movie review charlie and the chocolate factory

'Chocolate' has creepy center

The so-called "chocolate factory" of Willy Wonka (above) does not, in fact, manufacture chocolate exclusively, but other kinds of sugary confections as well.

Now this is strange. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" succeeds in spite of Johnny Depp 's performance, which should have been the high point of the movie. Depp, an actor of considerable gifts, has never been afraid to take a chance, but this time he takes the wrong one. His Willy Wonka is an enigma in an otherwise mostly delightful movie from Tim Burton , where the visual invention is a wonderment.

The movie is correctly titled. Unlike " Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory " (1971), which depends on Gene Wilder's twinkling air of mystery, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is mostly about -- Charlie. Young Charlie Bucket ( Freddie Highmore ) is so plucky and likable, and comes from such an eccentric and marvelous household, that the wonders inside the chocolate factory are no more amusing than everyday life at the Bucket residence.

The Buckets live in a house that leans crazily in all directions, and seems to have been designed by Dr. Caligari along the lines of his cabinet. The family is very poor. Charlie sleeps in a garret that is open to the weather, and his four grandparents all sleep (and live, apparently) in the same bed, two at one end, two at the other. His mother (Helena Bonham Carter) maintains the serenity of the home, while his father ( Noah Taylor ) seeks employment. Grandpa Joe ( David Kelly ) remembers the happy decades when he and everyone else in the neighborhood worked in the chocolate factory.

Alas, 15 years before the story begins, Willy Wonka dismissed his employees and locked his factory gates. Yet the world still enjoys Wonka products; how does Willy produce them? One day, astonishingly, Wonka announces a contest: For the five lucky children who find golden tickets in their Wonka Bars, the long-locked factory gates will open, and Willy will personally escort them through the factory. A special surprise is promised for one of them. Of course Charlie wins one of the tickets, not without suspense.

This stretch of the film has a charm not unlike " Babe " or the undervalued " Babe: Pig in the City ." A metropolis is remade to the requirements of fantasy. Tim Burton is cheerfully inventive in imagining the city and the factory, and the film's production design, by Alex McDowell, is a wonder. David Kelly, as Grandpa Joe, is a lovable geezer who agrees to accompany Charlie to the factory; you may remember him racing off naked on a motorcycle in " Waking Ned Devine " (1998). And young Freddie Highmore, who was so good opposite Depp in " Finding Neverland ," is hopeful and brave and always convincing as Charlie.

The problem is that this time, he finds Neverland. Johnny Depp may deny that he had Michael Jackson in mind when he created the look and feel of Willy Wonka, but moviegoers trust their eyes, and when they see Willy opening the doors of the factory to welcome the five little winners, they will be relieved that the kids brought along adult guardians. Depp's Wonka -- his dandy's clothes, his unnaturally pale face, his makeup and lipstick, his hat, his manner -- reminds me inescapably of Jackson (and, oddly, in a certain use of the teeth, chin and bobbed hairstyle, of Carol Burnett ).

The problem is not simply that Willy Wonka looks like Michael Jackson; it's that in a creepy way we're not sure of his motives. The story of Willy and his factory has had disturbing undertones ever since it first appeared in Roald Dahl's 1964 book (also named after Charlie, not Willy). Nasty and frightening things happen to the children inside the factory in the book and both movies; perhaps Willy is using the tour to punish the behavior of little brats, while rewarding the good, poor and decent Charlie. (How does it happen that each of the other four winners illustrates a naughty childhood trait? Just Willy's good luck, I guess.)

We see the wondrous workings of the factory in the opening titles, a CGI assembly-line sequence that swoops like a roller-coaster. When the five kids and their adult guardians finally get inside, their first sight is a marvel of imagination: A sugary landscape of chocolate rivers, gumdrop trees and (no doubt) rock candy mountains. Behind his locked doors, Willy has created this fantastical playground for -- himself, apparently. As the tour continues, we learn the secret of his work force: He uses Oompa Loompas, earnest and dedicated workers all looking exactly the same and all played, through a digital miracle, by the vaguely ominous Deep Roy . We're reminded of Santa's identical helpers in " The Polar Express ."

It is essential to the story that the bad children be punished. Their sins are various; Veruca Salt ( Julia Winter ) is a spoiled brat; Violet Beauregarde (Annasophia Robb) is a competitive perfectionist; Mike Teavee ( Jordan Fry ) approaches the world with the skills and tastes he has learned through video games, and Augustus Gloop ( Philip Wiegratz ) likes to make a little pig out of himself.

