Mike and Jay are back to talk about the 1971 classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory! If you've only seen the Johnny Depp version from 2005 there is something wrong with you and I feel so very very sorry for you.
@@roberte2945 The 'self-made millionaire' is a lie that relatively wealthy and privileged people tell to justify their increase in wealth and privilege.
@@TWRehab comfort in not being rich, not so much mediocrity. A job, a home, a puppy that loves you... a family if you're lucky. High expectations being destroyed with no guidance can leave one in a depressed, bitter state. Been there.
@@metalnut92 Having said that the number who succeed is far outweighed by the number who probably tried just as hard and for whatever reason failed so I change my mind and have decided you have a point. It's what happens when you reply instinctively before thinking.
That's the coolest interpretation I've read of that. Personally, I just saw it as being from Charlie's perspective--as a poor kid, all he sees is other people enjoying things he can't and there's no visible reason because kids don't focus on the mundane parts of reality, like paying for things. To him, it's a party and he doesn't have an invitation.
5:45 I actually really appreciate that Charlie’s mom doesn’t just blatantly tell him untrue things to motivate him, just tells him pragmatically what’s likely to happen, especially since the character doesn’t know they’re in a movie where this situation is guaranteed, unlike the viewers.
Yeah that's really good. It seems like there's an unspoken requirement for parents to lie to their kids in movies just so they can be horribly disillusioned by the time they grow, everyone is so used to constantly lying to each other
I always thought Grandpa Joe was the one positive character in Charlie's life but, it turns out, he's the villian? (Not the mother with her dream stomping?)
The reason everything in Willy's office is cut in half was because the director Mel Stuart couldn't bear the thought of - after having gone through all the whimsical and creative rooms in the factory - ending the movie in an ordinary office. Everything was cut in half to make the room look more Wonka-esque. And in my opinion, I also like to think it reflects the fact that Wonka may have all the imagination and an endless sense of wonder.....but is still an incomplete man.
What a simple idea that created an amazing set piece. There's a great lesson there of how limitations (the tiny budget) can breed creativity and something simple on paper looks much grander in action.
Having everything cut in half is definitely more on theme for the rest of the movie and is more fun for kids. But it would have been interesting change and contrast for Willy Wonka to have a regular boring office. Inferring that Wonka might not be as crazy as he puts on. (Or is he)
@@noone3216 There’s weird stuff all throughout the movie that gave it character and made it memorable, different creative things open to interpretation. Unlike the Burton version that is totally bland and whacky just for the sake of it.
@@AndI0td763I always like media which gives more to the audience the deeper they look. You see it with the classic books, Great Gatsby or Mockingbird, the deeper you look the more there is to see. Its why we write essays on them in English class. But some movies do it too. In Frozen, there is parallelism and foreshadowing hidden in the characters, the visuals, the plot, heck, even the music. Good movies have both good plot, visuals, characters, etc, but they also have a deeper meaning to lots of things. You can see Wonka as a bit incomplete behind the scenes, the factory that the kids are supposed to see is perfect, but everything about Wonka's private space is only half complete. Not everything has to be some literary device, especially in a fun kids movie, but it's nice when there are a few scattered throughout.
I was waiting for it to escalate the way he delivered the line. Like “grabs her fucking face and SLAMS HER INTO THE GROUND”. Or something to that effect.
Gene Wilder's is a more spetacular version (as well as more humorous version) while Johnny Depp's was more realistic (as in how awkward he always is due to his relationship with his father and being a shut-in for decades). Both movies have their own merits and are different styles of movies. Sad that people can't enjoy both of them without comparing them.
@@Ironica82 Deep never felt like a goofy magician who tripped on acid and never came down. There were parts of his awkwardness that might have worked if it was the base of his performance but it wasn't Burton just let him do whatever he wanted.
I take Gene's Wonka as a guy who grew up the proper way, but sees a world that is one or the other. Charlie had a side of child like innocence, but was wise and mature for his age that brought promise.
