Object #32 - The Tunnel - Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

Dir. Mel Stuart

There's no earthly way of knowing
In which direction we are going.
There's no knowing where we're rowing,
Or which way the river's flowing!
Is it raining, is it snowing?
Is a hurricane a-blowing?
Not a speck of light is showing,
So the danger must be growing.
By the fires of hell a-glowing,
is the grisly reaper mowing?
Yes! The danger must be growing,
For the rowers keep on rowing,
And they're certainly not showing,
Any signs that they are slowing!

The ability of children to take things in their stride is a unique quirk of being young. Now I know this isn't the case all of the time, as everyone knows a child who questions absolutely everything. But with films, it tends to be, at least in my own experience and from the experiences of people I've known, that kids can accept the most off-the-wall things without much questioning, particularly if watching a film alone. The tunnel scene in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is the prime example I find.

You likely know the story already, either from the classic Roald Dahl book, this film, or even the 2005 Tim Burton adaption. Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder), the reclusive and eccentric chocolatier invites the finders of five golden tickets, with an escort, to tour his famous chocolate factory. Inside, they find delights of 'Pure Imagination', with rivers of chocolate, everlasting gobstoppers, and the Oompa Loompa helpers.

Early in the film, after being wowed by Wonka's auditorium, full of edible mushrooms and the chocolate river, the children and their family member escorts ride a boat on the chocolate river, taking them deeper into the factory. What, before this, has been a magical film, with musical numbers such as 'The Candyman', 'I've Got a Golden Ticket', and 'Pure Imagination' (also 'Cheer Up Charlie', but nobody likes that one), takes a turn for the surreal, the psychedelic, and the frightening.

The scene is here, in poor quality. They enter the dark tunnel, with both parents and children shouting their displeasure, as Wonka tells the Oopma-Loompas to increase speed. The boat, and the tunnel, becomes cast in psychedelic lights of red, blue, and purple. Henry Salt (Roy Kinnear) tells Wonka that he can't possibly know where he's going, to which Wonka responds "You're right, I can't". This is the magic of Gene Wilder in this scene, he goes from absolutely insane, with eyes wide in pure insane joy, to utterly reserved and scheming as he responds to the parents. It's passionate! 

Not soon after, the horror begins. Lest we forget, this is a film aimed at children and families. Moving images appear on the walls of the tunnel, flashing quickly, registering in your brain and then being cast away by a cut. We see a millipede-like creature crawl over a woman's mouth, as she appears unmoving; we see a chicken, and an axe fall, decapitating it; a reptile eating a bug; and a maggot extend it's mouth. Also, of note, is that Charlie (Peter Ostrum) sees an image of Slugworth (Gunter Meisner), the rival of Wonka who asked the winners to smuggle out one of Wonka's creations for a business advantage. Charlie and Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson) are the only two who aren't completely frightened by the tunnel, and so there's a suggestion that as Slugworth appears to Charlie, that the tunnel is reflecting the fears of the boat-riders back at them. This could be wrong of course, as most of the images are universal in their ability to disgust and revolt us.

Wonka begins to sing, see the lyrics above. He paints a picture of hopelessness and loss of control, as both he, the owner and imagination behind the factory, the Oompa-Loompas (all the only authority figures in the factory essentially), and the boat riders are hurtling out of control at high speed. He taps into the fear everyone feels, as even the Oompa-Loopmas row and row, as they want to escape the fearful images. It's so primal, and so at odds with everything we've seen in the film so far that we honestly have no idea what will happen next. Wilder plays it as a slowly increasing mania, until he crescendos with a wild scream, the light flashing around him, the people he's welcomed into his home screaming in terror.

The fact he mentions hell brings to mind a theory I read online, which in typical internet fashion, is fairly outlandish and not the intention of the story, but is interesting nonetheless, that the tunnel is a pathway to either Hell or Purgatory, as the fearful images welcome them to the land of death and hopelessness. The children are then judged appropriately by Wonka as the story unfolds, each falling to a sin, Gloop - gluttony, Violet - pride, Veruca - greed, Mike - sloth. Charlie, who remains mostly honest, passes the test of offering the Gobstopper to 'Slugworth', and is accepted into a glass elevator, which takes him upwards into Paradise. 

I love that theory, it's not the intention of the film or the book at all, but it lines up near-perfectly and actually solidifies a lot of the themes Dahl was going for in the book. It's why I like the tunnel scene so much, as the mention of Hell subconsciously brings this to mind over the course of the film. It's also an addition to the film not present in the book. 

Henry Salt pipes up again, telling Wonka that this has gone far enough. Wonka replies far more rationally and calmly "Quite right, Sir. Stop the boat!". We cut to black, and the shot above is shown. No inertia of the boat stopping, they simply have arrived at their destination. It really does make it feel like they've all shared a bad LSD! Also of note, is the fact that Wonka did actually have the power the entire time to stop the boat. He was in control, despite his song, and so he orchestrated the event for his own end, for his own pleasure. It's a startling start to the tour, and perhaps this is what Wonka was going for in his insane head, but it's clear that they've now found their way, and that anything coming after this is unlikely to be as frightening as what was just experienced.

In all honesty, you don't need to go into much depth to see why the tunnel is such a unique and fascinating part of this film. For a children's film, it's adult, scary, and as I said earlier, primal. It sets a wavelength for the boat-riders but also we the audience, that this is a factory, a world, that plays by it's own rules. Are you ready for the tour?