real people.
Willy Wonka: Well of course they're real people.
Mr. Salt: Stuff and nonsense.
Willy Wonka: No, Oompa Loompas.
The Group: Oompa Loompas?
Willy Wonka: From Loompaland.
Mrs. Teevee: Loompaland? There's no such place.
Willy Wonka: Excuse me, dear lady...
Mrs. Teevee: Mr. Wonka, I am a teacher of geography.
Willy Wonka: Oh, well then you know all about it and what a terrible country it is. Nothing but desolate wastes and fierce beasts. And the poor little Oompa Loompas were so small and helpless, they would get gobbled up right and left. A Wangdoodle would eat ten of them for breakfast and think nothing of it. And so, I said, "Come and live with me in peace and safety, away from all the Wangdoodles and Hornswogglers and Snozzwangers and rotten Vermicious Knids."
Mr. Salt: Snozzwangers? Vermicious Knids? What kind of rubbish is that?
Willy Wonka: I'm sorry, but all questions must be submitted in writing. And so, in the greatest of secrecy I transported the entire population of Oompa Loompas to my factory here.


Willy Wonka: The strawberries taste like strawberries. The snozzberries taste like snozzberries.
Veruca Salt: Snozzberries? Who ever heard of a snozzberry?
Willy Wonka: We are the music makers... and we are the dreamers of dreams.



4 comments:

Abe Lucas said...

I remember seeing this as a child and being mesmerized by Charlie's hometown. It definitely wasn't America, I thought, and I was captivated by that more than anything else! My introduction to the "Europe" of the movies in a time period I've become quite interested in during recent years. The early 1970s has its own feel and vibe. I won't go into it here...

Lolita of the Classics said...

C.K. Dexter Haven:
Well, it certainly shows America from another perspective! Not as badly as the Soviet propaganda I posted earlier, though.
C.K. - you can always feel free to write how much you want here. At least I will read it! But I will keep digging in your fabulous blog.

Anonymous said...

173 posts with movies stills here:

http://doarcodavelha.blogspot.com/search/label/stills

Some you already saw, but maybe you find some new stuff.

Lolita of the Classics said...

Manuel:
Thank you! I will probably steal a lot of them later on!