For a while there, it seems like it's all that we did, but a quick check of the records shows that it's been nearly 3 months since we last talked about a remake. When most remakes are announced, there's usually a collective groan of "Why?!" However, when it was announced that Tim Burton would be doing an updated version of the Roald Dahl book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I think that most people were OK with this idea. It just made sense. If you looked at Burton's past works, many of them looked as if they'd been informed by Dahl's work anyway.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is set in a world where the candy made by Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp) is very popular. However, due to concerns about spies stealing his ideas, Wonka fired all of the workers from his factory and shut himself off from the world. He has now announced that five "Golden Tickets" have been placed in Wonka Bars and those who find the tickets will be allowed inside of his factory.

Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) is an incredibly poor boy who lives with his parents and both sets of grandparents in a ramshackle house. The family lives off of cabbage and has little else. Charlie finds some money in the street and buys a Wonka Bar, and is thrilled to discover a Golden Ticket inside. Charlie and his Grandpa Joe (David Kelly) go to the factory, where Charlie meets the other four children who won: Augustus Gloop (Philip Wiegratz), a glutton who loves to eat chocolate; Violet Beauregarde (AnnaSophia Robb), a competitive girl who loves gum; Veruca Salt (Julia Winter), a spoiled brat, and Mike Teavee (Jordan Fry), who is addicted to TV and video games. They meet the very eccentric Wonka and begin the tour of the factory. However, they quickly learn that Wonka's factory can be a dangerous place where children are judged on their personalities and behaviors.

However, the biggest difference is Johnny Depp. Wilder played Wonka as a slightly deranged man who acted as if he were playing a big practical joke on his guests. Depp has chosen to play Wonka as someone who has lost touch with reality and acts as if everything going on inside of the factory is perfectly normal. He never comes across as dangerous or malicious -- He's almost childlike in his whimsy. He's also the funniest part of the movie. Through his mannerisms, his facial expressions, and his delivery of throw-away lines, Depp is hilarious as Wonka. We've seen Depp disappear into roles before, but the dapper, yet bizarre Wonka is light years away from Depp's real-life persona or other roles, say Jack Sparrow. Wonka can be funny whether he's insulting one of the children or having a strange flashback. This dose of unique humor certainly separates the movie from its predecessor.

Of course, we can't forget about Tim Burton. Much like Edward Scissorhands, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory begins in a monochromatic world, but goes into full Technicolor mode once the action moves inside the factory. This may be Burton's most colorful movie to date, and the man who made his name making very dark films has no trouble converting to bright tones. We also get a healthy dose of his bizarre humor and the movie's pace never sags.

It's rare to find an original film and a remake which can live in harmony, but that's certainly the case here. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory brings enough new things to the table to separate it from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, while still remaining reverent to the earlier movie. When taken on its own, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory presents an enticing story which is backed up by great production design and a performance which proves once again that Depp is one of our greatest living actors.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory reminds us that cannibalism is bad on Blu-ray Disc courtesy of Warner Home Video. The film has been letterboxed at 1.85:1 and the Disc contains a VC-1 1080p HD transfer which runs at an average of 25 Mbps. The image is very sharp and clear, showing no overt grain or defects from the source material. This film is all about contrasting colors and this transfer handles this well. The early scenes are never overly dark and the black backgrounds stand out nicely from the snow-covered streets. Once in the factory, the colors look fantastic, most notably reds and greens. The image has a nice depth to it and the level of detail here is impressive. The Disc carries a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track which runs at 48 kHz and an average of 2.0 Mbps. The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects. Although this is a new release, this sounds like one of Warner's old Dolby TrueHD tracks. (Is this simply a port of the previously released HD-DVD of this film?) The track sounds fine, but the stereo and surround effects aren't very powerful. They are certainly present and the songs sound great, but scenes such as the introduction to the chocolate room, don't overwhelm us and the subwoofer is a bit light.

The Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Blu-ray Disc contains an abundance of extras. We begin with an AUDIO COMMENTARY from Director Tim Burton. We also get a separate audio track isolating Danny Elfman's score and songs. "In-Movie Experience" is a viewing choice which brings the viewer picture-in-picture segments which offer behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, and concept art. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Chocolate Dreams" (7 minutes) offers interviews with Burton, Roald Dahl's daughter, Depp, and Writer John August, who discuss their approach to the project, specifically how they were going to adapt the book. "Different Faces, Different Flavors" (11 minutes) examines the cast of the film and we get to hear from the actors who talk about their characters and the film. We hear from Production Designer Alex McDowell in "Designer Chocolate" (10 minutes), where he talks about the look of the movie. We go inside the various visual effects and special effects which were used to create Wonka's world in "Under the Wrapper" (7 minutes). "Sweet Sounds" (7 minutes) has Composer Danny Elfman talking about the "Oompa-Loompa" songs in the movie. "Becoming Oompa-Loompa" (7 minutes) shows the movie-magic used to make Deep Roy look like hundreds of factory workers, as well as his preparation for the film. "Attack of the Squirrels" (10 minutes) shows us how the animals were trained (sort of) for the nut-sorting room scene. "Fantastic Mr. Dahl" (18 minutes) is a mini-documentary which looks at the career of Roald Dahl. We get Pre-Vis for two scenes -- Augustus Gloop Dance and Mike Teavee Dance (each 2 minutes) . "Club Reel" (3 minutes) is a really weird dance music video which, if the menu is to be believed, was shown in nightclubs in Europe. The final extra is the THEATRICAL TRAILER for the film.