Matilda: Book vs. Movie

Have you ever gazed at an object, like the remote that you left on the other side of the room or that comfy, warm blanket that’s not within reach, and desperately wished that it would just magically come to you? Matilda Wormwood didn’t just wish she could move an inanimate object with her mind, it actually happened. This was no coincidence.

Matilda by Roald Dahl went from being an amusing, classic children’s book to an equally entertaining movie. Although the film’s adaptation is very comparable to the book, there were still quite a few changes.

Matilda, the movie, was Americanized as well as modernized. In the book, Matilda lived in England, where Roald Dahl grew up, while the movie took place in the United States. The only remaining British character in the movie was Mrs. Trunchbull, the cruel headmistress. Matilda’s best friend, Lavender, was an African American in the movie yet the book only described her as a “skinny little nymph” (102). This was most likely done in order to show America’s diversity. Also, a boy got thrown out of a window because he was eating M&M’s in a literature class, instead of getting thrown out for eating Liquorice Allsorts in a Bible Study class, in order to bring current fads and culture up-to-date.

Overall, the characters were relatively the same in both the book and the movie, however, there are a few exceptions. Mrs. Honey was described as being in poverty in the book with no electricity and other poor living conditions. However, the movie showed her living in a beautiful, little cottage with all the essentials needed for a livable home. Matilda’s brother was turned from ordinary and annoying to a bully who took after his father, whose personality didn’t change at all. Both of Matilda’s worthless, inconsiderate parents couldn’t care less where their daughter ended up in the book, however, the movie made Mrs. Wormwood show some humanity when she gave her up so she could have a better home with Mrs. Honey. In addition, the Trunchbull was not quite as violent to the children in the movie, but still quite cruel. Rather than an innocent child being hammer thrown over a tall fence by her pig tails and getting hurt, she slid gracefully through a beautiful flower garden picking various flowers along the way.
Along with a few personality traits being changed, their motives were altered as well. As Matilda got pushed around, called names, and realized she was nothing more than a scab to her parents, she decided that the only way to tolerate them was to teach them a lesson and get even. On the other hand, the movie explained that she was simply punishing her parents, but only when they deserve it, instead of getting revenge. In fact, her mean-spirited father, played by Danny DeVito, gave her the brilliant idea by saying, “when a person is bad, that person has to be taught a lesson”. Also, in the book, Matilda's father destroyed her library book out of pure spite, while in the movie, the book was destroyed because “it’s by an American, it’s certain to be filth. That’s all they write about” (40).

The most significant difference between the book and the movie is the way Matilda’s powers were portrayed. Her incredible powers in the book were considered more as a miracle than a standard superpower, as opposed to the movie. She started out unintentionally moving tiny objects in both, but the movie had her lifting other children and objects that were nearly twice her weight. The book made her work harder and practice with all her strength, while she managed to make it seem like a breeze in the movie. At the end of the movie, the Trunchbull and Matilda appear to be competing, fighting obvious physical might against strong mental powers. The characters in the book, however, never lose their astonishment and fear of dealing with forces larger than human. Her major accomplishment was only that she was able to move the chalk and write what she wanted in order to scare the vicious headmistress out of their town. Doing so, she mentally drained herself so much that she lost all of her powers. Matilda did not lose her powers in the movie version. Although she didn’t use them often, she still used them to at least get a book off of her shelf at the very end.

In conclusion, the movie and book left fans with somewhat different messages and feelings. The movie made Matilda look more like a superhero and gave its viewers the message that anything is possible. In slight contrast, the book gave its readers the feeling that anything is possible, but it might hurt. Also, it encouraged children to begin reading for pleasure, rather than just reading because they have to. Even so, both are childhood classics that will cause you to randomly stare at objects, make you think twice about sending your child to a school with a headmistress that looks as if she could break you into a million little pieces, and teach valuable lessons that will last a lifetime.