After Batman and Planet of the Apes, Tim Burton continues to rewrite a generation's childhood with a new adaptation of Roald Dahl's much-loved book. A fashionable but superfluous backstory aside, Burton sticks faithfully to the text: poverty-stricken Charlie Bucket (Finding Neverland's Freddie Highmore, the film's heart) is one of five competition winners on a guided tour of Willy Wonka's sweet factory. Johnny Depp's camp, childlike Wonka - weirdly reminiscent of Michael Jackson - is fun but ultimately too distant to recapture the love generated by Gene Wilder in the original. The production design looks good enough to eat, however, and it is here that Burton exposes the technical limitations of the once-definitive 1971 musical, employing computer animation to dazzling effect. Dahl's trademark black humour remains, but ultimately this can't decide if it's a timeless fairy tale or, with its video games, S&M and MTV-influenced dance routines, a modern parable.

A young boy wins a tour through the most magnificent chocolate factory in the world, led by the world's most unusual candy maker.