Feature Film and the Book – “Matilda”

Book – Roald Dahl 1988

http://www.amazon.com/Matilda-Roald-Dahl/dp/0141301066#_

Movie – Danny Devito 1996

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/quiz/matilda-movie-quiz-920572/

        Matilda is about a little girl who is raised by her parents who are the complete opposite of her.  Matilda is special because she is very intelligent and has special powers, like moving things with her mind.  Matilda’s father sends her to a school where she encounters the cruel Miss Trunchbull, who is in charge of the school.  Matilda also meets her teacher Miss Honey, who is very sweet and becomes very close to Matilda. 

I first watched the movie Matilda on the Family Channel before I read the book.  The movie is one of those movies that you can catch in the middle and you have to finish it, even if it is the 27^th time you’ve watched it.  When the assignment came up of comparing books to movies, I decided to do Matilda since I had seen the movie already.  I was surprised when I read the book and the setting of Matilda was in England.  The movie has the setting in the United States.  Since the movie and book were in two different countries there were a lot of differences.  The language was one thing I noticed, for instance using the word “telie” in the book and “telephone” in the movie. 

            Overall, the characters seemed very similar and I think that is what made the book and movie successful.  I think the movie did a great job showing the conflict between Matilda and her family.  Even though in the book Matilda’s mother was a heavier weight than her father, I can only picture Danny Devito as her father no matter what.

            One of the details that stuck out to me was in the book Matilda was never put into the chokey, a room where kids who were bad were put.  In the movie, Matilda is put into the chokey.  Overall, I enjoyed both the movie and the book.  Typically, I read a book first and then watch the movie and I normally like the book better.  This time I think I like the movie better and that may be because I watched it first.  I would recommend both to teachers, parents, and students of almost all ages.