Even if Matilda the Musical maintains the basic plot of Roald Dahl’s book Matilda, the musical still differs from its source material in some major ways. Matilda the Musical is a film based on the famous children’s novel – Matilda, written by the British novelist Roald Dahl in 1988. However, much like the book’s previous screen adaptation, Danny DeVito’s Matilda in 1996, Matilda the Musical takes a few creative liberties and departs from the book’s narration in various instances during the film.
Although changing Roald Dahl’s book, Matilda the Musical manages to capture the feeling of Matilda and portray largely the same story on screen – although there are a few added elements. Matilda the Musical changes the original book with new storylines and details in order to add another dimension to the story and make the Roald Dahl’s adaptation able to exist on its own, rather than simply in reference to its source material. However, Matilda the Musical also stays true to the original story in some key ways: unlike the previous Matilda movie, Matilda the Musical stays true to the original story by keeping with the UK setting.
Matilda’s Family In The Musical Is Different From The Book
The most evident change in Matilda’s family is that her older brother, Michael Wormwood, is missing from Matilda the Musical. Instead, Matilda is an only child in the musical, which creates a further reason for her parents’ resentment of Matilda herself, as they are depicted as wanting a boy in the opening sequence of Matilda the Musical. This is not possible in the original story, as the Wormwoods already have a son before Matilda is born. Another significant change regards the reason why Matilda’s family flees from the UK: in the book, they are escaping the police, but in the plot of Matilda the Musical, it is the Russian mafia.
Matilda’s family also differs from that depicted in the book in terms of Matilda’s parents. In Matilda, Harry Wormwood is described as tall and thin, while his wife is overweight; the extremes of size are not present in Matilda the Musical. More significantly, Mrs. Wormwood’s hobby is changed from bingo – which she neglected her daughter for in the book and in the 1996 film – to dancing. Similarly, a minor change occurs for Matilda’s father, whose hair is changed to green instead of the book’s silver after Matilda replaces his hair tonic with Mrs. Wormwood’s hair dye.
How Matilda The Musical Changes The Story Of The Escapologist & The Acrobat
A subplot in the main story of Matilda the Musical involves Matilda telling a story about an escapologist and an acrobat to the librarian, Mrs. Phelps, throughout the film. The story seems to come to Matilda in different stages during Netflix’s Matilda the Musical, as the protagonist experiences different struggles both at school and in her home situation. As more of the story is revealed to her, Matilda shares it with Mrs. Phelps, who is always eager to know the ending of the story, and the viewers are shown the story as Matilda and Mrs. Phelps themselves witness it.
The story of the escapologist and the acrobat is particularly relevant, as it is revealed to be the backstory of Miss Honey, thus connecting the latter and Matilda on a deeper level. Not only that, but it is a clever way to show Matilda’s intelligence and creativity to the audience in an organic way. Including the story of the escapologist and the acrobat in Matilda the Musical is a big change from Roald Dahl’s Matilda, as it is never mentioned in the original book.
The Librarian’s Role In Matilda The Musical
Matilda the Musical features an impressive cast, and Sindhu Vee as Mrs. Phelps is a significant presence in the film. Mrs. Phelps is a recurrent character in Matilda The Musical and one of the few adult characters that Matilda can actually rely on. Moreover, Mrs. Phelps is also one of the few adult characters who care about and believe in Matilda as the story progresses. Although Mrs. Phelps is mentioned at the beginning of the book, she is not the same recurrent and reliable presence in Matilda’s life as the librarian is in Matilda The Musical.
Does Matilda Go In The Chokey In The Book?
The chokey is one of the most terrifying elements for the children in Matilda The Musical. It is a small dark closet, described as not big enough to sit down and covered in nails, and is used as a punishment and torture device by Emma Thompson’s Miss Trunchbull at the school Matilda goes to. In Matilda the Musical, Matilda sees Bruce being taken to the chokey by Miss Trunchbull, but she is never sent to the chokey herself. This also happens in the book – however, while Matilda destroys the chokey with her powers in the musical adaptation, this never happens in Roald Dahl’s Matilda.
How Matilda The Musical Changes The Book’s Ending
At the end of Matilda, the protagonist successfully dethrones Miss Trunchbull as the head of the school and drives her away from Crunchem Hall forever with her powers. While the same happens in Matilda the Musical, things do not go exactly like in the book. In the Matilda musical, Miss Trunchbull runs away from the school never to be seen again after an attack organized by Matilda with her powers and helped by her schoolmates. In Roald Dahl’s Matilda, there is no attack, but the headmistress faints after seeing the message seemingly written by Magnus and leaves forever.
Another difference in the Matilda the Musical film ending compared to the original book involves Matilda and the school itself. When Miss Trunchbull leaves in the book, Mr. Tilby becomes the new headmaster of the school. Mr Tilby does not exist in Matilda the Musical, so it is safe to assume that Miss Honey is the one who becomes headmistress at the end. Matilda also reveals that the protagonist loses her powers as she is moved to an upper class, perhaps because her brain power is engaged with a much more complicated curriculum, none of which is mentioned in Matilda the Musical.
Watch on Netflix
