Matilda: The Musical

My children are currently rehearsing for this musical with their theatre group so we were looking forward to this.

The songs are all there and brilliantly performed. The staging and filming is so stunning to watch. Emma Thompson plays a good Miss Trunchabull. We all know the story of Matilda so I won't go into that but this is a film for the whole family to enjoy. Don't wait for it to stream on Netflix, this film really benefits from a big screen and awesome sound stage.

I would happily watch this film again, it was an excellent feel good film. The cast were perfect in each of the roles and choreography was brilliant.

I took my 8 year old girl and she was mesmerised. She loves the Matilda older movie though and I don't so I was a bit sceptical.

It was really enjoyable, the whole cast were fab especially the kids and Emma Thompson.

The girl playing Matilda was really good in the role, super cute. I must admit I had a few tears at the end of it.

The cinema was full of mums and daughters, with the odd boy and dad. But the whole reactions seemed to be good and especially the Emma Thompson parts, she nailed it. Even scared me lol.

If I had to say a negative thing it was a tad on the long side for me almost bang on 2 hours.

The kids were great! The acting, singing, and dancing was all on point. Emma Thompson was also amazing and did a wonderful job.

The other adults on the other hand were sadly forgettable. Even miss honey didn't feel like a main character. I grew up with the old 90's movie Matilda and miss honey was very important and you could feel that she loved Matilda with their acting. This miss honey had a beautiful voice, but it felt like there should have been more scenes with her teaching and talking to Matilda.

I was entertained almost the entire two hours of film which is what i consider good. It's not perfect but it was still fun.

There is so much to enjoy about Matilda the Musical.

It captures that certain kind of magic that only a musical can. It is rammed full of top class performances (Emma Thompson shines, and Alisha Weir is terrific in the lead role). The plot is very well put together and is full of outrageous fun and effective comedy. It captures the quirkiness and wonder of Roald Dahl's story perfectly.

The only real drawback for me is the songs. I only found myself properly enjoying the final song and dance. The rest just weren't really my cup of tea. Had there been a couple of more powerful or catchy songs I definitely would have given this film another star or two. I also though some of the acting was hammed up just a little too much for my liking.

Undoubtedly though Matilda is a very entertaining and fun film that will be sure to put a smile on your face.

I have mixed emotions about this. Firstly, I am a BIG fan of the west end musical so I was comparing throughout the whole film. There are many good points of the film. The musical numbers have been greatly throughout , and you can tell it's been greatly considered in how to transfer a stage production into a movie and to present the same emotive experience for the audience. I think the choreography was executed perfectly and the casting was phenomenal. HOWEVER (a big however) The film personally didn't grab me in the way the stage production has. It felt rushed in parts (which is understandable as they are trying to fit a 2. 5 hour production in 2) so the intimate moments between the musical numbers were lost, leaving you feeling slightly detached from the characters. I also couldn't help but reminisce about the 1996 adaption and it's authenticity. This movie was clearly a 'Netflix movie'. A bit uneedingly cgi/green screen happy which irritates me and contributes to the detachment I was feeling throughout. Overall, it was a good try, however the wow factor was lost. I want to think that perhaps I am an adult not understanding the current trends and seeking nostalgia rather than a film that is suited to what the kids want these days. After all this is a kids film and perhaps this was perfect for what they needed.