by mackennah » Fri Dec 01, 2017 3:45 pm
Matilda // Essay
Matilda, written and published by Roald Dahl in 1988, is a best selling novel about a young girl and her life in England. However, the film adaptation, directed by Danny DeVito, includes quite a few differences. The film features the same characters, but different settings. The general idea that Dahl had for the book to be was interpreted differently in the film, as DeVito had his own ideas for the film.
There are a variety of different themes in both the book and the film, but one that pops out the most, in both, is Young against Old. The fights between Matilda and her parents, as well as between the students of Crunchem Hall and their mean headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, are both portrayed in the book and the film. Both the Author and Directed has similar ideas for how this theme is illustrated, making it seem like it was interpreted the same.
Characterisation is to define the characteristics of a character, which is also displayed very well in both the film and the book, with obvious flaws. For example, Miss Honey is blatantly the same in the book and the film, whereas Miss Trunchbull is more rude/intimidating in the book, but her attitude is of a lesser value in the film. Another example is Matilda and her older brother, Michael. Matilda, like Miss Honey, is practically the same in both readings, whereas Michael, even though he's a 'Background Character', is a lot more rude to his younger sister in the film rather than the book.
The difference in Setting between the two readings is also a key difference. The book, set in England, is portrayed as British and 'Posh'. The film, however, is set in America, so the British theme set in the book is lost, and is portrayed a lot less differently. The houses are also different, in comparison. The Wormwood's house is a basic, little house in a basic suburb, in the book. Yet, in the film, the house has the look of 'Expensive' and 'Fancy', showing off how much Mr Wormwood 'Earns'.
In conclusion, the book and the film are not fundamentally the same, but rather different. The themes are portrayed the same, with Young and Old being shown evenly. However, the characteristic difference is an issue, where Miss Trunchbull isn't shown as 'Strong', or at least how strong she was in the book rather than the film. The setting difference is possibly the biggest inconvenience in the film. The beauty portrayed in the book of the British life of Matilda is a key aspect, which is ruined slightly with the American lifestyle in the film. If there was a newer remake of the film, a good suggestion should be to add back the British lifestyle, and to make Miss Trunchbull's attitude more, how you say, 'Come at me' style.
Tiny 8a