@@neonsmoviereviews7969 Slugworth Jay: "Stop being pissed off about being so tiny and get me that Everlasting Gobstopper recipe. I'll make you a giant!" "But sir, you're smaller than I am!" [Slugworth Jay canes them to death]
The best thing about Wonka's office is that when he is reading the half contract he reads a bit then says, "etc. etc.", when he skips over the part that is cut off. It's comedic but he plays it so serious and straight that I don't think most people even notice it. It's genius.
i only realized this just now watching this video. i always thought he was just kinda abridging it as he went because he was so angry, never occurred to me that it was because half the words were missing. so goddamn brilliant
The subtle shot at 38:55 of Wonka pulling a hair out of Mike TV's head and the cut to the adult actor and slow zoom on his bald head made me burst out laughing. The editing in RLMs videos is just as witty as the commentary at times and here it's just thrown into the background while Mike makes a larger point about the movie.
Gene Wilder did say something about the remake: "I think it's an insult - Warner Brothers' insult, I think" "Johnny Depp, I think, is a good actor, but I don't care for that director [Burton]. He's a talented man, but I don't care for him doing stuff like he did." "The thing that put me off ... I like Johnny Depp, I like him, as an actor I like him very much ... but when I saw little pieces in the promotion of what he was doing, I said I don't want to see the film, because I don't want to be disappointed in him" "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"
He's right. Depp could have been a great Wonka, but the direction and the tone they went with was just so god awful. Tim Burton flanderized himself and it's a shame, if it had been more like his older movies it could have been good.
This is one of my favorite RLM videos. It's so nice hearing Mike and Jay talk so highly about a movie and not be completely miserable from the latest garbage action movie.
Charlie's mother tries to spare his feelings in case he doesn't find a golden ticket but she still encourgaes him before he leaves the laundry. - Mother: "Charlie, you'll get your chance. One day things will change." - Charlie: "When? When will they change?" - Mother: "Probably when you least expect it." This is exactly what happens to Charlie in the movie. Things change when he least expects it. Cheer up Charlie is my favorite song in the movie. It's about not giving up hope.
Staying in bed is one strategy for reducing caloric needs, which is used in famines and which was used even by students in the Great Depression. In the novel, Charlie's father has the job of twisting the top onto toothpaste containers. They are so poor that Charlie gets one bar of chocolate each year, which he just looks at and smells for months before opening it and beginning to nibble.
@TubasaurusRex In the book he is 96 and I think that's supposed to be the case for the movie too, they just casted someone who could move around when he needed to.
I really like the scene with Charlie's mom when she's at work. She's where he gets his honesty from. She doesn't sugar coat things, she tells him how you could have a bag full of money and the odds of finding a ticket are still so far against you. And in a house of 6 (mom, charlie, 4 elderly) she seems to be the only provider, plus maybe charlie on his paper route. So she knows poverty and just wants Charlie to be more of a realist who spends his earnings on his own well being rather than essentially gambling and remaining broke. The song she sings after he leaves is saying that despite her words to him she really does love her son and thinks he deserves the best in life and he really should hold on to his dreams. To grandpa Joe's devil on the shoulder, she is the angel on Charlie's other shoulder. The last thing before Charlie runs off, she tells him things will change when he least expects it. I'm sure that after getting yelled at (or next to) by Wonka the last thing Charlie expected was his quick turn around into kindness and giving over the factory. Mom did good raising him.
Thanks for defending Charlie's mom and her song. It is indeed a lull part in the film that i found boring as a kid but going back to it as an adult I was able to appreciate the emotions and parental love in its lyrics. This is a film that in a lot of ways can be appreciated more as an adult.
"The test will now take place on Monday before we've learned it" I've watched this movie 10 times but this is the first time I've realized how funny that is
When it asks the operator what a computer would do with a lifetime supply of chocolate It's then implied that the operator tells it to stick it up its ass lol
“I will ask the computer to locate the three remaining golden tickets” “‘I won’t tell you. That would be cheating.’ I am now telling the computer that if it does tell me, I will share the reward with it” “‘What could a computer do with a lifetime supply of chocolate’ I am now asking the computer what it CAN do with a lifetime supply of chocolate!”
