Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (movie) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Tim Burton
Produced by	Brad Grey Richard D. Zanuck
Screenplay by	John August
Narrated by	Geoffrey Holder
Starring	Johnny Depp Freddie Highmore David Kelly Helena Bonham Carter Noah Taylor Missi Pyle James Fox Deep Roy Christopher Lee
Music by	Danny Elfman
Cinematography	Philippe Rousselot
Editing by	Chris Lebenzon
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	July 10, 2005 (2005-07-10) (Grauman's Chinese Theatre) July 15, 2005 (2005-07-15) (United States) July 29, 2005 (2005-07-29) (United Kingdom)
Running time	115 minutes
Country	United States United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	$150 million
Money made	$475 million

Depp's performance as Willy Wonka received mixed reviews, with many critics comparing his character to Michael Jackson.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is an exciting fantasy film from 2005, directed by Tim Burton. It's a musical adventure based on the famous 1964 book by Roald Dahl. This movie is the second time Dahl's beloved story has been brought to the big screen.

The film stars Johnny Depp as the quirky chocolate maker Willy Wonka. Freddie Highmore plays Charlie Bucket, a kind-hearted boy. The story follows Charlie as he wins a special contest. This win leads him on an amazing tour of Wonka's incredible chocolate factory, which is the most magnificent in the world!

Story of the Chocolate Factory

Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) is a sweet boy who lives in a small, poor house. He lives with his parents (Noah Taylor and Helena Bonham Carter) and his four grandparents. All six of them rely on his father's small income. His dad works at a toothpaste factory, putting caps on tubes.

Right down the street is Willy Wonka's (Johnny Depp) huge chocolate factory. It had been closed for a long time. Wonka had to close it because other candy makers were stealing his secret recipes. This made him fire all his workers and hide away. Charlie's Grandpa Joe (David Kelly) used to work for Wonka before the factory closed.

The Golden Ticket Contest

One day, Wonka announces an amazing contest! Five Golden Tickets are hidden inside Wonka chocolate bars. The children who find these tickets will get a special tour of his factory. One lucky child will also win a secret grand prize.

Soon, four tickets are found by other children:

• Augustus Gloop (Philip Wiegratz) from Germany, who loves to eat too much.
• Veruca Salt (Julia Winter) from England, a very spoiled girl.
• Violet Beauregarde (AnnaSophia Robb) from Atlanta, who is super competitive.
• Mike Teavee (Jordan Fry) from Denver, who is always glued to screens.

Charlie really hopes to find a ticket, but his family doesn't have much money. He only gets one Wonka bar for his birthday each year. Grandpa Joe also buys him one bar. Neither of these bars has a Golden Ticket. Everyone loses hope when the last ticket is supposedly found in Russia.

Charlie's Lucky Find

Later, Charlie finds some money on the street. He decides to buy just one more chocolate bar. Suddenly, news breaks that the Russian ticket was a fake! Charlie opens his new chocolate bar, and guess what? He finds the real last Golden Ticket!

People nearby try to grab the ticket from him. But the kind shopkeeper (Oscar James) makes sure Charlie keeps it. Charlie rushes home with his amazing discovery.

Grandpa Joe offers to go with Charlie on the tour. Charlie thinks about selling the ticket for money. But Grandpa George (David Morris) reminds him that money is common, but a Golden Ticket is super rare. Charlie decides to keep it and go on the tour.

The Factory Tour and the Other Kids

The visitors meet Wonka, who is quite strange and a bit lonely. He acts odd when anyone mentions "parents." The tour of the factory is truly magical! Tiny, orange-skinned people called Oompa-Loompas run everything.

One by one, the other four children get into trouble because they can't resist temptation:

• Augustus Gloop falls into a river of chocolate and gets sucked up a pipe. He's rescued, but he's covered in chocolate!
• Violet Beauregarde tries an experimental chewing gum and blows up into a giant blueberry.
• Veruca Salt demands a trained squirrel and is thrown away as a "bad nut" by the squirrels themselves.
• Mike Teavee tries Wonka's new TV invention and is shrunk down to a tiny size.

The Grand Prize and a Family Reunion

Charlie is the only child left! Wonka congratulates him and reveals the grand prize: Charlie will inherit the entire chocolate factory! But there's a catch: Charlie's family can't come with him. Because of this, Charlie turns down the amazing offer.

Charlie learns that Wonka had a difficult childhood. His father, Wilbur Wonka (Christopher Lee), was a strict dentist. Willy wasn't allowed to eat any candy and had very tight braces on his teeth. But once Willy tasted candy, he knew he wanted to make it. He left home to follow his dream, even though his father didn't approve. When Wonka later returned, his father and their home were gone.

Wonka's candies aren't selling as well as they used to. He realizes his unhappiness is connected to his past. Charlie helps Wonka find his father, Wilbur. When they meet, it turns out that even though Wilbur avoided candy, he had been following Willy's success all along. They finally make up.

Wonka then allows Charlie's whole family to move into the factory. Together, Wonka and Charlie start planning new and exciting candies to create!

Main Characters

Images for kids

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  The 1968 film Danger: Diabolik helped inspire the look of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

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  A small model town was built for the movie's outdoor scenes instead of using computer effects.

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  Helena Bonham Carter at the film's premiere in London.

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  Special Wonka Bars were released to help promote the movie.

See also

In Spanish: Charlie y la fábrica de chocolate (película) para niños