All of these children meet fates appropriate to their misdemeanors. I might be tempted to wonder if smaller children will find the movie too scary, but I know from long experience with the first film that kids for some reason instinctively know this is a cautionary tale, and that even when a character is suctioned up by a chocolate conduit, all is not lost.

Charlie and his grandfather join wide-eyed in the tour, and there are subplots, especially involving Violet Beauregarde, before the happy ending. What is especially delightful are the musical numbers involving the Oompa Loompas, who seem to have spent a lot of time studying Hollywood musicals. The kids, their adventures and the song and dance numbers are so entertaining that Depp's strange Willy Wonka is not fatal to the movie, although it's at right angles to it.

What was he thinking of? In "Pirates of the Caribbean" Depp was famously channeling Keith Richards , which may have primed us to look for possible inspirations for this performance. But leaving " Pirates " aside, can anyone look at Willy Wonka and not think of Michael Jackson? Consider the reclusive lifestyle, the fetishes of wardrobe and accessories, the elaborate playground built by an adult for the child inside. What's going on here? Bad luck that the movie comes out just as the Jackson trial has finally struggled to a conclusion.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

• Noah Taylor as Mr. Bucket
• Julia Winter as Veruca Salt
• Deep Roy as Oompa Loompa
• Helena Bonham-Carter as Mrs. Bucket
• Jordan Fry as Mike Teavee
• AnnaSophia Robb as Violet
• Philip Wiegratz as Augustus Gloop
• James Fox as Mr. Salt
• Christopher Lee as Dr. Wonka
• Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka
• Freddie Highmore as Charlie Bucket
• David Kelly as Grandpa Joe
• Missi Pyle as Mrs. Beauregarde

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Movie Review: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

• General Disdain
• Movie Reviews
• 8 responses
• --> September 4, 2005

There are few movies that I watch every time they are rerun on TBS. “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” is one of those movies. So you can understand my initial hesitation when I heard that it was remade and released as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory .

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a story about purity and the idea that good things will eventually go to the deserving. A basic feel-good movie. This movie carries on the feeling of its predecessor, only in a slightly more bizarre way. The movie is very dark and quirky. I almost felt as if Tim Burton (the director) used the “Batman” set for this movie. He must have had the music soundtrack of “Batman” laying around too because it is dark and ominous as well.

What livens Charlie and the Chocolate Factory up is the, once again brilliant, performance by Johnny Depp. Without a doubt this man is one the top performer of our times. He plays an eccentric, lonely and obviously off-kilter Willie Wonka to a tee. How strange of man Mr. Wonka truly is. He reminded me of Edward Scissorhands, only without the scissors.

The rest of the movie is relatively fun to watch. In one scene, they actually trained squirrels to open walnuts for the movie! The Oompa Loompas are always a welcome treat too, even if their songs aren’t as fun as in the original.

Personally, I would recommend one to see “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.” It is clearly more light-hearted to watch. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory wasn’t made for the family to watch. Instead it was made for Tim Burton to do another exercise in creating strange, dark worlds inhabited by strange, dark people.

Tagged: candy , children , novel adaptation , remake

I'm an old, miserable fart set in his ways. Some of the things that bring a smile to my face are (in no particular order): Teenage back acne, the rain on my face, long walks on the beach and redneck women named Francis. Oh yeah, I like to watch and criticize movies.

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'Movie Review: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)' have 8 comments

September 13, 2005 @ 9:13 am Nashtradomus

I took the extra step to watch the original before I went ahead and watched the remade version. Apparently I did have a lot of downtime to watch them both and some needed patience. This delightfully creepy 2005 remake left me asking my wife “what the hell just happened?”. It’s a Burton and Depp collaboration at its absolute weirdest. Depp’s performance was surprisingly empty though, not throughly getting into the absolute depth of Willy Wonka, which is a just a lonely lonely man and his chocolate factory. Burton’s newly fresh interpretations of the 5 golden ticket winners are hilarious and the very specific characteristics and personalities set for each of them worked well with the new remake. This is no sugarcoated musical. You’ll understand THAT with the opening credits, the 70s version opening with the makings of beautiful creamy chocolates bursted with absolute innocence, while the Burton’s CCF was with steel ridden machines and rectangle blocks of dark chocolates made with maddening precision and hard lines, with the orchestra raging with dark passion. But to compare these two movies would be comparing two absolutely random objects, like a notepad and rollerbades. it just doesn’t make any sense. The movies are so different from each other. Though i do still prefer the original version, it was a nice relief of not having every single character break into a 10 minutes song every scene, and the childrens characters were a little underdeveloped. Burtons version probably scored higher on the laughs, the overall look, the development of characters, and a storyline that didn’t follow such a predictable road, but what it does lack that the original had, was honesty. If anything disappointed me, it was the fact that the newly created Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was so commercial, and though it delivered its goods, it delivered it with all talk and no soul. Yes, and the original oompa loompas were indisputably better than Burtons version. Indisputably better. I rate this movie B.