Computer 🖥️: "What would a computer do with a lifetime supply chocolate?" Computer Salesman 😠: "I'm now telling the computer EXACTLY what it can do with a lifetime supply of chocolate!"
Coming back to this years later to write a comment no one will see, but, I always loved the reveal of the Wonka office with only half of everything. Literally, in terms of the filmmaking, they didn't want a boring office after all of the whimsy of the rest of the factory, but I think by doing so, they stumbled upon something thematically brilliant. You see, all the rest of the factory was intended to be seen by the guests. It could be easy to say that all of the wild sights were just a staged experience to thrill the kids on their tour, and that none of it actually reflected the work of Wonka's business. His office, however, was never a part of the tour. No one was supposed to see it. So, to find it's in just as unusual a state as the rest of the factory legitimizes that there's a madness to Wonka's method. He isn't just some businessman with a quirky sense of showmanship, but is actually something of a mad genius whose works are born from methods totally unorthodox to the regular world. That office proves the "magic" of Willy Wonka and his factory is real.
Charlie: "Why doesn't she listen to Mr. Wonka, Uncle Joe?" Uncle Joe: "Because she's a nitwit, Charlie." The Literal next scene they both steal fizzy lifting drinks
This reminds me of that episode from The Next Generation called Deja Q where the character, Q, a being part of the Q Continuum is turned into a normal being after he's given the choice of being turned into whatever sort of mortal being he wants to be because of some of his actions. During of the episode, both he and Data go to Ten Forward because the former is hungry for the first time now that he's human. He's unsure what to eat and Data tells him that he observed that humans often eats thing based on their mood. Q says he's in a very bad mood and Data answers by telling him that Deanna Troi, the ship Counselor, Troi, has a habit of consuming chocolate sundae when she's in a bad mood. Q then proceeds to ask for ten chocolate sundaes. All of this talk about chocolate also reminds me how I ate chocolate chip cookies not long before I made this post which reminds me of that DS9 episode, Paradise where the antagonist character pulls out all sort of stupid crap out of her ass, exactly like I'm doing now.
I love how grounded the first movie was. It had a very old world feel to it, like the people who worked on it actually lived through poverty and could thus portray it with realism.
We have empathy for the Charlie, because he is portrayed realistically, honestly both in the factory and in the real world. I had empathy for no one in the remake, everything was so fake that I couldn't get into that headspace. I didn't notice it, but my brain did.
A lot of it also was due to the budget. They really managed to make a set look like a fantastical but practical factory, unlike the book which was far more out there.
I love charlies mothers song, its beautiful - its just her trying to lower his son's expectations so he doesnt becum too broken hearted by the world like she has been. some parents do that one way or another, and its just a great soft conflict that charlie faces and makes him finding the golden ticket more of an amazing moment.
I remember telling my step mother I wanted to be an astronaut, and was very serious about it around 11 or 12. She just looked me dead in the eyes and said "give up on your dreams now, it's easier that way" and went back to what she was doing. Harsh, but understandable later in life.
@@LegionEmu396 well, I think it's just wrong, saying stuff like that to the kids. Everyone should have a dream, a goal, something. What's the point of living if you don't?
24:58 “That money was for tobacco.” “I told you, Charlie, I’ve given it up.” I love that so much, because I’m sure he didn’t really wanna quit smoking as much as he wanted to make Charlie happy.
He never actually said he was embarrassed, that was just a clickbait misrepresentation. He talks a lot about the early Boingo years now, other than a general self embarassment that anyone has looking back at themselves decades ago
No idea why Danny (or Rick, for that matter) would be embarrassed about Oingo Boingo, because they were a great experimental band. Moreover, if anyone would like to see a movie made by the Elfman brothers that features the band's entire original lineup, check out _Forbidden Zone._ It's a wild ride.
