Considering the director's previous works, and the story and movie adaptation it serves as a prequel to, it makes sense this movie would have more than a few funny moments.
- Wonka loses much of what little money he has to a boy who shines his shoes without asking permission and then demands to be paid. After the second time this happens, the boy asks if he can carry Wonka's belongings for him; Wonka, not wanting to be forced into paying him any more than he already has, makes a run for it.
- Wonka pretending to read the fine print on his contract with Mrs. Scrubbit (he can't read) and Bleacher slowly preparing to slug him over the back of the head. When Wonka suddenly claims that everything is in order, Bleacher quickly and unconvincingly hides his baton behind his back, complete with a phony smile.Wonka: This all seems to be in order...
Mrs. Scrubbit: (genuinely confused) Really? - As Wonka is about to rest on a park bench due to having lost all his money, he tries to pull the spoon out of his cup of chocolate, only to pull out the frozen chocolate, which stuck to the spoon from the cold weather.Wonka: [observing his frozen chocolate] Perhaps it is a little cold for camping.
- When Willy brings out his travel factory to Noodle's attention, he asks what chocolate she likes ("White? Dark? Nutty? Absolutely insane?"), and then we get this:Noodle: I don't know, I've never had any.
Wonka: [flabbergasted] You've nev-... You've never had chocolate?
Noodle: No.
Wonka: WHAT?! YOU'VE NEVER HAD CHOCOLATE?!
Noodle: ...Still no. - Wonka introduces his washing machine:Wonka: Presenting Willy Wonka's Wild and Wonderful Wishy-washy Wonka Walker! Please don't make me say that again!
- Wonka and Lofty traveling on a ship:Lofty: (Dragging his luggage while singing) ♫ Oompa-loompa, loompadee-dee / I'm not in premium economy! / I'd go first class, if I were you / That's what Oompa-loompas loompadee-do! ♫
- When Lofty first sings to Wonka, he says the song is "so ruinously catchy" that it will never leave his mind.
- When Slugworth, Prodnose, and Ficklegruber have a taste of Wonka's Hoverchocs, we get this exchange:Ficklegruber: And.. caramel. But it's-
Wonka: Salted. With the bittersweet tears of a Russian clown.
[Ficklegruber has an I Ate WHAT?! look on his face as he hears this] - When Willy and Noodle go to the zoo for the giraffe milk, Willy opens a door that has a tiger behind it ready to charge toward him since he couldn’t read the sign.Noodle: You have got to learn how to read.
Willy: Why?
Noodle: You were nearly eaten by a tiger.
Willy: “Nearly” being the word. I’ve nearly been eaten by a lot of things, and none of them got more than a nibble!
(he flashes a goofy grin before Noodle walks away unamused) - The Chief of Police dunks Wonka's head into the fountain while yelling for Wonka to leave town. However, Wonka can't hear what he's saying because his head's underwater and tells him as much. The Chief thinks he's being smart and dunks his head again, but understands the problem when Wonka explains it again and is apologetic about how bad he is at coercion. He calmly tells Wonka to leave town or he's going to "get more than just a bump on the head." Wonka says he doesn't have a bump on his head and the Chief exasperatedly exclaims, "What is with me today?" as he pulls out his baton and clubs Wonka over the head with it.
- During the reprise of "You've Never Had Chocolate Like This", as Wonka (in disguise as a waiter) and the hapless suitor dance atop the cafe tables a waitress yanks the tablecloths out from under them — without their missing a step — and complains "He doesn't even work here!"
- Oh, and Wonka is disguised as a French waiter.
- Wonka gives some older, balding customers at a barber shop some "Hair Repair Eclairs" that can regrow hair. One eclair gets left on a counter, and briefly sampled by the sphinx cat that lives in the shop. The scene suddenly cuts to them having full sets of hair... including the cat, who is now a longhair.
- Despite the situation being played seriously, the sheer AUDACITY to have a hair-growth substance be named "Yeti Sweat"!Elder Customer: [almost covered in hair] I want my money back!