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September 13, 2005 @ 9:08 pm Mr. Gold

Well said. Although, it was interesting to see a 180-degree twist on such an eclectic character, I prefer a more light-hearted and entertaining Willie Wonka. It is clear Tim Burton has dark, convoluted, institutionalized vision of the world. I just happen to think it is better suited for movies like Batman, Sleepy Hollow and The Nightmare Before Christmas. . .

September 14, 2005 @ 10:52 am Nashtradomus

You actually agreed with me?! Thats fresh.

September 14, 2005 @ 2:12 pm Mr. Gold

It pained me to do it. . .

August 11, 2007 @ 3:36 am Aspie182

Ironic that your ratings icons are pieces of crap, because that is what this film did to the Gene Wilder adaptation: crapped on it from an almighty height. It is not a coincidence that Dahl was reluctant to let Hollywood near his writings again after that piece of saccharine garbage which still haunts my school-related nightmares hit the silver screen. Burton and Depp quite apparently “get” Roald Dahl a lot better than an overwhelming majority of people presuming to review this film apparently do.

September 29, 2008 @ 11:07 am A Person

I think that the Tim Burton version was very good. It will never make me feel the same feeling of nostalgia I get from “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”, but it’s still good. This version was closer to the book and was a lot darker in some areas, but Wonka in the film wasn’t as distrbing as the Gene Wilder version.

Still, I think people need to grow up and get over the fact that this version is different. I’m just glad that it didn’t have about a million fart jokes and the characterisation wasn’t shallow and/or stupid. A lot of children’s movies succumb to doing pathetic things like profanity and shallowness.

March 10, 2009 @ 5:22 am snowman!!!

this film is awesome!!!!

November 25, 2012 @ 8:24 am Someone

I have to ask, has anyone ever actually read Roald Dahl? I have no idea why everyone wanted some sugarcoated niceness. That’s not his style, he took his young audience far too seriously to force feed them that crap. That’s why he was so damn popular to begin with! (Btw I love love love the old movie, despite it’s condescending sugarcoated sweetness.) Plus it’s Tim Burton mixed with Roald Dahl. I would hardly go in expecting nice and sweet. -_-

Roald Dahl is a very dark children’s writer to begin with. So I thought Tim Burton captured the fun but unpredictable and dark factory to a T. I, too, would have liked the child actors to have given more heart felt reactions to the world around them. I guess maybe they represent the apathy and desensitization found in today’s youth? Either way, I swear I’ve seen those kids everywhere today and they annoy the hell out of me. So it did make it satisfying to see their comeuppance. And Veruca had a bit of spunk, I liked that.

I will agree with you on the cold feel of the movie. The new film lacked soul and I would have liked it more if it captured the cheesy 70?s charm of the old movie and/or the childlike charm of the book. But I thought it was a pretty cool film and fun to look at. A refreshing change of pace, for me. I give the back story of Wonka a pass since it has Christopher Lee in it. Yay! Sauron (sp?)

The songs, well, I quite enjoyed the Augustus and Veruca songs. I found it was just noise for the Teevee and Violet song, which was disappointing but kind of understandable if you know your “history.”

Tim Burton actually took the “lyrics” directly from the book, they’re just condensed. The old signature songs of the Oompa Loompas everyone seems to adore is actually just the very to the point version. But compared to the book, they’re just sugarcoated niceness and what I call the “very wimpy” version. Though memorable and fun, yeah, it’s rather tame. The Oompa Loompa “songs” in the book are actually rather long, dark and menacing poems (more like rants in poem form, Roald Dahl liked to moralize) describing each child. These very long poems are pretty hard to put to the music that Danny Elfman chose. Since they are very long and image filled cautionary ballads told by the Oompa Loompas, whilst beating on their drums. No, seriously. So I give the team an A for effort, even if they are lost in the faster, noisier songs.