I can definitely see where Jay was coming from. It wouldn't have been a *perfect* fit, but I can see the odd synthesizer and drums, mixed with the semi-psychadelic vocals of their music working for the Oompah Loompahs. That is, if Elfman had been granted full control over the music and Burton didn't decide to... Burton-ify it.
Very interesting that you say everyone skips Charlie's moms song. I watched this movie with my dad as a kid and this was his absolute favorite song in the whole movie. I would want to skip it but he would say no and sing along. Grateful for those experiences, because after I lost him, this song also became my favorite in the movie, and his spirit still sings me that song to mine every so often. ❤ Miss ya dad. He would have really enjoyed hearing you guys talk about this movie.
I know people hate Cheer Up Charlie but I'm certainly not one of them. I think it's a sweet song and I even get misty eyed cuz it makes me think of my mum.
Gene Wilder didn't see it, saying, "The thing that put me off... I like Johnny Depp, I like him, as an actor I like him very much... but when I saw little pieces in the promotion of what he was doing, I said I don't want to see the film, because I don't want to be disappointed in him. Good call, Gene.
@WR Smithers 'even a broken clock is right twice a day' is very unfair. He is very good in a bunch of movies and whatever he is, he is most certainly not 'just a hack'. Just to be clear, I have no love for the man, but look at his earlier filmography, he wasn't beloved 15 years ago for nothing.
There's three basic styles of conflict in literature: hero vs villain, hero vs environment, and hero vs self. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is very much a hero vs environment story, because our protagonist has everything they need to reach the end and simply must resist being changed by their environment. In a sense, that means the _setting_ is the antagonist. The Wonka factory tour is a trap designed to catch the corruptible, and the tour is Charlie's opponent, not Willy Wonka. Grandpa Joe does indeed personify cynicism, showing us what a Charlie who fails the test might eventually become, but that doesn't make Joe a villain. He just ends up being one of the many obstacles in the environment. The other kids all fail at least in part due to their parents' enabling behavior, and so Joe is the final obstacle for Charlie in the same way that the other kids' adult mentors had failed them. Charlie remaining true to himself is not just a victory against the factory tour, but the environment in which he was raised and the poor circumstances of his birth. It's one of those classic rags to riches American dream style stories, which makes it no small wonder that a modern remake was doomed to fail.
Bam. Nailed it. Only the pure soul who doesn't cave to environment, no matter the pressure, gets the golden ticket. The real golden ticket is unconditional love and loving yourself, family, and being good (yup, actual morality) no matter your circumstances. I miss these notions. We often wonder why depression levels have skyrocketed in this country... Well, when you're too afraid to put morality in tales anymore, you're making hollow, empty tales.
@@bennysizzle79 Well if we want to talk about the significance of the ticket, it's the literal 'ticket to success'. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory preaches karma; that success comes to those that are honest and not easily swayed by those around them, and that opportunities to rise above your social class are found by exemplifying these traits. It relies on a certain optimism, where the better of a person you are, the better the odds of a good thing coming your way, rather than the traditional 'patience and honest work' of the classic American dream. For me, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a demonstrable turning point to the end of an era, where getting rich quick and golden opportunities begin to overpower the concept of working your way to the top. In other words, it's a story about the American dream that also heralds the death of the American dream. On the surface the story is about overcoming circumstance, but when you really break it down, overcoming difficulty and a good work ethic have little to nothing to do with Charlie's golden ticket: It's about luck, knowing the right people, and if you can't inherit wealth from your parents, find a new 'parent' to inherit from, because the only way to ride the elevator past that glass ceiling is if business daddy invites you on.
I read the witches when i was about 12. It was so disturbing, and the book was dotted with pictures that stand out, like the witches being very uncomfortable trying to squeeze their square feet into heels, and scratching their bald heads because their wigs were itchy. Nobody wrote for kids like Roal Dhal
@@Charles12 the book is definitely more disturbing. There is a bit in the book about a child who disappeared when he had in fact been turned into a porpoise by one of the witches. He said goodbye to his family or friend, can't remember which, and swam off, never to be seen again. I just remember being really upset by that.
