Is the new "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" as dark as the old one?

[praisefor3]

We are recording it on ABC right now but I was never a big fan of the old one. There were too many cynical moments. Is the new one as "dark" as the old one?

[Jenny in Atl]

I would say darker... but for me, not dark enough. I loved the bk and neither of the movies came close. But I do love Johnny Depp, so I'll watch again just for the eye candy :p

[Doran]

I don't think there's any way around it. I don't find it disturbing, personally, but I don't think you'll like this one any better than the first if you found it too dark.

Doran

[AmyinPA]

Just saw it on TV and commented to my dh how creepy it is...and yet intriguing. Bizarre.

[mcconnellboys]

It's got Johnny Dep in it, doesn't it?

Regena

[imeverywoman]

It was just too strange feeling....

[j.griff]

Um, what was "dark" about the first one? The second one definitely has it's gray moments, LOL- the part with the puppets ROFLOL- that was DISTURBING but I was ROFLOL at it. Me thinks me is too dark to see darkness any more~~~~ mwahahahahahahahaha.

(o.k., just ignore me I'm being a doofus :D )

[Ellie]

although it is more faithful to the book than the first one. And the book itself is rather dark, don't you think? I liked Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Johnny Depp) much better than Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Gene Wilder).

[Mekanamom]

Well... I'll never look at whipped cream the same way again. ;)

[Chris in VA]

It's dark and creepy, and implies Willy Wonka deliberately set the other kids up. Well, yes, perhaps he did (according to the book), but it's pretty evident in this movie.
They also add in that Johnny Depp (I mean Willy) was basically raised by an abusive, rather borderline dentist father (whom he makes amends with at the end). Of couse, the Wilder version added a lot, too.
Tim Burton is just so...Creepy.
But the set decoration is cool, and the glass elevator is majorly cool.

[GothicGyrl]

Tim Burton is my god. :) This version is almost totally true to the book, more so than the Wilder version and I love that version too.

Dark? Maybe so only in the sense that it is soooooooooo much like the book. The kids are more true to what they are supposed to be (yet with a modern twist, like Mike TV plays video games instead), however Depp totally pulls off Wonka.

And I wouldn't call his father "abusive". I'd call him pushy and very much set in his old dentist ways. Twisted a little, but not abusive.

Umm puppets? There were NO puppets in this one or the Wilder version. In the Wilder version, all of the Oompa's where played by different Little People. In this one, they were played by one man, Deep Roy, and computer generated. It was ALL him. He did the singing, dancing, all of it.

This one is absolutely spot on. But then again, I'm a fan of the Wilder version too. Of course, if you did not like the Wilder version, you will not like this one. I can't imagine anyone not liking Wonka or OZ, but that's just me. :) I would so love to see Burton re-do OZ... that would totally rock.

[OnTheBrink]

I think by "puppets" she meant the melting animatronic children at the beginning.

[sdWTMer]

I agree with the others, this one was dark. I liked the older one so much better, but of course, I still haven't read the book. I don't think that I'd like the book! ;-) I guess that I should read it after all.

[Pam "SFSOM" in TN]

I agree with the others, this one was dark. I liked the older one so much better, but of course, I still haven't read the book. I don't think that I'd like the book! ;-) I guess that I should read it after all.

Oh, you'd love the book. The book is delicious. Really.

[OnTheBrink]

I really hated the first one. Those green and orange oopma loompas gave me nightmares as a child. LOL

[GothicGyrl]

And, if you read the book, so much of this version will make sense. :)

It's dark, but that's not a bad thing, IMNSHO.

[j.griff]

You hate that song too? :D
And yes, that's the scene I was talking about- just didn't use the right word- sorry. :)

[JudoMom]

We are recording it on ABC right now but I was never a big fan of the old one. There were too many cynical moments. Is the new one as "dark" as the old one?

I think this one is brilliant. We listened to the book on CD 2 years ago and we all loved it. I didn't want to see the movie because we loved to book so much. But I ended up at Blockbuster with my oldest and he saw it and was so excited, so I gave in.

It was brilliant. It was very true to the book (with a few liberties taken here and there). Depp was incredible. I'm not a movie fan, but actually asked for this one for Christmas that year. I love it, and so do my boys.

