WONKA

Everyone knows the name, Willy Wonka. He first appeared in Roald Dahl’s story in 1964 and a subsequent story in 1972. Roald Dahl has been one of the most popular storytellers, especially for younger audiences, with such titles as Matilda, The Witches, James and the Giant Peach…

But, Willy Wonka is known far more widely than his readers with the 1971, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, with the engaging Gene Wilder, and the popular songs, Pure Imagination, and the Oompa Loompa song (both in this present film but not The Candy Man). Tim Burton did a reinvention of Willy Wonka with Johnny Depp in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Now, here is a prequel. Where did Willy Wonka come from, where did he learn how to make chocolate, his relationship with his mother, his ambitions to open a chocolate store, a nicely naive young man setting out on an adventure. The screenplay actually takes a number of issues from the original story, especially the villainous chocolate cartel entrepreneurs and their opposition to Willy Wonka.

So, quite a lot of plot for a prequel. However, this new film is also designed as a musical, rather reminiscent of the film versions of Broadway musicals (and, most probably, Wonka is destined for Broadway and beyond). The new songs are pleasant even if not so memorable as Pure Imagination, sung nicely by the various characters with lyrics that illustrate their characters and the situations – the most memorable, perhaps, involving the repetition and the beat of the word, Scrub.

The film has been co-written and directed by Paul King who became a great favourite with his very pleasing and entertaining Paddington films. He brings the same sensibility to Wonka.

And, to be the new Willy Wonka, here is Timothee Chalamet who has already proven himself as a substantial actor on screen presence in dramas and comedies but, especially as Paul Atreides in Dune – and Dune 2 scheduled for release in 2024. He is quite small, very young-looking, a blend of the innocent and the ambitious, remembering his mother (a cameo by Sally Hawkins), generous, but shocked to discover the greed of a venal world. And the tag, “the greedy always beat the needy” often repeated throughout the film.

There is something rather Dickensian about the early sequences, Wonka encountering an ultra-Dickensian landlady played by Olivia Coleman. And Wonka is sentenced to a long imprisonment below the boarding house, a workhouse laundry, with a different assortment of penalised characters, especially a young girl, Noodle, who tries to save Wonka. Amongst those down below is the former accountant of the cartel, played by Jim Carter, liberated from Downton Abbey.

Willy Wonka has a chest full of ingredients for chocolate, a magician’s capacity for multiplying chocolates with the most exquisite tastes and physical and psychological effects, leading to a lot of comedy turns. He concocts a plan to escape from the laundry with Noodles’ help, then with the help of the others, to find the cooked books of the cartel and expose them. However, they have their allies, the chief of police, the chocoholic Keegan-Michael Key (and his fat suit, fatter suit, fattest suit after his choc indulgence), and the chocoholic priest, Rowan Atkinson this time with no weddings but one funeral.

The cartel is sinister, led by the aggressive Patterson Joseph, aided by Matt Lucas with an orange wig which falls off, and Matthew Baynton who chokes whenever he tries to say the word “poor” and gags when others see it. They are due for a comeuppance.

And, the Oompa Loompas? Well worth awaiting the arrival of a miniature Hugh Grant as Lofty, resentful that Wonka has stolen his special beans and demanding repayment. Hugh Grant has been sending himself up in recent films and obviously is enjoying this escapade, a heroic rescue for Wonka and Noodles – and a kind of MC entertainment during the final credits!

Roald Dahl is often quite dark in his stories. Even though Wonka is very light, there are the three villains, there is the corrupt chief of police and priest, and a dire attempt on the life of Willy Wonka and Noodle.

This is quite a lavishly produced entertainment, incorporating happy memories of Willy Wonka from the past, drawing us into his extraordinary chocolate world yet again.

Reviewed by Fr. Peter Malone, MSC

US/UK, 2023, 116 minutes, Colour.
Timothee Chalamet, Calaha Lane, Hugh Grant, Olivia Coleman, Keegan-Michael Key, Jim Carter, Patterson Joseph, Matt Lucas, Matthew Baynton, Freya Parker, Rakhee Thakrar, Natasha Rothwell, Rich Fulcher, Colin O’Brien, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, Rufus Jones, Tom Davis, Kobna Holdrook-Smith.
Directed by Paul King

More Information about the film.

LEO

Leo is a benign lizard, who learns that a lizard’s lifespan lasts till 75 and his animal friends do a calculation that he is now 74. Leo and his turtle friend, Squirtle, are pets in the classroom in a primary school. As they chat to each other, voicing their observations on the new children at the beginning of the school year, we realise that they are quite astute judges of character, able to read the children very quickly, discern the qualities, comment on the burdens each child is carrying.

Actually, this is quite amusing, all in rather bright animation, quite an amount of singing, even in the opening credits, throughout the film, entertaining jingle kind of music with lyrics that comment on the characters.

And Leo is a funny-voiced Adam Sandler. Squirtle is voiced by Bill Burr.