There is a brilliant, transcendent line from this movie that I sincerely quote every time I face a setback in life that feels so bad I want to cry: "I bet the gold makes the chocolate taste terrible"
Snozzberries are mentioned in some other Roahl Dahl works. Including his non childrens poetry. They are however, at times, a metaphor for penises. Which would some what change the tone of the Snozzberry flavoured nursery wall paper.
As do I. What a wonderful actor who made a bunch of great films in the 70's, from the comedies with Mel Brooks ("The Producers," "Blazing Saddles," ":Young Frankenstein") to "Silver Streak" where he was the reluctant action hero and a genuine romantic lead. He was such a every-man you couldn't help but root for him.
@@jamesallen9325 One of my favourite facts about Young Frankenstein is that apparently the 'Igor, take the bags' scene took nearly 100 takes to shoot because no one was able to keep a straight face and the camera crew kept laughing so hard the camera was shaking.
It's so neat hearing Mike and Jay talk about how they saw this movie as little kids, because I also saw it as a little kid and I'm half their age. It really is a classic.
From Wikipedia: In 2007, Gene Wilder said he chose not to see the film. "The thing that put me off... I like Johnny Depp, I like him, as an actor I like him very much... but when I saw little pieces in the promotion of what he was doing, I said I don't want to see the film, because I don't want to be disappointed in him." In 2013, when Wilder was asked about the Burton adaptation, he said, "I think it's an insult. It's probably Warner Bros.' insult." He also criticized the choices that Burton made as a director, saying, "I don't care for that director. He's a talented man, but I don't care for him doing stuff like he did."
I think the purpose of the cut-in-half office is that it preserves the whole mystery of Wonka beyond his public-facing persona and into the private realm. Like if they'd done the scene in a normal office it would have just read as "shows over, Charlie gets yelled at by the manager" but the way it's done it's left open for Wonka not being sincere.
According to the trivia section on IMDB, that's almost the exact reason for it. A last-minute decision by the director to preserve the unique eccentricity of Wonka, even when it goes behind the scenes of the factory.
Charlie's mother was't telling him not to dream, she was warning him not to get his hopes up--Charlie was convinced he was going to find a golden ticket.
I always thought it was funny that the main character in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is Charlie and the main character in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is Johnny Depp's Willy Wonka.
I always remembered having the opinion that Gene Wilder was the better actor, but those were both in my top 10 or so greatest performances of all time of course i was like 8-12 somewhat so i couldn't see like actual great movies but
So Charlie buys 1 candy bar for himself when he thinks the contest is over, then he buys another one for his grandpa Jo, which is the Wonka bar. So the golden ticket IS technically Grandpa Joe's.
Fun fact: Roald Dahl (when he was still alive) actually despised and disowned the 1971 film. He was infuriated with the plot changes and he hated Gene Wilder because he replaced an actor Dahl chose to play. (Spike Milligan was originally supposed to play Wonka) And he hated the fact that the story was more focused on Wonka instead of Charlie, the main character of the book. And yes, he despised the inclusion of the scary tunnel scene
@@JohnSmith-hd2tl The Nazis killed any one with mental or physical defects. So there might have been some younger people with dwarfism it would limit the number since those people are rare to begin with.
I love how Mike says he remembers every detail about the movie "right down to the opening credits where it says David 'WolpNer'" getting the first example wrong.
@@AlexG1020 My wife and I both realized early on that the movie was shit, so we watched the whole thing just to witness the train wreck and talk shit about it.