So for all those who couldn’t catch what the Oompa Loompas were saying in the songs, er poems/ballads in the new movie, here’s an explanation.

The Augustus Gloop song obviously makes reference to the greed of the character whilst explaining that the Oompa Loompas would like to boil him for a minute and turn him into fudge as punishment for his gluttony, (You know? For kids!) And to alleviate the misery he’s spread and replace it with likability. Strangely they tell the kids specifically that Augustus will not be harmed, meaning they could just be joking, or implying that Willy Wonka won’t let them enact their preferred punishment on the child. I liked this one in the movie. It was catchy, nice to listen to and a little bit sinister. Just like Roald Dahl.

The Violet song makes reference to the horrific evil known as gum chewing (Roald Dahl’s personal pet peeve I always felt) and tells the story of a woman who could not stop herself from chewing all day long. Until one day, with the heightened strength in her jaw muscles caused by all that chewing, she accidentally chops her tongue out of her mouth and has to live the rest of her life as a mute. (See what I mean about sugarcoated?) The Oompa Loompas make it clear that they wish to help the young Violet before this happens to her, only if she learns her lesson. This one I couldn’t make out in the new movie and is considerably shortened. Disappointing, to say the least. But I certainly couldn’t have turned it into a song, either. So I give Danny props for trying and for a pretty cool beat.

The Veruca Salt song (so dug the Beatles feel to this one) has the Oompa Loompas celebrating the fact that Veruca has fallen down the garbage chute. They make reference to her ugly nature by jokingly saying she will make a whole new set of friends, mainly garbage and that her spoiled nature is truly disgusting (really smells.) They make it clear that the father and mother is to blame and gleefully push him down as well. I liked this one in the movie, I felt it summed up the character perfectly. Nice when you hear it (beautiful on the outside) but with slightly sinister sounding lyrics (horrible on the inside.) This was the best song of the movie, in my opinion.

The Mike Teevee “song” in both movies and book was more rant like than the others and is far less disturbing. For everyone who has ever asked “what’s so bad about watching TV?” when they watched either movie. Well, I think Mike Teevee is actually a representation of what Roald Dahl wanted to accomplish as a children’s author. So it’s no surprise that his song in the old movie is the longest and is the most rant like in the book. His goal was to stop (or at the very least, cut down) the time a child spends watching TV and for them to broaden their mind and imagination by reading books instead. I find that quite an admirable goal. Yeah, the moralizing is quite in your face, but it’s still a worthy goal.

I also find it quite ironic and bitter sweet that the old movie outshines his book. It actually renders the goal of his book meaningless in a way. Because the movie was so successful it makes younger kids want to watch it on TV rather than read about it. (To be fair to his book in this case, it did have to be rather simplistic with little character development for his target audience to really grasp it. I feel he had no real choice but to focus on the story and black and white morality rather than 3 dimensional characters. Younger kids will get that easier.)

Anyway, the Mike Teevee song pretty much explains the whole “TV will rot your brain” speech your parents have probably recited a thousand times to you already. The lyrics explain that the most important thing that “we’ve” every learned about children is we shouldn’t leave them in front of the TV all day. The song explains that although it may keep them quiet whilst you get on with your day, the child would be far better off if you take the TV away completely. It explains their desensitization and says that it renders the child into a brainless zombie, unable to comprehend a Fairytale or story. The Oompa Loompas also gleefully state that if they can’t get Mike Teevee back to his normal size that he frankly deserves it.

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Reviews

While Wilder's Wonka had the pensive perfume of bittersweet chocolate, Depp's Wonka is that weird white chocolate--not really what you have in mind when you want to eat chocolate but can be an acquired taste and definitely part of the culinary craft.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 27, 2023

Credit Burton for going the practical route; it visually grounds the otherwise fantastical film. Surprisingly Depp's unhinged and frequently bizarre performance works more often than not.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Dec 12, 2023

... for all of the flights of fantasy, Burton never quite finds the heartbeat that warmed the original classic with Gene Wilder, partly because this Willy Wonka is so disconnected and distracted, unable to relate to anyone...

Full Review | Aug 19, 2023

Marrying extreme set design and sublime casting... Burton's film showcases his usual interest in gothic effects and the original Willy Wonka's psychedelia.

Full Review | Feb 3, 2020

A delightful treat filled with stunning visuals and a lot of fun performances, headlined by Johnny Depp.

