Thursday is the 45th anniversary of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, and nearly a half-century later, a specter is haunting pop culture. Gene Wilder deserved an Oscar for this film. Wilder is one of the greatest comic actors of the 20th century, but his turn as Wonka is one of the most finely-tuned feature-length performances from any actor, ever. Wilder's performance in Chocolate Factory careens wildly in tone, veering from charming-if-slightly-off in his first few scenes to downright unhinged and terrifying in the infamous tunnel scene a few scant minutes later. Wilder's Wonka was by design unpredictable, but meticulously planned out by the actor.
- 6/29/2016
- by Alex Heigl, @alex_heigl
- PEOPLE.com
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