@@AlexG1020 My wife and I watched it in the theatres. I think at the time I still loved Burton and loved the original so WHAT COULD GO WRONG! I was so disappointed and I think that is when I got off the Burton Bandwagon. The original, while well before my time, is such a wonderful film that I simply can't imagine anything like it being done as an original movie today. We desperately need more creative input outside of Hollywood with smaller budget films.
you could also say that it's the movie telling kids "there will be people who won't believe in your dreams, but sometimes they just don't want you to be disappointed"
Yeah. I always saw it as her just wanting to temper in Charlie's expectations, seeing the life they have. It can come off as mean, but she just doesn't want him to feel the immense disappointment, and heartbreak that telling a kid they can do anything, or chase your dreams, can cause when reality hits them. Luckily Charlie got his wish, but that doesn't happen often in real life. Also helps to hammer in the cynicism of an adult, who has seen their dreams come and go, juxtapose to the head in the clouds lifestyle children lead.
I really do love this movie. I watched it so many times growing up. When they talked about a villain I realized it wasn't a person but just greed. The greed over the golden tickets or the kids getting punished for taking more than they should. In the end, charlie chooses not to be greedy and gives the everlasting gobstopper back and wins. A good story that teaches a moral lesson.
The shade, the disrespect of showing Willy Wonka pulling Mike TVs hair and then showing an older BALD Mike TV and zooming in on his coconut. I almost DIED
Jay's right. This is like Apocalypse Now. Journey by boat into a surreal world of excess, gradually losing members along the way, killing animals onscreen, thrilling airborne sequence, very psychedelic.
He’s a old man remembering his favorite childhood films,you usually feel happy when looking back on your childhood films. Not mention both films are family movies, and good family movies make you feel like a child agin
That was something of a surprise, wasn't it? Not that he liked the movie but loved it enough that he'd spout lines strait from the movie. You could almost see him as a child asking about all the candy "names" shown in the opening credits. Though I do feel sorry that Gene Wilder was subjected to the remake, I can't imagine what it must have felt like to see a much beloved cult classic that he was personally part of remade into something so very upsetting.
@@DracoMetallium Star Trek TNG is Mike's mental safe place. When he thinks about it, Picard goes "slide!". You know he's happy about the present when he never mentions TNG.
SINCERELY GOOD THINGS ABOUT THE REMAKE: Deep Roy is fabulous in a completely impossible role, and it lets you appreciate what a pro he is. Mike Teevee and Violet Beauregard are updated in ways that actually do something new and interesting and end up very entertaining. ...that's it.
You mean changed in the wrong ways that completely ruin the entire purpose those characters were supposed to serve. THe people who made the remake had no concept of why things were the way they were. They had absolutely no self restraint. WHich ironically is supposed to be a driving force of the story. It's the lack of self restraint that leads to self destruction. It was the purpose of the adults to instill that into their children but the children who were chosen were the ones whose parents failed to control their children in some way.
@@GeorgeMonet I wouldn't say they ruined the purpose of the characters. But in the 2000s a girl whose only flaw was a chewing gum habit doesn't really fit, so making her hyper competitive seemed like a nice touch, and turning Mike into a gamer just seemed natural. Either way he's addicted to an electronic device.
The 'knife seller' outside the factory- he is sort of like a tinker. But he was a knife sharpener, which was a thing in Germany until fairly recently. He would set up in a spot (kind of like a hotdog wagon does) and the women of the area would come to him to have their dull knives resharpened. Or perhaps buy a new one, if desired. That profession is pretty much gone in our new disposable oriented culture.
I love how in the end you get a sense that Wonka has been deeply hurt in life. He's hilariously cynical throughout the movie, but had a shred of hope for Charlie. Then tries to move on as yet another hope is dashed, keeps it polite until they keep after him. Then he just loses it. Gene Wilder is amazing.
Gene Wilder was amazing at freaking out in any movie, it's clear he has always had some input into his character, or chose characters to play that fit his style. The freak outs are always so earned, it's a boiling point, taken out of context I realize that some of them don't seem as realistic or natural as in the context of what he's done with a character up to that point. He's one of the best by far, it's hard for me to think of an actor who can have so many perfect inflections in his voice and little eye movements that encapsulate a feeling so well. He had this grounded in reality but animated way about him, it's hard to take your eyes off anything he's doing. It also payed off that he was so nice because he had amazing supporting roles that elevated other performances in movies, famously with Richard Prior.