Full Review | Original Score: A- | Nov 19, 2019

A movie giddily drunk on its own sheer different-ness.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jun 5, 2019

Somehow everything comes up smelling of rose-scented chocolate... Burton outdoes himself and it's the inside of the chocolate factory and its community of singing Oompa-Loompas that scintillate.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 25, 2019

By fleshing out the backgrounds of the factory's most peculiar characters and allowing Dahl's unique mixture of charm and menace to guide him, Burton has created a film that is sharp, scary, and, surprisingly, quite heartwarming.

Full Review | Feb 6, 2018

It was once a place for pure imagination. Now, under Tim Burton's care, it's a madhouse again.

Full Review | Original Score: B+ | Nov 12, 2017

Depp, whose Wonka seems to be a cross between Michael Jackson and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari's somnambulist Cesare, delivers an engaging surface performance, though I far prefer the more measured madness of Gene Wilder's interpretation.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Mar 4, 2015

Predictably twisted scenery, a bland story, a horrible alteration of Wonka, and an ending that's anything but pleasing...

Full Review | Sep 8, 2012

Adults and kids alike will take macabre delight in the punishment of naughty children. Burton and co make smart and funny additions to this classic tale.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | May 27, 2011

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is quite simply, wonderful; a brilliantly imagined story that will win old fans and new fans alike.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 26, 2011

The Nut Room scene, complete with squirrels, is unreservedly brilliant, a tour de force of electronic wizardry.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 13, 2008

One of the best family films in a while and one of the year's stronger films to date.

Full Review | Jan 15, 2008

Poised to become a new cult classic to replace the old one.

Full Review | Original Score: A | Sep 24, 2007

The material plays to [Burton's] strengths ... he's more interesting as a stylist than a storyteller.

Full Review | Original Score: B | Sep 20, 2007

Depp's Wonka exudes none of the gravity required for the role. It's as though he didn't take the role seriously. Rather than an intimidating candyman teaching brats a lesson, this Wonka is simply a freak.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Jul 14, 2007

Possibly the first Hollywood movie to design a fairy tale of sorts around globalization, the film conjures a mythic Brit multinational instead of the usual imperial realm, asa basically high caloric magical kingdom.

Full Review | Apr 19, 2007

There's a lot of cool stuff on display here, but it lacks the consistent creative vision--or, if you like, the pure imagination--of the original film.

Full Review | Mar 1, 2007

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Parents' guide to, charlie and the chocolate factory (2005).

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 33 Reviews
• Kids Say 150 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

By Cynthia Fuchs , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Bright, spirited, and edgy version of Willy Wonka.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a colorful kids' adventure that -- like the book -- includes some intense scenes. Obnoxious children are ridiculed visually and in words by the Oompa Loompas and dispatched. One girl blows up into a giant blueberry, another boy is sucked into a…

Why Age 8+?

Some physical and emotional abuses of mean children; Willy has mildly scary flas

At least one use of "hell."

Any Positive Content?

Charlie demonstrates curiosity and integrity, as well as strong love for his fam

Several kids and parents are repeatedly rude, narcissistic, and unpleasant, but

Characters gain insight into lots of different personalities and backgrounds.

Parents need to know that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a colorful kids' adventure that -- like the book -- includes some intense scenes. Obnoxious children are ridiculed visually and in words by the Oompa Loompas and dispatched. One girl blows up into a giant blueberry, another boy is sucked into a tube, the other girl is attacked and pinned down by squirrels who proceed to throw her down a garbage chute. In one early scene, dolls burn up and their eyeballs pop out. The movie is much closer in dark tone to the book than its cinematic predecessor. Willy Wonka himself seems to disdain families.

To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Violence & Scariness

Some physical and emotional abuses of mean children; Willy has mildly scary flashbacks of his dentist father, featuring horrible headgear for his braces.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Role Models

Charlie demonstrates curiosity and integrity, as well as strong love for his family.

Positive Messages

Several kids and parents are repeatedly rude, narcissistic, and unpleasant, but Charlie is a bright spot.

Educational Value

Where to watch, videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (33)
• Kids say (150)

Based on 33 parent reviews

Age appropriate is the real question, regardless of my enjoyment or lack there of.

Am i the only one, what's the story.

In CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, young Charlie Bucket ( Freddie Highmore ) wins a chance to tour Willy Wonka's ( Johnny Depp ) chocolate factory, with four other children, when he purchases a chocolate bar that has a "golden ticket" inside. The group of children and guardians tour the factory, where they will see the top-secret, magical processes by which Willy Wonka makes his delicious candy. Specifically, they see the Oompa Loompas (all played by a digitally multiplied and reduced Deep Roy ) make the candy and mete out judgments against misbehaving children.

