This Holiday Season, there’s much to be thankful for as friends and family gather to spend time together. I’m always grateful for the awards-worthy films that get released this time of year and the time off to go enjoy them. Many families also make time to go to the cinema together and it’s great that there are so many family films worthy of the expense and trip to the movie theater.
British director, Paul King, did a marvelous job with the two “Paddington” films and he and screenwriter Simon Farnaby, came up with this original story. Willy Wonka is a young man who’s traveled the world and has grand plans to share his chocolate creations with the world. The film has a certain charm and some big-name British stars. Olivia Colman is a particular delight as the conniving laundry shop owner. Her character is based on one in Roald Dahl’s original work and her love affair with her handyman/fixer is delightful.
The scenes in the laundry factory are some of the funniest. We get to see how inventive our young magician/chocolatier is with his suitcase of dreams and there’s less singing. Chalamet has a nice quiet singing voice, but he has as much difficulty selling the big showstopping numbers as he does selling his chocolates. His Wonka is confident and inventive without the underlying creepiness or sarcasm embodied in other Willy Wonka portrayals.
The supporting cast is the exciting part of “Wonka”. There’s a charming interlude with a giraffe at the zoo, some fun moments with the captive laundry crew, and comical bits with Rowan Atkinson as the head cleric. Less funny is our chocoholic Police Captain, played with gusto and a large fat suit by Keegan-Michael Key. There’s also a little too much of our trio of Chocolatier Consortium. Having the most fun in his role seems to be Hugh Grant. Thank goodness for director Paul King for giving Grant some of his best roles in years. Stay thru the credits for his additional Oompa Loompa scenes.
The other big family film in theaters hasn’t performed as well for Disney Animation. “Wish” is a wonderful film with a great turn by vocal talent Chris Pine as an evil sorcerer king, Magnifico. There are uplifting songs sung with power and panache by Ariana DeBose and a big cast of dreamers and townspeople. The little sheep sidekick, voiced by Alan Tudyk, isn’t too annoying and there are beautifully realized island settings. Fortunately, the film is doing good business internationally and will likely find its audience on the streaming platform, Disney+.
It’s so important to seek out these original stories and celebrate them with family and friends. We need to support them during their theatrical runs to show that there’s a market for family-friendly fare. Otherwise, we’ll be served sequels and less-artistic work. A good example of this is how Disney is now pivoting and trying to release films to the theaters again.
During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Disney chose to bypass traditional movie theaters and send three Pixar films in a row — 2020’s Soul, 2021’s Luca, and 2022’s Turning Red — straight to Disney+. Now, those three films are finally headed to theaters, opening in early 2024. Soul will debut Jan. 12, Turning Red on Feb. 9, and Luca on March 22, all as a lead-up to Pixar’s next release, Inside Out 2 (out June 14). In typical Pixar tradition, each release will also be accompanied by a short film, Entertainment Weekly reports.
Going to the movies is a great way to bond with family. Whether you’re supporting the talented director Paul King and his “Wonka” film or venturing out to see “Wish”, spending time together is the gift that keeps on giving. I’m looking forward to seeing Illumination’s “Migration” in 3D soon. It opens Christmas Day and has received the kind of marketing that “Wish” deserved. It looks like another winning family film.
Drinks With Films Ratings
“Wonka”– 2 mugs of hot cocoa piled high with whimsical wisps of multi-hued whip cream (out of 5)
“Wish” – 3 glasses of the castle’s finest goat milk (out of 5)
Drinks with films 