Comparison of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Book Vs. Movie

Rosina Gonzalez

ENG 353

02/08/05

Research Paper

For this paper, I chose the Roald Dahl modern fantasy book, Charlie and the

Chocolate Factory, and the film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Dahl’s

books are mostly fantasy and full of imagination. They are always a little cruel, but never

without humor - a thrilling mixture of the grotesque and comic. A frequent motif is that

people are not what they appear to be. Dahl's works for children are usually told from the

point of view of a child, and they typically involve adult villains, usually women who

hate and mistreat children, and feature at least one "good" adult to counteract the

villain(s). However, this tale offers a different formula in that the adults in Charlie’s life

are good. It is the children that he goes to the factory with that would be considered

“bad” and there are consequences to their bad behavior. This paper will discuss some of

the differences between the book and the film, as well as some of my own thoughts on the

two.

The film stars Gene Wilder as the eccentric chocolate maker, Peter Ostrum as Charlie,

and Jack Albertson as Grandpa Joe. The film was released in 1971. It was not a full

musical in the usual sense, featuring only six songs. Some were notably well received,

including "The Candy Man Can," and "The Oompa Loompa Song." "Cheer Up, Charlie"

and "I've Got a Golden Ticket" are songs are regularly edited out of TV screenings,

presumably because the songs are widely (but not universally) disliked. Dahl's screenplay

follows his book's basic storyline fairly closely. Mel Stuart's direction however takes

some parts of the movie in a slightly darker direction than the book. One sequence, for

example, the boat ride on the chocolate river, in hindsight shows a psychedelic influence

seen more at rock concerts than in films for children. I think that the book can be enjoyed

by readers 3rd grade and up, but I think the film would be enjoyed by a more mature child,

perhaps 5th or 6th grade.

Other differences between the film and the book include:

The film expanded the role of Wonka's rival Slugworth, who tempts the children to give him the recipe for Wonka's Everlasting Gobstoppers. It turns out at the end, that he is actually an employee of Wonka who participates in a test of character of the ticket holders, which Charlie Bucket passes with flying colors.

The effect of Fizzy Lifting Drinks that are only described in the book are demonstrated by Charlie and Grandpa Joe