Film

Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical

Name: Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical
Genre: Family, Comedy, Fantasy
Released: 2022
Cast: Alisha Weir, Emma Thompson, Lashana Lynch, Stephen Graham, Andrea Riseborough

Stage-musical adaptation
Light-hearted

Roald Dahl's darkly comic story of a brilliant, bookish girl in a household of philistines becomes a musical that sings. It's vibrantly staged, genuinely funny, and never talks down to children. Emma Thompson's monstrous headmistress is a force of theatrical nature. A film for anyone who felt too clever, too different, or just too much as a kid.

TMDb rating

3.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love a musical where the songs are sharp, the villain is gloriously over the top, and a clever child's rebellion lands as joyful mischief rather than sentimentality.

Skip it if you find big, loud comic performances wearing and would rather have a quieter, more grounded take on childhood; the broad caricatures and exuberant staging can feel relentless over two hours.

What it asks of you: It runs about two hours of nonstop energy, with big numbers and heightened performances, so it asks you to go along with its theatrical excess rather than settle into slow, subtle storytelling.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Matilda1996

Danny DeVito's film adaptation is the gold standard: faithful, funny, gorgeously shot. It captures Dahl's misanthropic edge while keeping the warmth. If you loved the musical, this shows you where it came from and how it evolved.

But It's deliberately lower-key than the musical version, and some of the special effects show their age. It's also less of a spectacle.

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory1971

Gene Wilder's film has the same Dahl DNA: a child protagonist alone against indifferent or hostile adults, whimsy undercut by genuine menace. It's visually inventive and deeply strange in ways that reward repeated viewing.

But It's slower-paced than modern family films and some of the dated production design might feel quaint rather than magical to younger viewers.

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory poster

The Worst Witch1986

Tim Curry in an all-consuming wig as the scary headmistress of a magical school. It has Matilda's energy: theatrical, silly, with real stakes underneath. A cult classic that deserves more love.

But It's genuinely low-budget and a touch ramshackle. The tone wobbles between camp and sincerity.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Tale of Despereaux2008

Both are adaptations of children's literature that elevate their source material through visual invention and theatrical staging. Both trust children to sit with complexity and mood over constant plot momentum.

An animated adaptation of Kate DiCamillo that shares Matilda's DNA: a small hero, a vast hostile world, fundamental difference as strength. It's gorgeous, strange, and structurally daring in ways most family films wouldn't attempt.

But It's visually cold and the story is baroque to the point of opacity. Younger children may struggle to follow it.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory2005

Tim Burton's darker take on another Dahl adaptation. Visually baroque, surprisingly cruel to awful people, with Johnny Depp giving a deeply strange performance. It respects the book's misanthropy.

But It can feel airless and overly designed. Burton's visual excess occasionally smothers the story rather than serving it.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory poster

Paddington 22017

A film about a kind, intelligent outsider overcoming the hostility of a world that underestimates him. It's endlessly inventive, genuinely hilarious, and oddly moving. Pure filmmaking joy.

But Some adults find it aggressively cheerful. If you're resistant to sentimentality, this will test that.

Spirited Away2001

A musical adaptation that's bold about its theatrical DNA. Ryan Gosling and Will Ferrell lean into the staginess rather than hiding it. Visually elaborate and genuinely committed to the weird.

But The tonal whiplash between comedy and sincerity jars for some viewers. It's also remarkably long for what it is.

Coraline2009

Stop-motion film about a clever girl in an eerie, hostile world. Dark, visually stunning, with a protagonist who thinks her way through trouble. It respects children's capacity for genuine unease.

But It's genuinely scary in places. Younger kids might find it disturbing rather than thrilling.

The Little Prince2015

An animated film about imagination, books, and childhood defiance against a bureaucratic adult world. It's visually gorgeous and carries real emotional weight. A sleeper that deserves discovery.

But It's oblique and slow-burn. Children expecting plot-driven action may find it frustratingly contemplative.

Shrek2001

An irreverent animated film that subverts fairy-tale conventions and doesn't underestimate its audience's sense of humour. It's clever without being smug, and surprisingly heartfelt underneath.

But The pop-culture references have dated. Some of the humour feels specifically of its time in ways that can feel arch now.

Come Away2020

Like Matilda, it centers a child's interior world and imagination as weaponry against a world determined to diminish them. Both argue that books, fantasy, and brainpower are forms of resistance and survival, not escape.

A reimagining of Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland as a story about two siblings who escape a racist, hostile real world into their shared imagination. Visually sumptuous, morally serious, surprising. Gillian Anderson is magnificent.

But It's slow, meditative, and demands emotional engagement rather than offering plot spectacle. Some may find it pretentious or self-conscious.