Family Restoration in Tim Burton"s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

This study explores the theme of family restoration in Tim Burton"s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), an adaptation of Roald Dahl"s 1964 fairy tale with the same name. While Dahl"s story written in the form of a fairy tale, Burton's adaptation modernizes the original and expands scope by adding details about Willy Wonka's troubled childhood. Burton remains true to the fairy-tale genre in his adaptation, emphasizing on moral lessons alongside a dualistic vision of a society pitted against good and evil. His portrayal of Wonka adds a deeper psychological dimension to the simplified character of the original protagonist. Through Wonka's character, Burton challenges the traditional fairy-tale reliance on binary categories. This is completed in the theme of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the family system, even the alternative family, which is also the key theme of the fairy tales.