Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

Quaker Oats financed Mel Stuart’s film to get into confectionery, launching a Wonka Bar with it. The chocolate melted in shops and was recalled over a production fault; the first run drew little attention and the film’s standing came from 1980s television screenings. Two departures from the book matter. Arthur Slugworth, a faint rival in the book, became a spy so the film would have a villain. The fizzy lifting drinks scene and Wonka’s closing line are David Seltzer’s, added when he rewrote the script. Roald Dahl, infuriated, disowned it and refused any further adaptation in his lifetime. More than 40 minutes pass before the factory gate opens. Stuart hid the Chocolate Room set from the child actors until the shooting day, showing it early only to Julie Dawn Cole, so most of their astonishment is real. Its one Academy Award nomination was in Music (Scoring: Adaptation and Original Song Score), won by Fiddler on the Roof. Peter Ostrum, who played Charlie, turned down a three film contract, never acted again and became a veterinarian. A good fit if you can wait 40 minutes to get into the factory and want a Wonka whose next move is never settled. Not for a reader after a faithful Dahl adaptation, or anyone watching the tunnel sequence beside a small child.