The most disturbing movie of all time!

      My husband and I recently had eye exams.  In the waiting room, a movie was playing on the television.  A movie that, for some, is an old friend, but for me, felt like an old enemy!  The movie in question?  The 1971 masterpiece Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.  This movie is the adaptation of the 1964 novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl.  A 2005 movie took the same name as the novel (with Charlie's name), instead of the title of the earlier film (which features Willy Wonka's name).  I'll briefly touch on the book and newer movie, but mainly, I'm going to talk about my old frenemy film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.  Fasten your seatbelt.  It's going to be a strange ride.  

     As a basic introduction, I will say that most of the adults in this movie belong in jail, or at least in the mental ward of some institution!

     The story features the adorable, sweet-spirited, but desperately poor Charlie Bucket.  In fact, the film opens with children in a candy shop, being sung to by the deranged owner about Willy Wonka (the Candy Man!).  As they all sing, dance and eat candy they didn't pay for in true musical style, poor Charlie watches sadly through the window.  This leads the viewer to realize that Charlie is impoverished, and misses out on the good things in life that other children take for granted.  Pretty pathetic beginning if you ask me.  I mean, since the candy was being given out for free, Charlie could have gone in and partaken!  He just doesn't know how to seize opportunities.  

     It is through this song that the viewer learns about this famous yet mysterious candy maker, Willy Wonka.  An air of mystique hangs in the air whenever his name is brought up.  No one has seen Willy Wonka in many years, as he works in his factory, which is locked up.  Yet, everyone enjoys the fruits of his labor, so he can't be that mysterious, can he?  The FDA wouldn't allow that to continue!  Still, this is something unsettling about this unknown man and his intriguing factory...

Looks kind of like a mugshot, doesn't it?

     Toward the beginning, Charlie walks by Wonka's factory and tries to look in the gate.  A strange, unnamed man (who makes no further appearance in the movie) approaches him and recites a troubling little rhyme (which is apparently from the poem Fairies, by William Allingham), and then tells Charlie that no one ever goes in or out of the factory, before walking away as oddly as he walked up.  It is meant to heighten everyone's suspense about this place and the madman who runs it.  Can you imagine how totally weird it would be to have some stranger walk up to you and start reciting ominous rhymes?  Maybe next time I see someone standing aimlessly around, I should do that, just to make their day interesting.  

     Anyway, we will return to the villainous--I mean wonderful--candymaker soon.  For the moment, however, let's look at Charlie Bucket's family.  In the book, his father works hard at the tiresome job of screwing the lids onto tubes of toothpaste (I'm pretty sure that was done by machine, even at the time the story takes place!).  In the film, he is just not in the picture at all.  His mother, a widow, works hard to make ends meet for herself, her son, and the four lazy relatives who mooch off of them: Grandpa George, Grandma Georgina, Grandma Josephine, and (Charlie's favorite) Grandpa Joe.  These four couples lay in the same bed, and never get up.  Mrs. Bucket's hard work must pay for cabbage water for everyone to eat for dinner every night.  Life is bleak.  

     The big news goes out that Willy Wonka, who has been a recluse inside of his factory for so long, is going to open it up for five lucky children.  The way these children will be selected is through a contest.  Five of his chocolate bars--out of the millions he ships out worldwide--will have a golden ticket inside.  The five who get the tickets will be included in the tour of the factory, and also receive a lifetime supply of chocolate.  Not a bad deal, I suppose.  I once hoped to win a trip to New York City from a contest that Pepsi was having.  You had to get the special message under the lid.  I never got it.  Oh well.  Life goes on.   But apparently, not for Charlie's world.  The town around him goes into a complete frenzy.  People are buying Wonka Bars by the truckload.  A woman's husband is held for ransom in exchange for her Wonka Bar stash, and she has to seriously consider whether or not to free him!  Queen Elizabeth is even in on the action!  Children in Charlie's class (by the way, his teacher is just as deranged as the candy shop employee) claim to have eaten upwards of 100 bars during the contest.  I mean, come on, people!  Think about it.  It sounds like a chance to explore an exciting candy factory previously closed to all outsiders, but in reality, it's only a chance to meet a dangerous eccentric hermit in an unprotected environment.  Why exactly do you want this so badly?  And isn't it unsettling that he wants to get children to come?  He can't actually control who finds the tickets, but it is supposedly a chance for five children, and that's how it works out.  

