King Arthur and the Chocolate Factory

Ever since I first got a LiveJournal account, my interests list has included "arthurian legend" or "king arthur" or some related term. One of the things I love most about Arthuriana is not the classic story itself; there really is no one true version of the legend of King Arthur. Whatever historical personage or personages may have inspired the original tales, the existence of an old Arthur as ruler of anybody has become hopelessly irrelevant by now. No, what I love is seeing all the different versions of the stories, seeing how old visions get altered with time, seeing which mutations have made their way in to the legendary bloodline, and wondering which variations will survive in future versions.

Today's movie-watching--a double feature--reminded me of this. Not because the movies I watched had anything to do with Arthur of Britain, mind you. Well, unless... no. While Willy Wonka could conceivably be a valid modern interpretation of Merlin, Charlie Bucket's family isn't nearly dysfunctional enough for him to be Arthur. Still, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory followed by the more recent Charlie and the Chocolate Factory does get the mind spinning off into odd directions. The 1971 film with Gene Wilder has vastly superior music, of course, and I can easily imagine being friends with that version of Willy Wonka. (I half suspect I already am friends with the Gene Wilder version of Willy Wonka, though he may not be entirely aware of it yet.) Johnny Depp's version--well, he's someone I might enjoy talking to for limited periods of time, but I'd encourage him to find a reputable therapist who isn't an Oompa-Loompa.

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In other news, I went to the grocery store today for orange juice, olive oil, and Kleenex. Sadly, I neglected to buy any chocolate.