Wonka

Do you love movies as much as I do? If you're like me, there's nothing like escaping reality for a couple hours, and immersing yourself in someone else's adventure. This post is about my favorite children's movie of all time...

That's right, the 1971 classic "Willie Wonka & the Chocolate Factory", starring Gene Wilder.

I absolutely love this movie, and have since I was a kid. Although I own the DVD, it was on TV this past weekend, and I watched it (of course). As I watched, it occurred to me that the story is a metaphor for the Christian gospel. After doing some googling, I discovered that other folks (like this guy and this guy) feel the same way. See what you think of these parallels:

• Willie Wonka = God. Wonka, the ultimate "candy man", controls the one thing all the world wants: candy. Consider these lines from the song at the beginning of the movie: “The candy man can 'cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good. And the world tastes good 'cause the candy man thinks it should."”
  
  
• The Chocolate Factory = Heaven. The Wonka factory is an mysterious idyllic wonderland, a land flowing with milk and honey (and chocolate!) Also, only a select few will be allowed in its gates, and entry is considered a great reward.
  
  
• Slugworth = Satan. Slugworth tries to temp the ticket holders into betraying Wonka, by selling him an Everlasting Gobstopper. Satan tries to tempt us to betray our Lord, and "sell" our souls to him.
  
  
• Spoiled children = unrepentant sinners. Augustus Gloop represents gluttony, and his fate is to be sucked up a tube and sent to the boiler room (a metaphor for hell). Veruca Salt ("Daddy, I want an Oompa Loompa NOW!) is the personification of greed. She is put on the egg scale, found to be a "bad egg", and sent to the trash (another hell analogy). The other two kids also have bad behavior, although they are not considered "sins". Mike Teevee watches too much violent TV, and Violet Beauregard chews gum 24/7. Both meet bizarre fates in the movie...
  
  
• Charlie = repentant sinner. Although Charlie only broke one of Wonka's rules (yes, he drank the Fizzy Lifting drink without permission), he is still guilty and unable to inherit the factory. In my favorite scene of the movie, Wonka confronts Charlie with his "sin", informs him that he now cannot win the contest, and orders him to leave. Charlie has a repentant heart, and demonstrates this by returning his Gobstopper (instead of giving it to Slugworth, as his grandfather tempts him to do...). Based on this act of repentance, Wonka forgives Charlie, and announces that Charlie will be allowed to inherit not only the chocolate, but the whole factory. This is a picture of Christian salvation, in which we are made "heirs to the Kingdom" and are allowed to be with God in heaven forever.
  

Now, granted, there are a lot of things in the movie that don't seem to fit the Christian analogy... Maybe you can help me out with these:

• Oompa Loompas? (Angels?)
• Wonka's dark, disturbing side (remember the freaky ferry ride? "There's no way of knowing, which way we are going, or where the river is flowing...")
• Golden tickets?
• Charlie's family getting invited to live in the factory too (based on Charlie's repentance...)?
• Wonkavator?
  

Anyhow, its a great movie with a great message for kids for adults as well. A true classic.

Drop me a comment if you're a Wonka fan too!