     Five children find the tickets, from various places on earth.  The first ticket is found by a German boy named Augustus Gloop.  He is interviewed at a restaurant, where his family is eating gluttonously.  His father even eats the microphone when it is put in his face.  His mother tells the reporter, "Eating is his hobby, so we encouraged him..."  This is kind of disturbing.  Augustus himself says (in referring to the lifetime supply of chocolate that is part of his prize), "I feel sorry for Wonka.  It's going to cost him a fortune in fudge."   It is played up for laughs, but it's actually a serious problem that many people face.  Food is something we all need every day, so it's not something we can give up, like tobacco or drugs.  Food can have emotions of nurture associated with it, and that often leads us to an unhealthy pattern of eating to self-medicate.  I doubt there are many people who haven't had some inkling of this struggle in their lives.  People who struggle should be encouraged and helped, not indulged or made fun of.  Augustus Gloop and his family are actually in bondage to their compulsive behavior--their lives are unmanageable.  They need a power greater than themselves to restore them to sanity.  

     The next ticket is found by a British girl named Veruca Salt.  Or, rather, the ticket is found by one of her wealthy father's many employees who spend day and night opening bars in hopes of finding a ticket for Veruca.  When this employee shouts, "I found it!"  the ticket is given to Veruca, and as soon as she has her hand on it, she shouts how she found it.  She is portrayed as a spoiled brat.  Like Augustus, she is indulgent and annoying.  She is the most fun character in this movie to verbally imitate, I must admit!  "Datty I want an Oompa-Loompa!"  But I'm getting ahead of myself...

     Two more tickets are found by American children, Mike TeeVee (a television addict whose mother brags that he never even comes to the table to eat) and compulsive gum-chewer Violet Beauregard.  Mike and Violet are a little bit obnoxious and mouthy, but otherwise a little more average than the first two children we met.  

     The movie tries to prolong the agony by having the fifth golden ticket faked.  When it is realized that this was untrue, Charlie goes and buys one more candy bar, just to see...and, surprise-surprise, he finds the fifth ticket.  Go figure, right?  

     Now, Charlie faces a dilemma.  Who will accompany him?  He can bring one adult with him on the tour.  Why not Grandpa Joe, who hasn't stood up in years?  An awkward scene of Grandpa Joe mustering the gumption to stand up shows us that sometimes, all you need is a little motivation (working a job, helping the family, eating something other than cabbage water were not sufficient motives, but going to a mysterious factory is!).  

     The big day arrives, and the five children (each with an adult relative) are admitted into the factory.  Everyone waits outside the factory, including the press and many onlookers.  When the clock strikes, Willy Wonka makes his first public appearance in years.  He limps slowly, causing Charlie to look disappointed (Not another helpless adult!  I've got enough of those at my house!).  After carrying this on for far too long (filling up the endless minutes this movie was required to contain), Willy Wonka surprises them all by doing a somersault (everyone cheers at this).  Charlie now smiles again.  

     Willy Wonka stats off by being kind and charming to the kids and their parents (that's how all criminals groom their victims!).  He compliments the females and humors the males.  Watch out!  Following this, he has everyone sign a release of liability.  The snake!  He knew exactly what he was going to do to these people, and wanted to get himself out of legal liability.  Violet Beauregard's dad is the only adult smart enough to question this, but Willy Wonka tries to evade his questions, and a tantrum by Veruca Salt throws attention in another direction, thus getting all five children's signatures on his contract.  

      The tour is then able to start.  Willy Wonka leads them into an edible, magical area with a chocolate river (it looks like mud to me).  He gives them no rules or boundaries.  He sings a song about having "pure imagination" implying the place is imaginary and not real!  The lyrics of the song have nothing to do with what's happening, as the kids try out the different edible things in the area.  After the happy song, we are introduced to Oompa Loompas, Willy Wonka's creatures.  They're little orange-faced men with green hair who sing clever rhymes.  Veruca Salt demands an Oompa Loompa of her own.  "Datty, I want an Oompa Loompa!  I want you to get me an Oompa Looma right away!"

     The first disaster strikes.  Augustus Gloop is drinking out of the muddy (I mean chocolate) river.  Willy Wonka acts as if this is a big problem, but he had never told anyone not to do it!  His only concern is that Augustus might contaminate his prefect river.  Okay, let's look at this a second. He put them in an environment with many temptations and no boundaries, and now he's sort of upset that the kid is drinking the chocolate river.  Augustus has not broken any stated rules.  He just wasn't a mindreader!  Willy Wonka runs over to try to stop him, but Augustus falls into the river, and ends up getting stuck in a pipe.  That's pretty traumatic.  He cries for help, but he has to wait it out while the pressure builds up under him.  Mrs. Gloop demands Wonka do something (as Willy Wonka only frets about his perfect chocolate being ruined by human contamination).  Looking at Mrs. Gloop, he says, "Help, police, murder" in a very dull voice.  Probably so he is legally covered and can say he called for help.  Even Charlie tries to help Augustus, but Wonka won't.  That's the first problem.  At least, the first apparent problem.  There were problems about this all along.  As Augustus is stuck in the pipe, Willy Wonka pleasantly explains the science of pressure building up.  

