Shirley Valentine (film) Shirley Valentine (film) Shirley Valentine is an award-winning 1989 British romantic comedy-drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert. The screenplay by Willy Russell is based on his 1986 one-character play of the same title, which follows middle aged Shirley Valentine in an unexpected discovery of herself, and rekindling of her childhood dreams and youthful love of life. Pauline Collins reprises the titular lead role as middle-aged housewife Shirley, which she had previously played in the stage production in London's West End and on Broadway, and Tom Conti plays Costas Dimitriades, the owner of a Greek tavern with whom she has a
Willy Wonka Depp as Willy Wonka may be a stone freak, but he is also one of Burton's classic crackpot conjurers, like "Beetlejuice" or "Ed Wood"." Mick LaSalle from the "San Francisco Chronicle" found that "all the laughs [in the film] come from Depp, who gives Willy the mannerisms of a classic Hollywood diva". Roger Ebert wrote "Depp, an actor of considerable gifts, has never been afraid to take a chance, but this time he takes the wrong one. His Willy Wonka is an enigma in an otherwise mostly delightful movie from Tim Burton," while Peter Travers wrote in "Rolling Stone" magazine