Wonka

Both of the title characters in the beloved family comedy Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory delivered candy-coated enchantment in equal doses. As a prequel, by design, Wonka only has one of them.

In other words, the absence of that magical factory is felt throughout this attempt to extend the intellectual property and perpetuate a franchise from that timeless 1971 film — which was successfully remade 34 years later. The follow-up overflows with nostalgic appeal but lacks the same level of wonder and, well, sweetness.

The origin story is grounded in the rags-to-riches trajectory of a visionary entrepreneur, with a younger Wonka (Timothee Chalamet) essentially taking on the Charlie Bucket role as the working-class big dreamer and underdog optimist.

The cash-strapped aspiring chocolatier is far from his goal of spreading his innovative sugary treats to London’s sweet-toothed masses. He enthusiastically performs street magic and distributes samples, but there’s a greedy and corrupt Big Candy lobby led by tycoon Slugworth (Paterson Joseph) in cahoots with the local police chief (Keegan-Michael Key) to stop him.

Then he’s subject to the abuse of Mrs. Scrubit (Olivia Colman), a corrupt innkeeper whose fine print on the bill leaves him toiling away in the laundry room with some other unlucky indebted souls. Among them is Noodle (Calah Lane), a resourceful teenage orphan who becomes Wonka’s muse during his effort to escape and unwrap his cocoa-infused fantasia.

As directed by Paul King (Paddington), Wonka features plenty of visual and verbal cues to its cinematic predecessors, plus some moments that capture the quirky charm of author Roald Dahl’s source material.

The songs and accompanying production numbers are catchy yet not as memorable. And the film spotlights an amusing array of inventive gadgets and visual trickery.

Chalamet’s charisma is infectious, which is mandatory for the iconic role, older versions of which Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp inhabited in prior adaptations. Kids should respond to his wide-eyed resilience and exuberant love for all things chocolate.

As it fills in some narrative gaps in the mythology that might have been better left open-ended, the film’s funniest gags tend to be reminiscent of the source material, such as the eccentric confections and the cartoonish antics of a sardonic Oopma Loompa (Hugh Grant).

With a whimsical recipe that includes a heavy helping of sentimentality, it functions as a lesser companion piece that at least doesn’t leave a sour taste.

Rated PG, 116 minutes.