Wonka (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)
I have been a fan of Willy Wonka since I was a young kid. I had the Charlie and the Chocolate Factorybooks and read them over and over. I even had an audiobook on cassette that used to lull me to sleep on many nights. I was soothed by the narrator and the story was so visual even on the page that I went right to that factory, wished I was Charlie and wanted so much to win by being a good kid. The sense memory of it all, right? The 1971 film with Gene Wilder as the titular Willy Wonka was also a fever dream of goodness. Part whimsy and charm, part acid trip, even now I love that film. When Johnny Depp stepped into Wonka’s shoes, I was intrigued and then sadly disappointed by the results. When I heard the filmmakers behind Paddington were working on another Wonka tale, I of course got interested. Those are such sweet films. Did Paul King and his cast and crew deliver? Read on below and be sure to click the cover artwork at the end to order a copy of this candy-coated film!
Film 
A young Willy Wonka has just finished sailing the 7 seas, finding the best ingredients for what he hopes to be the best chocolate in the world. He has little to no money, but his dreams float him through any hardships. Upon arrival in Europe, Wonka dreams of opening a shop at the Galéries Gourmet where he has been told since he was a child was the place that had the best chocolate in the world. Almost immediately he is swindled by Bleecher and Mrs. Scrubbit (Tom Davis and Olivia Colman) who’s boarding house contract has a lot of fine print. We learn Wonka is unable to read, and his warning to read said fine print by the precocious Noodle (Calah Lane), leads to his imprisonment in the boarding house. He must somehow pay back a 10,000 Pound bill working in their washroom. Thrown down into the washroom, Wonka meets a group of people also owing the despicable duo a debt (Jim Carter, Natasha Rothwell, Rich Fulchur and Rahkee Thakrar).
Of course, Wonka has to make it to the Galéries Gourmet to try and sell his chocolate. He makes them out of a case which has visual signs to know which ingredients to add. There he meets Slugworth (Patterson Joseph), Prodnose (Matt Lucas) and Fickelgruber (Mathew Baynton) who more or less rule the candy sector of the Galéries. They have a complicated system that has them leading the confectionary section, and when they try Wonka’s chocolate, his choice for the day being delicious and magical with the ability to make the eater float, they immediately feel threatened and have him banished. After the failure to keep his money and forge his path to his dream of a candy shop, Wonka devises a plan to implant himself anyway. Training Scrubbit’s dog to run the washroom himself, Wonka and his friends work together to make the shop a reality. But of course, this is not without consequence, and the rest of the film plays out how Wonka will get out of that sticky situation – Pun intended.
Without spoiling anything, Wonka overcomes obstacles, charms the locals, and is persued by a sassy Oompa Loompa (Hugh Grant). But does he get his dreams? It’s all unpacked in a tidy 116 minutes. To say Wonka charmed me is an understatement. The songs are cute. The production design is lush and gorgeous. Timothee Chalamet is fantastic, showing versatility playing the kind, gentle younger Wonka. He also has a great co-star in young Calah Lane who is fabulous as his cynical young partner. The supporting cast is just as sumptuous and wonderful and moment after moment keeps you immersed and right along for the ride. Wonka is delightful in more than a few ways, but the sweetness and the ability of King and his co-writer that makes this feel as if Roald Dahl himself wrote the material. There’s lightness and sweetness, but also darkness and cynicism. That mixtures ultimately grounds the film, and makes it the wonderful feature it is.
Video
NOTE: Stills are provided for promotional use only and are not from the 4K Blu-ray
Encoding: HEVC / H.265
Resolution: 2160p
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision
Layers: BD-100
Clarity/Detail: Wonka is a film that offers a distinctive “old school” look. Colors remind me of something Douglas Sirk would’ve LOVED, and that’s a huge compliment. The overall clarity and detail of the film is first rate, as any modern film should look. Flashback scenes have some old grain and dirt in them intentionally, but otherwise this is a tack sharp, beautiful presentation.
Depth: There is a ton to take in in each scene. Each set piece is rich in depth of field. You’d be hard pressed to find any issues with foreground or background in any scene.
Black Levels: Perfect blacks abound in this presentation with no instances of crush.
Color Reproduction: I mentioned Douglas Sirk earlier for good reason. His films were always so color rich and fabulous looking. The same can be said for this film. All colors offer a hyper contrasty, but natural look. Nothing looks odd at all, and the color palette is a full range from cool to warm. Everything is colorfully amazing.
Flesh Tones: Natural tones come out in every actors face, and nobody looks like they’ve had a spray tan!
Noise/Artifacts: Clean
Audio
Audio Format(s): English Dolby Atmos (core Dolby TrueHD 7.1)
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
Dynamics: Wonka’s Atmos mix is wonderful. Just like the picture quality, the audio mix is full bodied and rich. Nothing seems out of place, and everything works together to make the film’s sound design complete and fluid.
Height: From above, we get the treat of outdoor ambience, washroom sounds, zoo noise, flamingoes in flight and singing chocolate addicted monks too. Fantastic use of height channels!
Low-Frequency Extension: Wonka doesn’t command the subwoofer too often, but since it’s a new movie with a modern mix, music and sound effects all benefit from the bass. Some sound effects will rumble the floor, but this film is not a home theater tester, and shouldn’t be expected to be either.
Surround Sound Presentation: Surround activity is just as busy as the height channels, taking the lower background sounds and filling the sound space heartily.
Dialogue Reproduction: Dialogue sound perfectly placed for the duration.
Extras 
Extras for Wonka are not super lengthy but tell a good story. Had they combined each piece into something more cohesive, it would’ve been a better 35-40 minute documentary rather than a few simple small pieces.
Unwrapping Wonka (12:28, HD) is a short piece on the overall making of the film, including the director placing the film in 1948.
Whimsical Music of Wonka (6:01, HD) highlights the songs in the film, which is of course a musical.
Wonka Land (10:51, HD) is a quick feature on the set design.
Hats Off (6:47, HD) details the costumes of the film.
Wonka Chocolatier (8:51, HD) is a feature with the master chocolatier who created all the candies in the film.
There is also a separate feature that combines all the musical sequences together in one loop.
Summary
Wonka didn’t seem like it would charm me as much as it did at first. I am a stickler for classics and hate to see them tampered with. The 1971 Willy Wonka is it’s on entity, and this new story is one that can stand on its own or compliment the earlier film. Chalamet is charming and well rounded here and his supporting cast is fabulous too. I only hope the film gets its continued love now that we can watch it at home. Every good notice is well deserved and this 4K UHD Blu-ray edition of Wonka is a gorgeous addition to any collector’s collection!