I disagree, I always thought the blow up was Wonka’s final test to see if Charlie was truly good, or if he would cave in for the money from Slugworth just out of spite. You can see him buried in his work as they approach him as if yelling at them is the last thing he wants to do. Wonka knows Charlie already learned his lesson for taking the lifting drink when he mentions they bumped into the ceiling, having a near death experience in the process. The only way to see if Charlie was truly good and worthy was if he would actually accept his wrongdoing and think for himself, rather than follow along with whatever Grandpa Joe said. All those elements make the specific part where Charlie hands the gobbstopper back over so important. Wonka’s finally found the correct child to take over for him. Also worth noting that after it was all revealed to be a charade, Wonka begs Charlie to forgive him and says it was all a test to see if he truly was good. Damn, this is a good movie.
What I still love is that this interpretation makes complete sense, but you can also buy it as a performance, which it obviously also is. You never know where Wonka's coming from until the end when he goes out of "character." I really don't think it came down to the fizzy lifting drinks though. I think Wonka kind of had Charlie in mind from the beginning and the temptation customized for him wasn't actually intended to eliminate him (it would have been a tube to nowhere rather than a grisly metal fan). The Gobstopper was the real test and as a morality/fairy tale the tour through the factory was a formality. He needed Charlie to think the drinks were the sticking point though.
Charlie's mom's speech about Wonka bars works almost verbatim as a warning against gambling addiction...Wonka bars are like lottery tickets and i just took her speech to mean that you shouldn't pin all your hopes on random chance.
Mike is my favorite, though I love all the RLM guys. His eyes... he is intelligent but his eyes have the same worldly sadness I carry. Empaths often lose themselves feeling everyone else. My dad drank himself to death because it turned into something he was afraid of and refused to embrace. Seeing Mike sing cheers me up but I know the gentle melancholy is always there, and trying to find the best in an awful world. Maybe that was too deep, but depression is real and gets worse because we never address what's truly going in internally nor externally.
Oh no, Mike is so broken he's willingly digging through childhood memories and nostalgia for some good feelings and cheer. Rich needs to come back and give purpose to him again.
You can literally hear Mike's voice crack during the Plinkett ST:P review when he begins the old man and the train set analogy. Funny is funny, but destroying a series that was ultimately about hope is devastating, and Mike fucking knows that.
I hope he keeps doing re;views of other classics he loves. I know things like Empire or Raiders of the Lost Ark have been talked about to death but Mike just has a special way of talking about movies he loves.
This is a good review. I would expand by saying that watching this movie in non-english speaking countries was a very different experience. The songs were not translated, but children still understood what was happening. The action conveyed the plot.
A very good sign of a good movie. It's like the silhouette test for character designs; if people who know nothing outside of the bare examples can identify with it, it's a good product.
30:28 According to Mel Stuart's book "Pure Imagination: The Making of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory", the reason everything in Willy's office is cut in half was because Stuart couldn't bear the thought of, after having gone through all the whimsical and creative rooms in the factory, ending the movie in an ordinary office. Everything was cut in half to make the room look more Wonka-esque.
@@basicfacekick Yeah it really shows Wonka's integrity in a weird way. Either he is completely committed to this role of an eccentric weirdo, or he sincerely sees the world completely differently to most other people.
@@Kuonji I love the divorce explanation. It also fits with Wonka making everyone sign these impossible-to-read contracts. He's making sure nobody takes him to the cleaners ever again.
8:18 I always thought that scene was funny, how during the song he's throwing sweets/candy around free of charge, but when the song ends and it's Charlie's turn the shop owner expects him to pay him first!
I always saw Charlie's moms scene was about being realistic, and helping your kids understand the real world. That their poverty wasn't what was holding him back. Millionaires would not get a ticket.
