Matilda (1996 film)

"Matilda (film)" redirects here. For the unrelated 1978 film, see Matilda (1978 film).

Matilda
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Danny DeVito
Produced by	Danny DeVito Michael Shamberg Stacey Sher Liccy Dahl
Screenplay by	Nicholas Kazan Robin Swicord
Based on	Matilda  by Roald Dahl
Narrated by	Danny DeVito
Starring	Danny DeVito Rhea Perlman Embeth Davidtz Pam Ferris Mara Wilson
Music by	David Newman
Cinematography	Stefan Czapsky
Editing by	Lynzee Klingman Brent White
Studio	Jersey Films
Distributed by	TriStar Pictures
Release date(s)	July 28, 1996 (1996-07-28) August 2, 1996 (1996-08-02) (United States)
Running time	98 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$36 million
Box office	$61,405,356

Matilda is a 1996 American fantasy film directed by Danny DeVito, based on the novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. The film was released by TriStar Pictures on August 2, 1996 and stars Mara Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rhea Perlman, Embeth Davidtz, and Pam Ferris.

Plot

Matilda Wormwood (Mara Wilson) is an extremely intelligent girl with a bright personality from an early age, but her spiteful and ignorant parents, Harry (Danny DeVito) and Zinnia (Rhea Perlman), neglect and even mistreat her. When Matilda reaches four, she discovers the local library and walks there every day to read while her family is out, much to the amusement of the librarian, Mrs. Phelps (Jean Speegle Howard), who then gives Matilda a library card.

By the age of six, Matilda begins to lose patience with her parents. In retaliation for her father belittling her, she mixes his hair tonic with her mother's hair dye. Harry later takes his family to his workshop, where he reveals that the cars he sells are actually faulty and irresponsibly managed. Matilda accuses him openly, he belittles her again and Matilda retaliates against her father again by putting super-glue on his hat which he struggles to get off, forcing Zinnia to cut it off. Harry then belittles Matilda again for reading while her family is watching television. As Harry tries to force her to watch with them, Matilda grows very angry and the television suddenly explodes.

One of Harry's clients, Agatha Trunchbull (Pam Ferris), is the sadistic headmistress of a run-down school, Crunchem Hall. Harry enrolls Matilda in the school, where she befriends several children, but at the same time, learns, especially from Lavender Brown (Kiami Davael) and Hortensia (Kira Spencer Hesser), of Miss Trunchbull's nature and her particularly harsh punishments towards the students, such as the dreaded "Chokey", throwing students out of windows and forcing a boy who stole her slice of chocolate cake to eat a whole chocolate cake in front of the entire student body to make him sick (though he finishes the cake without getting sick). Fortunately, Matilda's teacher, Miss Jennifer Honey (Embeth Davidtz), is a kind and lovely woman who adores her pupils and takes an immediate liking to Matilda for her intellect. Miss Honey speaks with Miss Trunchbull and requests that Matilda be moved up to a higher class. Miss Honey pays Matilda's parents a visit and requests that they pay more attention to their daughter, but they refuse to listen, effectively making Miss Honey the only person who truly understands Matilda. Meanwhile, Matilda discovers that she and her family are under FBI surveillance, because of her father's shady dealings, and purchasing of stolen goods and car parts, but her parents refuse to believe her, the FBI agents having already fooled them into thinking they are speedboat salesmen.

Sometime later, Miss Trunchbull goes to Matilda's class for a weekly "check-up" and starts to belittle the students. As a prank, Lavender places a newt in Miss Trunchbull's water jug to frighten her. Miss Trunchbull, however, accuses Matilda, and Matilda's rage at the injustice leads to her telekinetically tipping the glass over and splashing the water and the newt onto Miss Trunchbull, frightening her. Feeling sympathy for Matilda, Miss Honey invites her to her house for tea. On the way, they pass Miss Trunchbull's house, and Miss Honey reveals her secret to Matilda: when she was two years old, her mother died, so her father, a doctor, invited his wife’s stepsister, Miss Trunchbull, to live with them and look after Miss Honey while her father was at work. However, Miss Trunchbull mistreated and abused her niece at every opportunity. When Miss Honey was five, her father died of an apparent suicide and in his will, he left all of his assets to Miss Trunchbull, leaving his daughter with nothing. Eventually, Miss Honey moved out of her aunt’s house into a small cottage she rented from a local farmer. Matilda and Miss Honey briefly sneak into Miss Trunchbull's house while she is out, but her unexpected return leads to a cat-and-mouse chase with Matilda and Miss Honey only barely escaping unseen.

