Right, I’ve literally just waltzed out of the cinema with my head on fire.
Now, if you know anything about me? I watch very few musicals. I have plans to see Hamilton, and I also had plans to see this; I didn’t really know to expect when watching. Matilda was one of those ones I watched in the West End; British version of Broadway in America.
I first encountered it in the news, and I really liked the concept of it. I much preferred the musical version of Matilda than the original, so I expressed my feelings of passion to my respite team; three weeks later and I’m on route to see it.
I’ve watched all three Matilda medias now, and I have some rather positive feedback to give!
How True Is It: Film or Theatre?
It’s a musical, and so it has a lot of resemblance to the theatre version of it I went to see. There were some bits missing in Matilda: The Musical film compared to in the theatre, but of course they had to cut it down; I will go over this more later.
Do note, from this point on my memory is slightly patchy, and anything in bold I could be wrong about. Spoilers are striked out!
They got it very true about the escapologist and acrobat characters of the second timeline; I remember being invested in this part that wasn’t in the original film. It was also nice to have someone who really sounded like Miss Trunchbull playing here; I remember the actress playing Nanny McPhee to be awesome, so this was great! I don’t mind a man playing Trunchbull but it just is nice to have someone sounding exactly alike.
The new settings I didn’t get to see in theatre was interesting, and that seemed akin to the original very slightly, but much expanded on.
I’m no black person but Mrs Honey being black was unexpected to me, but not in a bad way. She put a spectacular performance; that lady deserves an Oscar, and so does the black man who played the Escapologist! I was really thrilled by the representation and how much the musical film - just like the West End performance - kept in from the original.
Obviously, there were quite a few differences between the original and our musical one here, but hopefully people feel just as amazed as I felt when I watched the child cast sing When I Grow Up - a song that resonated with me as a young kid - in the comfort of the audience’s own homes. Now obviously, there are people out there who don’t like it; that’s okay, they are allowed their opinion. Still though, I give this film a 10/10 for adaptation. They may have possibly made it better than the musical performance I saw in London over four years ago!
Now, let's do more Trunch-talking. Obviously, this is pretty much just the theatre version, just massively cut down. Some humour like the Miss Trunchbull with lime green lasers scenario were cut out, but the things important to the plot - like the blazer situation - were kept in. We also had some names for the kids, very old-fashioned but it fit the period of time. The little details can really matter in stories your telling like this, and that's why I LOVE Matilda The Musical and its film adaptation.
In terms of the film parts? The Theatre production version of it is just the film expanded and with more plot. That's why I think that this theatre film works on a 75:25 ratio; 25% of the film is like the original, whilst 75% of it is the added content from the theatre. You might now be thinking; is it anything like the original though? It is and it isn't, and here's why in the form of film and theatre points.
[FILM POINTS]238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhk3jccSCll
> Keeps the plot of the original film.
[THEATRE POINTS]238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOA01YXhD87
> Expands upon it.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnryJBobQIJ
> Adds new characters to help expand upon it.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8kvpDAf3cZ
> Makes these characters interwoven in the plot.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWcuUZ0SQD
> Makes you invest more in the main characters.
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What I'm essentially trying to say here is that it falls under both categories; whilst it remains similar to the film in terms of original plot, it has been expanded and that makes you root more for characters like Miss Honey.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKZsJyv5pH
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Is there anything wrong with this film?
There was only two things out of the entire hour and a half movie I picked out that could've been anything wrong, and it was an audio error during one of the songs. All the kids are singing, but it sounds as if one of the microphones isn't working properly; you can only hear this character from a certain direction rather than from al directions that you can hear all the other characters singing in.
That and the intro is rather cringey, but the rest of the film isn't. Maybe it's that I just don't like how newborn babies look. Other than that, it's great!238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqMezKfeAh
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Costumes?
Really well fitting and really keeps up the aesthetic of the original film. Matilda The Musical really handles its costumes well, and nothing seems too out of place for characters on face value.
I wonder how they turned Mr. Wormwood's hair green during the production process?
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Characters?238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxepPdtm3s8
Heck yes! Matilda doesn't particularly seem spoiled, stands up for others and causes absolute anarchy with her powers! It's a delight seeing the film my generations knows and perhaps loves look even better and more up-to-date but still keeping what made the original film great! 238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguIlf10ti0
Miss Jenny Honey no longer feels like a lone side character from my perspective, and the newly founded representation - Jenny being black - made it even better! Her voice was astounding, her acting was great and on top of the legendary musical's lyrics? Oh my word- don't even get me started!238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZP14BvpWX
And the best for last? Agatha Trunchbull. I did not realise people went on a massive fit over her wearing something to make her more terrifying, and I'm not one to judge, but this has upped Emma Thompson's performance as Agatha Trunchbull to an extreme height. It really has set the bar, and the humour this woman had made me giggle. Truly remarkable, and Emma Thompson's singing as Trunchbull is the highlight of my review. She was sorta rapping it was so good!238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxvSuKAohZb
Good for old and new fans?
Absolutely! To explain both perspectives, I'm going to break this segment down into two chunks; one for both old fans and one for new.
OLD:238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkwAHdJrDy
For old fans, there's a lot to expect. It really does depend if you have or haven't seen the theatre adaptation of the film - which I highly recommend if you haven't. If you have though, you will find the scenery and sets they used to be a really nice surprise; don't get me wrong, it's fun to see it on stage but you miss out on all the cool sets they used.
NEW:238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm3g4KaitdH
For those who haven't ever watched Matilda at all, this performance is a must-watch. Scrap the original, go for the musical performance in theatres or this updated, amazing and combined version that has everything you ever want in a film! It's perfect for both audiences as a result!238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ77w9nSBRTb
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Now to finish off, time to rate each of the topics discussed here;
Characters: 9/10238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbSYyR5N71N
Plot: 7/10238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzFj88Z9NF
Adaptability: 10/10238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3vRU2x2gO
Costumes: 7/10238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0M6DcSCo2w
238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBffgj7VZ81
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