     After this, Augustus is out of the tour.  His mother goes to retrieve him from the fudge room.  She rightly calls Wonka, "You terrible man!"  We later learn that Augustus (and the others who subsequently also get eliminated by their own compulsive problems) will be fine, back to their normal selves, but hopefully wiser.  We are not initially told this, though, so it's kind of traumatic to see this kid go through that and not know what the end result is.  The Oompa Loompas sing a thoughtless song about Augustus' compulsions (they end up doing this for all the kids as they disappear).  

     Following this, we have what is arguably the scariest scene in the movie.  Years ago as a high schooler, I used to babysit some children who always wanted to watch this movie, but they would cover their faces from this scene.  Willy Wonka takes the children on a boat ride through a tunnel.  A lot of disturbing scenes pass along the wall of the tunnel (including a chicken being beheaded).  Willy Wonka recites this random poem that references the fires of hell.  More things he didn't want to be sued for.  

     

     The tour goes on.  Violet Beauregard is the next to disappear.  She chews some gum that turns her into a giant blueberry, and must be taken to be juiced out (like Augustus, she will be her normal self again, but she is no longer part of the tour).  Everyone ends up breaking some sort of rule.  Even Charlie.  He and Grandpa Joe drink fizzy lifting drinks and go up to the ceiling.  But they end up burping and come down, catching up with the others.  No consequences for Charlie.  He's special.  Veruca's spoiled tantrum gets her dropped down an egg chute.  Mike TeeVee ends up being transmitted by television technology and becomes small.  I have to elaborate on this.  This whole scene starts with Willy Wonka showing them how the technology works by taking a giant candy bar and shrinking it.  Grandpa Joe says "It could change the world!"  No.  All it could do is waste chocolate!  It would be useful it it could turn small candy bars bigger, but the opposite way just wastes their ingredients!  Totally pointless!  

     Anyway, at the end, only Charlie is left.  Willy Wonka is initially dismissive of him, and Grandpa Joe confronts him for this.  Willy Wonka tells him that since they stole the fizzy lifting drinks, the contract is null and void.  Good point.  If the other kids were eliminated, Charlie should be too.  But it was a test.  Charlie is then told that he won, and is given the factory.  Willy Wonka explains that he never wanted to get another adult involved, because an adult would want to do everything his own way, but a child could be taught to do it Wonka's way.  Again, we see grooming taking place here!  The story ends with Charlie, Grandpa Joe and Wonka going up in a giant glass elevator into the sky.  We are led to believe all is well...for Charlie anyway.  

     Here is my take on it.  Willy Wonka intentionally abused these kids by using their own weaknesses against them.  That's pretty cold.  That's what the devil does!  The whole tour was a test that they all failed.  There is a way to test people without traumatizing them!  I don't even feel this movie teaches real-live children the follies of the television children's compulsions.  None of these things would ever happen to anyone in real life!  Seriously, everyone in this movie needs counseling, possibly a 12-step program!  Even Charlie.  Growing up in such total poverty, without his dad, and having lazy, mooching grandparents would take a toll on a child.  Willy Wonka uses him, along with the others, for his own selfish end of preserving his factory exactly the way he wants it to be.  

     The book was a little bit more disturbing (I read it in third grade).  In the book, the children are all alive by the end, but they are permanently altered (Mike TeeVee is stuck being rodent-sized, for example, and Violet is permanently purple).  In the book, Charlie does not steal the fizzy lifting drink.  The songs the Oompa Loompas sing are different.  But the overall story is the same--of a crazy, selfish predator (someone doesn't have to be sexually perverted to be a predator).  The 2005 movie was even more unsettling than either the novel or earlier film.  The kids' problems were even more exaggerated.  Willy Wonka (played by Johnny Depp) has a disturbing back story about being abandoned by his dentist father for eating candy.  It's a very dark film, and didn't sit well with me.  But then again, the source material is odd and troubling to begin with.  

     The moral of the story is: if you find a golden ticket in your candy bar, it's probably an ad.  Just toss it in the trash!  Joking aside, the real moral is that one's compulsions can undermine him (or her).  But it's a bad way to teach it.  A better lesson would be to have someone try to help these children better themselves and overcome.  Willy Wonka's self-seeking motive prevents him from being able to help them, and ends up hurting them.  He is the adult, and is therefore responsible!  

     That is all for today.  Thank you!