Is It Any Good?

Portrayed in broad, cartoonish strokes, the kids' cruelties in the film serve as comedy, though they're not always funny, and each child-parent set reveals its dysfunction. Indeed, the non-Charlie children are so loathsome that their various "punishments" seem deserved. These are staged as song-and-dance numbers by the Oompa Loompas, modeled after scenes that some parents will recall from other venues, for instance, Esther Williams musicals, the Who's guitar-smashing rock shows, Hair , Psycho , 2001: A Space Odyssey , The Fly , and even Tim Burton and Depp's Edward Scissorhands , in Willy's flashbacks to his troubled relationship with his dentist father ( Christopher Lee ). There are some current-day references, some of which fail miserably (the Oprah appearance comes to mind), while others are merely annoying and serve to break the film's dreamlike power.

The film's strangeness is often fun, in particular Depp's white-faced makeup, frisky line readings (check his explanation: "Everything in this room is eatable; even I'm eatable, but that's called cannibalism and frowned on in most societies"), and weird affect. But the narrative rhythms are uneven, and Charlie, especially, is undeveloped, more an emblem of goodness than a full-on character. While the novel maintains a more or less steady focus through Charlie's perspective of all these crazy goings-on, the film is less coherent. It skips about to cover multiple storylines, including Willy's memories and the four bad children's separate exploits, all eventually pulled together by Charlie's good-boy summary of what matters most, his cozy family.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the characters' relationships with their parents in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory . How do Willy's difficulties with his dentist father affect him as an adult? How does his fear of his father's disapproval lead him to rebel? How does Charlie's good relationship with his parents and grandparents allow him to feel self-confident, trusting, and generous?

How does the film compare Charlie (as the good child) with bad children (rich, spoiled, greedy, materialistic)? How does the movie show that selfish, silly parents produce selfish, silly children?

How does Charlie demonstrate curiosity and integrity in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ? Why are these important character strengths ?

Movie Details

• In theaters : July 15, 2005
• On DVD or streaming : November 8, 2005
• Cast : Freddie Highmore , Helena Bonham Carter , Johnny Depp
• Director : Tim Burton
• Inclusion Information : Female actors
• Studio : Warner Bros.
• Genre : Family and Kids
• Topics : Magic and Fantasy , Adventures , Book Characters
• Character Strengths : Curiosity , Integrity
• Run time : 115 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG
• MPAA explanation : quirky situations, action, and mild language
• Last updated : April 23, 2024

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Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

• Cast & crew

User reviews

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

The fabulous return of willy wonka.

• Jul 4, 2005

Burton Studied the Book's Original Illustrations

• thurberdrawing
• Jul 17, 2005

Little girl? Don't touch that squirrel's nuts! It'll make him crazy!

• lastliberal
• Aug 10, 2009

Nothing could be sweeter...

• Jul 11, 2005

Great Childhood Memories

• denuwan-27382
• Jan 24, 2021

A mixed bag

• Jithindurden
• Dec 6, 2023

Legendary to any kid from the 2000's

• freidenbergdavid
• Feb 5, 2021

An interesting remake that actually does stand alone

• Apr 12, 2010

Burton does it again !

Rather disappointing effort from tim burton....

• TheLittleSongbird
• Jun 14, 2009

Just does not hold up to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

• Nov 9, 2005

Mmmmmm.....Chocolate.

• Jul 19, 2009
• manitobaman81
• Aug 19, 2014

Not bad, but not good, either...

• Jul 14, 2005

Depp Fails to Match Wilder

• Sep 4, 2006

I can't shake longings for Wilder and tangerine faces...

• Two_Pieces_of_Christina
• Jul 16, 2007

Epic for All of time

• Dec 5, 2020

Depp has done it again as Willy Wonka. Yes my children

• moviesfilmsreviewsinc
• Mar 1, 2021

Another magical Tim Burton trip!

• Jul 31, 2005
• boecksimone
• Nov 9, 2020

Interesting but no Emotion

• got333got22
• Oct 28, 2006

This film is just wrong and horrible

• acehembling99
• Jul 3, 2006

As Good As I Hoped It Would Be

• ccthemovieman-1
• Jan 14, 2006

Should Have Been Better

• Jul 17, 2006

Wonkatrastrophe

• Jul 19, 2005

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