GIVING US THE WILLIES

The Omen’s David Seltzer also wrote Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory: a film that we argue is also a horror. To wit…

THE OOMPA-LOOMPAS

With their spooky songs, clown-like make-up and Trump-orange faces, the Oompa-loompas feel far more sinister and repellent than mischievous. To quote the Futurama ‘Chocolate Factory’ parody episode: “Who are those horrible orange creatures over there? Tell them I hate them.”

THE FIZZY LIFTING DRINK FAN

In a sequence added to the film by Seltzer, a magical moment switches to lifeendangering panic. Having imbibed some Fizzy Lifting Drink, Charlie and Grandpa start joyfully levitating… Only for them to realise they’re flying towards a huge, rapidly rotating fan that’ll chop them up into Turkish Delight if they can’t figure a way back down.

THE BOAT RIDE

A relatively tranquil chocolate-river boat ride plunges into the realm of bad-trip terror as Wonka subjects his guests to a full-on psychedelic assault. As the boat accelerates, the tunnel walls flash with disturbing imagery, including (shudder) a giant millipede coiling around an unconscious woman’s face. Genuinely nightmarish.

WONKA HIMSELF

“Not a speck of light is showing, so the danger must be growing,” Willy Wonka intones during the above sequence. “Are the fires of hell a-glowing? Is the grisly Reaper mowing? YES!” If we didn’t know better, we’d think Gene Wilder’s wild-eyed factory owner was a serial killer, offing children one-by-one with his elaborate confectionbased contraptions, like a purple-coated Jigsaw. But thankfully we do know better. Um. Don’t we?