Phil Grossfield's Blog

Willy Wonka versus Willy Wonka. Some movie remakes are better than the original. For example, The Fly with Jeff Goldblum was awesome compared to the original. Another great example that comes to mind is the War of the Worlds with Tom Cruise which was really blanking scary, even for an old man like me. But some remakes really blanking blow it. The first Willy Wonka movie with Gene Wilder was a billion times better than the second with Johnny Depp. The whole first half of the movie before they even get inside the chocolate factory was brilliant with all the little scenes depicting the crazed worldwide search for the golden ticket which culminate to Charlie unwrapping his winning bar…simply awesomeness…is that a word? And Gene Wilder was sooooooooo much better than Johnny Depp. Depp was creepy in a creepy way instead of creepy in an eccentric way, like Wilder. Simply put, the second movie was horrendous…there are so many ways this movie stunk it up beyond Depp’s depiction of Wonka…the Oompa Loompas and songs…all hideous. If you haven’t seen the new movie, don’t waste your time even if your kids beg, like mine did.

I am planning on watching the new Total Recall movie soon…it’s recorded on my DVR and I just need some blissful family-free time to actually watch it. I’ll try and keep an open mind but how could it possibly compare to Arnold’s version?

My Schedule: I have appointments at 10:30a and 2:30p and otherwise available.

This is really blanking cool…don’t worry, nothing bad happens:  Baby Swimming Survival Video.