I think Depp has really become a good actor. His early stuff, 21 Jump Street or Cry Baby, was weak. But his last couple movies, and the one out now have all been good.
His brain might be wired a little different then most folks, but he does play those crazy roles well.
Oh, I'll give him that! I did enjoy him in Pirates - he did Keith Richards damned near spot-on and made a funny damned pirate!
I'm not sure I'd want to watch his recut of Willy Wonka tho - I got spoiled on Gene Wilder (he can do "wistfully happy" like no other. I've enjoyed him in just about everything I've seen him in. I think it was Mel Brooks that gave him his start.)
I never did watch 21 Jump Street, and I hadn't even heard of "Cry Baby" until just now, so that doesn't mean anything to me.
Frankly, most actors currently under forty seem to rely more upon their looks than their talent - most of the actors I enjoy were doing other things (usually in trades) before they got found. Let's see...
Bruce Willis was a bartender
Harrison Ford was a carpenter
Sean Connery was a coffin polisher and a prize fighter before Disney found him
Gene Hackman's first adult job was a three-year hitch in the Corps
Clint Eastwood was an Army swim instructor after swimming in three miles from a plane crash, and dug pools while he was getting started.
Bill Cosby was a bartender when he was found
You get the idea. I guess I just prefer seeing people who understand what it's like to work for a living, get dirt under their nails, and therefore don't rely on their looks to get parts - instead finding and cultivating talent.
Depp has some talent to be sure - mainly found in "unbalanced" roles. But he doesn't seem to have the range that others have (Connery plays every role with the "shame akshent" to be sure - but he's still got a good deal of range.)
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