@@georgejones8481 It's a bit higher. $1 in 1971 is worth $6.69 in 2021 (just to give ST:D more credit). That works out to $20 million in 2021. According to Wikipedia, the ST:D budget is about $8-8.5 million per episode. Even if you go by 2017 numbers (when ST:D started), Wonka's budget is still $18 million. (I found the Wonka budget at $3 million according to Wikipedia and IMDB. Perhaps you worked from a different number.) People just hardly ever consider inflation. I get so sick of "_______ is now the highest grossing movie ever!" headlines. They're almost always meaningless. Gone with the Wind is still the top.
@PA Musso The Forbidden Zone is pop culture perfection annihilation crack at its zenith. And might I add that I, too, thought Oingo Boingo sucked. Then I saw Forbidden Zone. Think James Elllroy falls off the wagon hard and takes a stab at writing the sequel to Pee Wee’s Big Adventure while still stoned and seeing god. Oh if only we’d listened before it was all too gloriously late... ⚡️😬⚡️
I always assumed the candy man scene wasn't literal; it was Charlie's interpretation of what it must be like in the store (since later on we see that the candy man is quite no nonsense when it comes to payment)
Interesting thought. We do only see the character twice, and it's those two contrasting personas. Cashier: What? Charlie: Aren't you gonna sing for me? Cashier: ....what are you talking about?
Yeah, it's an exaggerated and visually interesting way of showing how Charlie perceives all the fun and things and goods that he's missing out on because he's poor.
Couldn't find any dwarves in Germany in the 70s... almost like something happened that would make there not be any 30+ and very few 20+ year old German dwarves.
I love the part with her mother. I love that song too. I grew up super poor and my mom was a lot like charlies so i felt like i could relate to it a lot.
The problem with Tim Burton is simple: he's forgotten that form over function makes for dull movies. weirdness to be weird doesn't make a movie interesting; you need something real behind it.
Yeah like I know they get compared a lot as being equally insufferable to certain people but I think that's the reason why people are more receptive to Wes Anderson film's than most Burton film's in the last twenty years. Anderson has an equally aggressive style but within that style there is still usually an emotional hook of characters with compelling arcs. Like Ralph Fiennes while in a dollhouse still feels like a living, likable person and a lot of effort was put into his personal story and not just the models of the Grand Budapest hotel. Burton on the other hand doesn't always put equal effort into style and substance which defines his best film's like Ed Wood or Big Fish.
Hint, Tim Burton has always put form ahead of function. The only times his movies have ever been good are when individual performances shine through (PeeWee, Beetlejuice) or when the characters perfectly line up with Burton’s tone (Nightmare, Batman). Even at his best, Burton can barely get 30-40min of compelling screentime smashed inbetween piles of shit.
@@Jaxck77 while I think he's made some good and occasionally even great movies and think you're a bit harsh there I do agree that Burton isn't the greater storyteller. Honestly I've never understood why he's put on so many great directors lists when his filmography pretty damn hit or miss and honestly has more bad remakes at this point than great film's.
I have not seen this old version yet, so I am stunned: THIS IS MUNICH! My home town Munich, capital of Bavaria in Southern Germany. And it is shown as it used to be after WW II until the 80ies, much poorer then today, but a happier, comfy place. The first scene is at the Stachus close to Maxburg, with the Lady's Cathedral (Frauenkirche) in the background. I think the street scenes were shot in the Au, back then a working class quarter with rather outdated, not-in-a-good-way-vintage houses. The newspaper man sells, amongst other things, Merian books, which were the no.1 travel magazines for people to dream of nice places. The little boy drinks Paulaner beer, with the old label, that was unfortunately changed when the big six breweries of Munich all tried to update and now kinda look the same. Mr. Wonkas place (exterior) itself was a former gasoline factory that ceased to exist, but it once stood in Moosach, North-Western Munich, where I am living. I knew this already thanks to some local history publications.
Just started to watch. That's awesome! Ich komme zwar nicht aus München, wohne aber seit zehn Jahren hier. Habe den alten Wonka Film auch noch nicht gesehen, jetzt mach ich's auf jeden Fall 😉 Liebe Grüße