72
Metascore
21 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90VarietyJoe LeydonVarietyJoe LeydonA delightfully twisted fairy tale that artfully juggles broad tomfoolery and sly drollery, along with a generous serving of sight gags enhanced by special effects. Even though it's being pitched primarily at younger moviegoers and their parents, pic is exuberantly quirky enough to please almost anyone.
- 88Boston GlobeJay CarrBoston GlobeJay CarrMatilda is fresh and spirited, and while the edge on it keeps the film interesting, DeVito manages to tilt it expertly from darkness to light. [02 Aug 1996, p.E4]
- 78Austin ChronicleAustin ChronicleThe contrast of light and dark, good and evil, enlightenment and ignorance, innocence and corruption is the heart of this absurd, insightful, sincere, very funny fairy tale of a movie. The cast is uniformly superb.
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertMatilda doesn't condescend to children, it doesn’t sentimentalize, and as a result it feels heartfelt and sincere. It's funny, too.
- 75ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliHardly a moment of Matilda can be described as either juvenile or condescending, and, compared with many of this summer's so-called mature features, that makes for a delightfully refreshing change-of-pace.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannSan Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannA zingy self-empowerment fantasy for kids.
- 75San Francisco ExaminerBarbara ShulgasserSan Francisco ExaminerBarbara ShulgasserDeVito directed this wonderful fantasy about a brilliant little girl with strange powers and a sunny disposition. Using special effects DeVito creates a visual delight that seems more British than American partly due to the origin of the material and partly due to the playfulness of DeVito and writers Nicholas Kazan and Robin Swicord.
- 70The TelegraphThe TelegraphCentered on Mara Wilson's extraordinary young girl Matilda, the kooky fantasy is comprised of charm, warmth and screwball comedy.
- 60EmpireCaroline WestbrookEmpireCaroline WestbrookMatilda is a blackly comic, delightfully off-the-wall picture that both kids and adults will lap up.