[Melinda in VT]

I don't remember the old movie being dark at all, but I haven't seen it recently. I definitely think the new movie is darker.

Not saying that's a bad thing though.

[Lolly]

I didn't want to see the new one. I figured it would be awful. Dd 1 was terrified of the first movie. (I loved it!) She loves horror movies, but hid Willie Wonka. It played tricks with her mind. Something about the blueberry girl upset her terribly.

Saw the second movie anyway. I actually liked it better. Dd1 could even watch it. She didn't really love it, but she liked it okay.

[JFS in IL]

There is one scene where dolls burn and melt - creepy!!!! The burnt/melted dolls show up again briefly in a hospital room at the factory.

[Lorna]

Yes, certainly darker. I really loved it though. The book is dark and the second version was more true in spirit to the book. I loved the additions too; such as the idea that Willy Wonka's father was a dentist. We watched it in a full cinema and our children were the only children there. Most of the audience were university students.

[Chris in VA]

I was just waiting for you to post, Toni! lol
I really am a huge Dahl fan. The Twits is hysterical to me. Of course, I grew up with a dad who was raised in England. It really is my brand of humor.
But you have to admit (you just have to!) that Johnny Depp should never wear a pageboy haircut irl.
ROFL!

[GothicGyrl]

Or false teeth. :) What's funny is he said that he practiced being Wonka on his daughter, the voice, the actions, all of it and if she laughed he kept it.

This version really is spot on and I love it. But like I said, Burton is god to me. ;p

[CookieMonster]

I think it's freaky and weird.
I was so turned off by it that I can't even watch it.
Dark? No, Honey, way beyond that.
Strange. Very Strange. So strange it's not enjoyable.
To me.

[Karin]

Darker. But I don't like Johnny Depp, so I hated that one more. I didn't get into his whole life story (I don't recall that from the book) or like the fact that one man played all the Oompah Loompahs, either. But I'm just plain grumpy on the whole Charlie/Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory thing, so consider my opinion with a grain of salt and some horse seasoning (thinking of Remuda's post right before this one--after I check my old posts I put the threads in thread order, descending, so I don't miss anything new.)

[PiCO]

I love the new Charlie. It's true to the spirit of the book, which is dark. I loved the oompa loompas all being the same person with different voices. The songs were great. I thought the melting dolls was hysterical, but I never liked "It's a Small World After All." I thought the dentist father subtheme was interesting.

I thought the Willy Wonka one was weird and I hated the oompa loompas. Silly songs, silly costumes.

[Scarlett]

When I saw the original as a kid, I was absolutely enthralled with it. I can still remember the 'slack jawed' feeling I had. I didn't think it was creepy at all. NOW they both seem a bit creepy..LOL I don't know why.. But I liked Johnny Depp well enough in the new one. I didn't like the digitalized little people in the new one. I loved, loved loved the little people in the original.

I still break out in 'what do you do when your kid is a brat! You should be ashaaaaamed! But you know who's to blame! The mother and the father.' :D

Oh and ds7 saw the new one in the theater and liked it. Saw the original later on tv and said it was 'ok.' shrug.

[AngelaC]

Yes, this one is definitely weirder. Darker? I'm not sure. Perhaps it may seem darker just because the old one looks so dated. Therefore making it look a little goofy when you watch it today.

However, the what bugged me the most watching this was . . . Johnny Depp's HAIR!!! I mean, who decided to give him a pageboy anyway?

Wow, was that ever bad.

[WendyK]

I think the newer one is darker. Way darker. I didn't even find the first one dark. There is a scene where Charlie greets the kids at the factory and plays his moving figures which then blow up and burn and melt and look like something out of a horror flick.

[Karin]

When I saw the original as a kid, I was absolutely enthralled with it. I can still remember the 'slack jawed' feeling I had. I didn't think it was creepy at all. NOW they both seem a bit creepy..LOL I shrug.

Yes--same here. When my sil gave my kids the old one I thought it would be so much lighter than it was! But since I loved Gene Wilder in The Frisco Kid with Harrison Ford (the part before HF comes on is boring, but the 2 of them together are soooo hilarious, at least to me) I'll kind of stick with him. Even though he was horrid in The Woman in Red or whatever that was called.