In 2009, the Royal Shakespeare Company announced plans to adapt one of Roald Dahl’s most famous books, which had already been made into a film by Danny DeVito in 1996. But the gamble to remake the book into a musical paid off and the show became a multi-award-winning hit worldwide. Now, Matilda is hitting the big screen once again, with the director and screenwriter of the musical’s original Stratford-Upon-Avon show at the helm.
Starring Emma Thompson, Lashana Lynch and introducing Alisha Weir, Matilda follows 5-year-old Matilda Wormwood (Weir), a gifted girl who discovers she has telekinetic powers when she starts attending the dreaded Crunchem Hall school and meets its intimidating headmistress, Agatha Trunchbull (Thompson).
The involvement of the original director and screenwriter means that there are certain creative ties that reflect the film’s faithfulness to the stage show. Although the film is said to closely resemble Dahl’s original book, it unsurprising still feels like a theatre production – in comparison to recent modern musicals Les Misérables, In the Heights, and Mamma Mia!, Matilda offers a dialled-down production scale that confines the set pieces. Therefore, the dominating musical numbers not only diminish Kelly’s screenplay but reduce certain performances to caricatures – one of which being Andrea Riseborough’s brash Mrs Wormwood. This also dials the gruesome and scarier tones of the book, so this comes across as a missed opportunity to bring something new to audiences that may be fans of both the musical and the 1996 adaptation.
The most prominent plot element that deviates from the book is Matilda’s storytelling prowess, inspired by her love for reading and her friendship with the travelling librarian Mrs Phelps (Sindhu Vee). The youngster creates a love story about two circus performers that slowly develops as the film goes on, leaving Mrs Phelps constantly on the edge of her seat. However, there is confusingly no clear purpose or inspiration behind Matilda’s story – although this ‘tale within a tale’ may make some sense towards the final act of the film, audiences are left to wonder whether her mind is more evolved than originally thought.
In an outstanding debut performance, Weir’s confidence as Matilda comes across through her stern stare and vocal delivery. She also possesses a boldness that makes Matilda’s anger and frustration more palpable while her musical pieces show her mischievousness. This, in turn, builds on the fun factor that retains Matilda as a family-friendly production – the articulate dance sequences are performed with aplomb and a confidence that comes from seasoned professionals – who, in the case of Matilda, comes in the form of its young and super-talented ensemble cast. This includes Lashana Lynch, who again highlights her talents with a sensitive performance as Miss Honey. But the biggest surprises are Stephen Graham and Emma Thompson, whose raucous performances as Mr Wormwood and Principal Trunchbull respectively bring these established actors into a different light.
As soon as Matilda’s candy-coloured intro kicks in, Warchus’ direction brings a vibrancy that throws the audience straight into the adaptation’s whimsical tone. This energy never lets up throughout the film, allowing sequences to flow (almost) consistently into each other – occasional poignant moments cause the tone and pace to stumble slightly. Still, it finds its feet just as quickly afterwards, recovering before the next ambitious song to deliver a joyfulness and quintessential Britishness that is hard to ignore.
Although its faithfulness to the original stage production may leave audiences debating its cinematic translation, Matilda highlights wonderful performances and brilliantly executed musical numbers, continuing the success of musical film adaptations while prepping other shows such as Wicked and Beautiful for the big screen.
Matilda is being shown as part of the BFI London Film Festival 2022. It will be out in UK cinemas on 25 November 2022.
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Director: Marcus Warchus, Dennis Kelly (screenwriter)
Stars: Alisha Weir, Emma Thompson, Lashana Lynch, Andrea Riseborough, Stephen Graham, Sindhu Vee
Runtime: 117 minutes
Country: UK, USA
