Timothée Chalamet is being lathered with praise in the first Wonka reviews. (Warner Bros. Pictures)
The first reviews of Timothée Chalamet in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory prequel Wonka are here and, perhaps surprisingly, the praise is glowing.
After months of build up and two unconvincing trailers – in which Chalamet was compared to Drag Race star Alyssa Edwards and Hugh Grant’s Oompa Loompa sparked visceral aggression from viewers – Wonka finally had its premiere in London last night (28 November).
It follows Timothée Chalamet as the young pioneering chocolatier Willy Wonka himself, and tracks his fight to open his first chocolate shop, long before his chocolate factory came to fruition.
Film critic Courtney Howard was full of praise for the movie, but particularly for Chalamet himself, noting that he is “intoxicating” in the role, describing him as a “charisma factory”.
Howard claimed the film overall is “filled with perfect amounts of charm, whimsy and poignancy” and packed with musical numbers.
Gizmodo film writer Germain Lussier agreed that Chalamet was the main reason to see Wonka, describing the 27-year-old Call Me By Your Name star as “infinitely charming and a blast to watch”, though he declared that the rest of the film “isn’t as good” as the actor himself.
Wonka also stars young This Is Us actress Calah Lane, The Favourite’s Olivia Coleman, former Bake Off host Matt Lucas, and of course, Notting Hill actor Hugh Grant as the infamously reviled Oompa Loompa.
Paul King, the man behind the Paddington movies, directed the movie, with some critics saying that those who enjoyed the Paddington flicks will love Wonka.
Film critic Perri Nemiroff also showered Timothée Chalamet with praise, describing his performance as “exceptional and pitch-perfect”.
Nemiroff referred to the film as “impossibly sweet” and a “super charming delight”, though did mention that it can “get quite silly” and described some of the plot points as “thin”.
In the boldest claims made about the movie yet, writer W. Andrew Powell claimed it “one of the year’s best films”, while critic Rosa Parra declared that Wonka “cements Timothee Chalamet as one of the greatest up and coming actors”.
In a slightly less favourable review, writer Hannah Strong stated that seven of the nine songs included in the film are “bad”, and noted that the film includes several “fat jokes”.
Other critics have described the film as pure silliness, not necessarily in a derogatory sense, while a few said that Wonka, while great, doesn’t match the heights of Paddington.
When the first Wonka trailer dropper earlier this year, the film split the internet down the middle. Some fans shared that they would be instantly “seated”, while others said that it looked like the “worst movie of all time”.
Wonka lands in cinemas on 8 December.