Wonka as a Neoliberalist

The 1971 film “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” and the 2005 remake, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” both display characteristics of neo-liberalism. In David Harvey’s “A Brief History of Neoliberalism,” we learn the past 25 years have introduced and imposed this new government philosophy of a hands-off approach to our market, aptly called neoliberalism. In Mel Stuart’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s book of the same name, the character Willy Wonka, played by Gene Wilder, owns and runs a candy factory which distributes its goods worldwide. It provides hundreds of jobs for the residents of the town the factory is located in. When Wonka’s secrets start spreading around, he shuts down his factory and his entire work force is laid off, which leaves the residents of the city impoverished. The story focuses on one family in particular: the Buckets. Charlie Bucket’s grandpa used to be high up in Wonka’s factory before the bust happened, and leaves his entire line of family living under a single, broken roof.

The movie shows the power of the free market over its employees and how it can affect even their families. When big business globalizes, it doesn’t take into consideration the damage it can/will do. Business only cares about the increase of profits, even the seemingly friendly businesses (i.e. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory).

In the 2005 remake, Wonka is shown employing Oompa Loompas, which could be seen as a metaphor for hiring labor overseas for cheaper. The Oompa Loompas work for cocoa and not cash, and they are not a liability to Wonka since they do not leave the factory and cannot spread his recipes and secrets.


Oompa Loompas as Overseas Labor
(watch from about 4:30 to about 7:30)