This is a cute, good-natured take on the Dennis the Menace story. You have vivid cinematography and appropriate directing/editing, some fine veteran actors doing their bits with utter comic professionalism, and amusing situations. It is all light-hearted, the villains are simply played for laughs (they could have given the Carrot guy more to do), and Don Rickles manages to keep his hammy tendencies under control. To take this seriously or think this is anything more than a vehicle for everyone to have fun is to miss the whole point - there is a definite place for films like this.
Most of all, it is simply nice seeing some familiar faces better known from many, many other roles and venues just buckling down and giving amusing performances that are just right for the characters. Come on, where else are you going to see ol' Don Rickles leap off a diving board or hang from a roof or have a hockey puck stuck in his mouth?
Kids (at least the ones I know) enjoy the Walter Matthau version, and they should this one, too. It is a family show that showcases the adorableness of all involved with tongue-in-cheek shenanigans and knowing silliness. Personally, I think Rickles is better suited to the Wilson role simply because he is inherently hammier and better supplied with expressions of pain and frustration (which are called for constantly in this role). The Matthau version was fine, too, just a little less saccharine and clearly intended for theaters. This no doubt intentionally plays like a tv movie, but a very good one.
A classy production in the Disney channel mold with no pretensions, perfect for family viewing.
