Gene Wilder’s turn as Willy Wonka in the 1971 movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was without a doubt brilliant. His best work in a brilliant career, it’s one of the roles he’ll most be remembered for. The movie itself is a work of disturbed genius, a children’s movie that’s on the surface light and happy, but with a dark, devious underbelly.
Since the movie’s great, of course it’s being remade and fans of the original aren’t the only ones opposed to it. Apparently, so is Mr. Wonka. According to IMDB News Funnyman Gene Wilder recently had this to say about the remake: “It's all about money. It's just some people sitting around thinking 'How can we make some more money?' Why else would you remake Willy Wonka? I don't see the point of going back and doing it all over again. I like Johnny Depp, and I appreciate that he has said on record that my shoes will be hard to fill. But I don't know how it will all turn out."
Hey, I’d be a little bitter if the greatest work of my career was being swept aside in favor of a cash-in too. Wilder’s skepticism is justified, and mirrors pretty well the feelings I find myself having about the upcoming movie. Will his fantastic work be forgotten in favor of the latest flavor of the month? Kid’s will no longer see the Gene Wilder version, now they’ll be all about Johnny Depp. Whether the remake is good or not, that’s a shame.
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Gene Wilder’s turn as Willy Wonka in the 1971 movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was without a doubt brilliant. His best work in a brilliant career, it’s one of the roles he’ll most be remembered for. The movie itself is a work of disturbed genius, a children’s movie that’s on the surface light and happy, but with a dark, devious underbelly.
