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Review: 'Charlie' a sweet tripJohnny Depp, Tim Burton provide visions of excellenceBy Paul Clinton  Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp, in top hat), shows off the chocolate factory to his golden ticket winners. (CNN) -- Director Tim Burton is now batting .500 in one of Hollywood's favorite games -- remaking films. Burton didn't do well in his first remake attempt, striking out with his 2001 re-do of the 1968 film "Planet of the Apes." But now, on a much sweeter note, he has solidly connected in topping the 1971 film adaptation of Roald Dahl's children's story, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (a film that was titled "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory"). Burton and screenwriter John August ("Big Fish") have stayed fairly true to Dahl's original fantasy tale, but they've also improved -- with the full backing of Dahl's widow Felicity -- the ending of the original book and added flashbacks to Wonka's childhood. I can't imagine anyone other than Burton attempting this project. He's already tackled, as producer, another of Dahl's whimsical books, "James and the Giant Peach." Moreover, very few directors can top Burton' imagination when it comes to creating an alternate universe on film. He's also had experience in telling a story about a child-like man who dresses in a funny way and relates to children: "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" was his directorial debut 20 years ago. Mysterious eccentricAs with many children's books, "Charlie" is -- at its core -- a great morality tale, if one covered in mounds of chocolate. The story isn't set in any particular city or time. Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp), an exceedingly eccentric man, owns the largest chocolate factory in the world, a place that makes the most delicious candies in the universe. When rival candymakers start to steal his secrets, he abruptly closes the factory and fires all his workers. For years the factory stands empty, but then suddenly it mysteriously comes back to life. Even more mysteriously, no one ever enters or leaves the factory. No one is more fascinated with Wonka and chocolates than young Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore), who lives in a dilapidated shack with his mother (Helena Bonham Carter), his father (Noah Taylor) and his four grandparents, including his endearing Grandpa Joe (David Kelly), who used to work for Wonka.  The film's set design is brilliant, says critic Paul Clinton -- as is the performance(s) of Deep Roy (left), who plays all the Oompa-Loompas. One day an announcement comes out that Wonka is opening his factory -- for just one day -- to five lucky children, each of whom will be accompanied by one parent. Each child will also get a lifetime supply of chocolates and one of them will win an enormous prize. All the children have to do is find one of five chocolate bars with golden tickets among all the Wonka bars in the world. The announcement prompts a frenzy of chocolate buying, which produces five winning children: the gluttonous Augustus Gloop (Philip Wiegratz), the spoiled Veruca Salt (Julia Winter), the perfectionist gum-chewer Violet Beauregard (Annasophia Robb), the video-addicted Mike Teavee (Jordan Fry), and -- finally -- Charlie. Off they all go to visit the factory and meet the mysterious Mr. Wonka. Their -- and our -- first glimpse of Willy is a bit startling. With his white face makeup, high-pitched voice, strange clothing and Prince Valiant hairdo, Depp seems like nothing so much as ... Michael Jackson. Depp, fortunately, is such a good actor that the initial impression soon wears off. He gives a risky, and terrific, performance. The factory's interior is an incredible monument to the talents of Burton and production designer Alex McDowell. It's a utopia where everything from fudge mountains to chocolate waterfalls is edible. The mind-boggling sets really do have to be seen to be believed. On their gameOnce inside, the children learn the secret of how Wonka runs the factory. The chocolate mogul has imported little people, Oompa-Loompas, from distant Loompaland. With amazing skill, infinite patience and the help of motion-capture technology, one actor, Deep Roy, plays the entire community of Oompa-Loompas as they sing, dance and work around the factory. It's stunning work. I also have to mention a remarkable scene in "The Nut Room." Burton found animal experts who actually succeeded in training 20 squirrels to shell walnuts while sitting on stools over a conveyer belt. Several more of the animals were computer-generated, and effects were used for some movements, but nevertheless squirrels, with their short attention spans, are extremely hard to train. Trust me: you've never seen anything quite like this. Those familiar with the story know what happens next: the children are dismissed, one by one, in appropriately nasty ways. Thus the way is clear for Wonka to achieve the plan he had all along. Highmore, who made the whole world cry in "Finding Neverland" (also starring Depp, who wanted him for "Charlie"), is gifted with a deeply intuitive talent, and possesses a face that holds the screen even when he has no dialogue. When it comes to filmmaking, Burton and Depp are both men with unique visions. Sometimes the results have been far from perfect, but they're almost always interesting. Burton has taken us into territory never before imagined, and Depp -- a thoughtful character actor who happens to have the brooding dark looks of a leading man -- has delivered layered, interesting and compelling performances that work spot-on with the material. In the case of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," they're both on their game. It's a beautifully executed, visually astounding film about love and family -- making it the best film out there this summer for families everywhere. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is a Warner Bros. film. Warner Bros. is a division of Time Warner, as is CNN. 
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