When Matilda's telekinetic powers manifest again during when Zinnia and Harry argue, to which Matilda slams the door in Harry's face, Matilda trains herself to use her ability at her own will, and her first act was sabotaging the FBI agents' vehicle during their attempt to search Harry's garage without a warrant. That night, Matilda returns to Miss Trunchbull's house, and from outside, wreaks havoc in an attempt to scare Miss Trunchbull away. Miss Trunchbull almost flees in terror, but she finds Matilda's ribbon in the process and realizes that she was there. The next day, Miss Trunchbull visits Matilda's class again to get Matilda to admit her guilt, but as she begins belittling the children again, Matilda uses her powers to write a message on the blackboard, posing as the ghost of Miss Honey's father accusing Miss Trunchbull of murdering him and ordering her to leave town. Miss Trunchbull is driven insane by the terror and attacks the students, but Matilda keeps them out of harm's way with her powers and the students then force Miss Trunchbull out of the school by pelting her with food and garbage until she leaves. Miss Honey's father's true will is discovered by the police, which named Miss Honey as the sole beneficiary of her father's assets, and Miss Honey moves back into her home, with Matilda visiting frequently.

Sometime later, however, the FBI finally uncovers enough evidence to prosecute Harry, and they prepare to flee to Guam. They stop by Miss Honey's house to take Matilda with them, but she refuses to accompany them, claiming she wants to stay with Miss Honey, who admits that she has come to see Matilda as the daughter she never had. In that moment, Harry and Zinnia then state that Matilda was the only daughter they had ever had and never understood, but they decide to let Miss Honey adopt her by signing the adoption papers, this time on good terms with her. Harry, Zinnia and Michael escape, while Matilda lives a happy life with Miss Honey.

Cast

• Mara Wilson as Matilda Wormwood at 6-7 years old
  • Alissa and Amanda Graham, Trevor and James Gallagher as Matilda as a newborn
  • Kayla and Kelsey Fredericks as Matilda at 9 months old
  • Amanda and Caitlin Fein as Matilda as a toddler
  • Sara Magdalin as Matilda at 4 years old
• Danny DeVito as Harry Wormwood/Narrator, Zinnia's husband and Matilda and Michael's father
• Rhea Perlman as Zinnia Wormwood, Harry's wife and Matilda and Michael's mother
• Embeth Davidtz as Miss Jennifer Honey, Matilda's teacher and eventual adoptive mother
• Brian Levinson as Michael Wormwood, Harry and Zinnia's son and Matilda's older brother
  • Nicholas Cox as Michael at 6 years old
• Pam Ferris as Agatha Trunchbull, The Headmistress of Crunchem Hall and Miss Honey's aunt
• Paul Reubens as FBI Agent Bob
• Tracey Walter as FBI Agent Bill
• Kiami Davael as Lavender, One of Matilda's classmates
• Jacqueline Steiger as Amanda Thripp
• Kira Spencer Hesser as Hortensia, One of Matilda's classmates
• Jimmy Karz as Bruce Bogtrotter, One of Matilda's classmates
• Jean Speegle Howard as Mrs. Phelps
• Marion Dugan as Cookie
• Emily Eby as Maggie
• Jon Lovitz as Mickey, host of The Million Dollar Sticky (uncredited)

Awards

Wins

• YoungStar Award
  • Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Comedy Film — Mara Wilson

• Cinekid Lion Audience Award
  • Best Director — Danny DeVito

• Oulu International Children's Film Festival Starboy Award
  • Best Director — Danny DeVito

Nominations

• Satellite Awards
  • Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture — Comedy or Musical (Danny DeVito)

• Young Artist Award
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film — Leading Young Actress (Mara Wilson)
  • Best Performance in a Feature Film — Supporting Young Actress (Kira Spencer Hesser)

Music

Two songs are featured in the film. One of them, "Send Me on My Way" by Rusted Root, is played twice: when the four-year-old Matilda is left alone at her house, making pancakes, and at the end of the film, set to a montage of Matilda and Miss Honey playing at Miss Trunchbull's former house. The other song is Thurston Harris's "Little Bitty Pretty One", played when Matilda is learning to control her psychokinetic powers.

The film's score was composed by David Newman.

Reception

Matilda received critical acclaim at the time of its release. On Rotten Tomatoes it holds a "fresh" rating of 90%. In the United States, the film was a box-office bomb, earning $33 million in contrast to its $36 million budget. It fared better during its worldwide release and ended up earning back nearly double its original budget. The film has continued to be a cult classic since its release.

External links

• Matilda at the Internet Movie Database
• Matilda at AllRovi
• Matilda at Box Office Mojo
• Matilda at Rotten Tomatoes
• Movie stills