Young children will be able to identify with the school group here, each child quite idiosyncratic – but about to discover something of their real selves with the aid of Leo. Leo is a benign do-gooder. The class teacher goes on maternity leave and a harridan arrives in her place, out with technology, in with huge books, discipline, demerits… And ruling that a child has to take one of the pets home for the weekend.

They choose Leo and are surprised to discover that he talks. And, he befriends them, challenges them, supports them, gives them a better vision of themselves – but they are to keep it all secret. A good part of the film shows Leo and his techniques, the effect on the children, their better selves.

There are some humorous situations, funny characters – and, of course, some mildly rude jokes. And there is a very active drone character!

There are quite some complications with the new teacher, Leo even having an encounter with her, remembering her when she was a girl at school. But, she has to be the villain of the piece and even with some happy self-discoveries, and the children succeeding in a competition and meriting a special outing, she decides to get rid of Leo, to fulfil his dream of visiting the Everglades, abandoning him there (and some funny sequences with fierce animals, friendly animals, and Leo a bit sophisticated for this kind of jungle life).

So, this is a happy film, happy film for children, a nicely challenging film for parents and teachers, and with the hope of a better world always possible.

Adam Sandler produced this film and his wife and two daughters voice some of the characters.

Reviewed by Fr. Peter Malone, MSC

More info about LEO

US, 2023, 102 minutes, Colour.
Voices of: Adam Sandler, Bill Burr, Cecily Strong, Jason Alexander,
Rob Schneider, Alison Strong, Jo Koy, Sadie Sandler, Sunny Sandler.
Directed by Robert Marianetti, Robert Smigel, David Wachtenheim

CATS

UK, 2019, 110 minutes, Colour.

Francesca Hayward, Judi Dench, and, Idris Elba, Ian McKellen, Jason Derullo, Naoimh Morgan, Laurie Davidson, Robbie Fairchild, Danny Collins.

Directed by Tom Hooper.

For audiences who enjoyed Cats in the theatre, here is a great opportunity to see it all in close-up. The camera roams over the fantasy set, a blend of London’s Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square, the interiors of the derelict Egyptian Theatre, an opportunity to appreciate the dancing skills, to enjoy the music, to delight in the songs, many familiar, but new interpretations by the performers.

Poet TS Elliot, in whimsical mood, with his 1939 Old Possums Book of Practical Cats meets Andrew Lloyd Webber drawing on his range of musical versatility.

This reviewer was not drawn in by Cats when seeing it in the theatre over 30 years ago. Then there was the jolt, some lyrics by Old Deuteronomy (this time rendered more forcefully by Judi Dench in the role): a reprimand to those who ‘have had the experience but missed the meaning’. (And followed by some poetic ruminations on the nature of experience, on the nature of memory, on the nature of meaning.)

For audiences not immediately drawn into the world of Cats, there would be some advice at least to give it a go. After accepting this world of felines, some performance and intrigue, it may be the visuals, the look, the music, some striking performances that entice the unwilling or the suspicious.

Central to Cats is the stranger, Victoria, who comes across the group of Jellicle Cats on the night of the audition when the winner of the competition will get the prize of a new life. Victoria is played by newcomer Francesca Hayward, skilled dancing, pleasing singing, a charming look and presence. And she also gets the opportunity to sing Memories.

While we are getting sorted with which cat is which, we are treated to some incivility with Macavity, sinister, plotting, mean-minded, easily able to disappear in a puff of pink smoke (Idris Elba). There is some humour with Rebel Wilson doing a variation on her Rebel Wilson thing and then James Corden very enjoyable as the large Bustopher Jones.

But, there is the beginning of a wonderful performance by Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella, the exiled cat who had her day in the sun, went off with Macavity, abandoned, derelict in the street and hissed at by the cats. And, of course, Grizabella has her day and Jennifer Hudson’s rendition of Memories, twice, is a powerful showstopper.

The good part of the enjoyment is recognising some of the stars, some unexpected, doing their turns, especially in Ian McKellen has Gus, the theatre cat, giving an enjoyable interpretation of Elliot. The audience has to wait until towards the end when Taylor Swift appears. And, surprisingly, there is Ray Winstone well-known for tough roles and thugs, bringing his rough accent and tone to the villainous Growltiger.

And, of course, there is the delight in seeing and listening to Judi Dench (aged 84 at the time), shuffling as Old Deuteronomy, encouraged by the other cats, the reigning queen of the cats in her wisdom, brought to life, moved by Grizabella, and, looking at us the audience, having the final lyrics of alert and warning.

For lovers of words, there is the increasing number of words that rhyme with cat or cats, even cats with spats!

The film was directed by Tom Hooper who won an Oscar for The King’s Speech, who had a long history in television series and went on to direct the film version of Les Miserables.

This is certainly a way of bringing musical theatre to the screen.

Reviewed by Fr. Peter Malone, MSC

More info in wikipedia

Questions for film discussion, going over the film sequences.

** Taylor Swifts Singing “Macavity” **