It may not be Timothee Chalamet’s mother’s favorite movie, but Wonka is officially in theaters. Or maybe it is her favorite, it’s unclear. Chalamet makes his debut as Willy in Wonka, the prequel which also doubles as a cautionary tale for people who don’t know how to read.
Wonka follows Chalamet as a much younger version of the chocolatier who is aiming to open up his big shop. But, like many small businesses, he is faced with ongoing challenges and eventually befriends a girl named noodle (really) and the two form a nice little bond. There’s also a chocolate cartel but that comes later. The most important part is no doubt a tiny version of Hugh Grant, who reluctantly stars as an Oompa Loompa.
The movie clocks in at 1 hour and 56 minutes, which is just the right amount of time before all of that purple probably starts making you dizzy. It’s also a nice break from all of those 3 hour long movies that have become too common thanks to Maritn Scorsese.
Even though the film is technically a prequel, you don’t have to watch the other movies before heading out to the theater. Director Paul King recently told EW, “What I wanted this movie to be was like a companion piece to that movie. If you imagine those people in that world 25 years earlier, that was my starting process. Eventually, he would grow into that person and that factory.” And eventually, he will learn to read.