Orange-Haired Customer: I want compensation!
Green-Skinned/Swirly Haired Customer: I want REVENGE! [yeets a beet at Wonka, who barely dodges it]- Also, the growing hair is a bit hard to take seriously due to how ridiculous they look, and how much they resemble Hagrid.
- The Running Gag of Slugworth and Ficklegruber using euphemisms (sometimes deadly ones) referring to what they're doing to others but Prodnose always following it up by explaining the "joke".
- The first time sees the Chief-of-Police awkwardly try to explain he already got the idea.Slugworth: We'd like you to pass on a message.
Prodnose: A message backed by physical violence.
Slugworth: (glances at Prodnose in annoyance) That if [Wonka] continues to sell chocolates in this town, he might have a little "accident".
Prodnose: In which he dies.
Chief-of-Police: Yeah, I got that from the whole "accident" part. - After they sabotage Wonka's grand opening.Slugworth: We merely, encouraged Mrs. Scrubbit and Bleacher to enhance your chocolate.
Prodnose: We paid them to poison your chocolate.
Slugworth: Yes, thank you, Prodnose.
Prodnose: You're welcome. - Prodnose also over-explains what Premium Economy seating on the ship headed for the North Pole is: pretty much Economy seating with more legroom and a little bag of peanuts. ("Is it worth it? I don't know...") Even funnier when it turns out to be just a bench on the freezing deck with a little drape over the backrest upon which is embroidered "Premium Economy".
- The first time sees the Chief-of-Police awkwardly try to explain he already got the idea.
- The Chief of Police is paid for his part in apparently killing Wonka with a giant box of chocolates that's larger than his car, which has the box placed on top of it via crane. And the car doesn't even get crushed as the audience was likely expecting.
- The Chief of Police gets considerably pudgier with every "payment" he receives from the cartel. By his final appearance, he's so morbidly obese he can barely squeeze out of his car.
- After discovering that Wonka has been escaping via the storm drains, the Chief of Police demands they have a man on every storm drain in the city.Affable: Sir, shouldn't we focus on those unsolved murders?
Chief of Police: No, this takes priority! - When the Chief asks for an advance on his next bribe because he's already eaten the 1800 boxes the Chocolate Cartel gave him a few weeks ago, Fickelgruber has to stop him to confirm he ate all that chocolate so quickly. Then the Chief admits he's been chewing on the wrappers the past few days. "You think they'll give you the same hit...they don't!"
- "But Puffywuffy...I wuv you!"
- The corrupt cleric tells the chocoholic monks that they "will be judged for our sins, but not today." Then he opens up the main doors and is attacked by a giraffe that's after the Acacia Mints that Noodle planted in his pocket. He runs away, telling the also-fleeing monks "Judgement has come...in a most unexpected form!"
- After Father Julius takes shelter behind the pulpit, he asks out loud what he's done to deserve this. He then proceeds to look straight down the camera and mutter "You know exactly what you did, you're a Judas, you sold your soul for thirty pieces of chocolate..."
- This happens just before Father Julius is supposed to officiate a funeral service for a local nobleman. A few scenes later he ends up taking a phone call from Slugworth (who wants to know what's going on upon hearing of the giraffe incident on his car radio) during the ceremony.
- This Willy Wonka may be less cynical and snarky than that of the novel and its direct adaptations, but it seems he's always had Skewed Priorities regarding his chosen profession. The first thing he can think to do when he and Noodle are trapped in the chocolate mixing chamber and threatened with drowning? Take out some of his own ingredients and start adding them to the deluge so they'll drown in Wonka chocolate!
- In the stinger, as the cops arrive to arrest Scrubbit and Bleacher for their part in the Cartel's crimes, they quickly try to drink down all the potions they used to poison Wonka's chocolates. When the police manage to break down the door, the duo look like multi-colored, extra-hairy versions of The Twits.
