Matilda (1978) User Reviews

No enchantment

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 16 December 2018]

The main problem as I see with Matilda is that there is no sense of enchantment in what is clearly a most improbable tale. The film would have to be handled that way for any chance of success.

Matilda is a tale written in the 30s by Paul Gallico updated for the current 70s times. In it Clive Revill who is the only one in the cast to sense that this should be a fantasy in his performance tells the tale of how he came to America from Great Britain with a trained boxing kangaroo. The beast has a punch like Dempsey and no one can stand up to him.

Elliott Gould who sees possibilities here as an animal act agrees to be their agent. One night the real heavyweight champion who's had a few steps in the ring. Larry Pennell gets nailed and goes down for the count. The act is made.

It's also not pleasing to mobster Harry Guardino who controls Pennell. The best scenes in the film are some of his inept hitmen trying to carry out a contract on a kangaroo. Things are most pleasing to sportswriter Robert Mitchum who wants to take Guardino down.

In Lee Server's book on Robert Mitchum, actor/stuntman Gary Morgan who got into the kangaroo suit to play Matilda said that the producers actually tried to convince critics this was a real kangaroo. The littlest kid out there could see that wasn't the case and they roasted the film.

It sure didn't help trying to put over a lie like that. But there's more to it. I think that it might have worked with some special effects and an animated Matilda. Even with that though Matilda still would have had a long way to go to succeed as fantasy.

Terrifying

[BandSAboutMovies · 3/10 · 28 July 2023]

When Melvin Simon Productions out up half the cash for this movie, they made nearly half a million in profit by selling the TV rights to CBS for $2.5 million, foreign sales which went around $1.6 million and American-International Pictures paid an advance of $1.8 million on the movie.

The fact that anyone made any money on this upsets me to no end, because this is amongst the most terrifying movies I've ever seen. The decision to not use a real kangaroo and instead spend thirty grand on a suit with Gary Morgan in it will give me nightmares for the rest of my life.

At one point, my wife walked in as the kangaroo had been hit for the first time and started loudly screaming and she said, "Why would anyone watch this?"

I just sheepishly looked at her and she left the room.

Clive Revill plays Billy Baker, the Irish pub owner who somehow gets the ownership of the boxing kangaroo Matilda. He alone has the power to see you in the audience and will speak to you through the fourth wall twice in this movie.

Elliot Gould, who plays Bernie Bonnelli, the man who thinks he can make money off a boxing kangaroo, said of this movie, "When Al Ruddy wanted to buy back my position, my points in the picture, he offered me hundreds of thousands of dollars, which at that point I decided would be bad karma. That was bad judgment on my part."

I have no idea why Karen Carlson's character falls in love with him, but I am fascinated by the fact that this movie is filled with so many of my favorite actors: Lionel Stander, Robert Mitchum and even Roberta Collins. Even more amazingly, this came out the same year that Gould made The Silent Partner, so he wasn't hurting for work.

It also gets Harry Guardino into another animal movie in the same year, as he would also be in Every Which Way But Loose, while Roy Clark takes a break from Hee-Haw to play Wild Bill Wildman.

Directed by Daniel Mann, yes, the same man who made Willard and Our Man Flint, this was written by Timothy Galfas, Paul Gallico and the aforementioned Ruddy. They made a movie that's supposedly for kids but in which organized crime figures try to cut off the tail of a kangaroo and shameless promoter Gould makes the kangaroo literally do carny shoot boxing against marks in the audience. It's upsetting, the suit is uncanny valley dead eye nightmare fuel for the rest of your life and, well, at least Mitchum and Gould got to smoke a joint together every day at lunch. I'd make any movie if I got to smoke with Mitchum, the star of one of my favorite movies of all time - The Night of the Hunter - and someone who seemed full of venom and hilarious stories with every interview I've ever read. Just don't get in his way with your camera when he has a basketball in his hands.

It's Not The Kangaroo Costume

[bigverybadtom · 3/10 · 15 January 2022]

A real kangaroo probably could not have been trained for the role, and despite what others said, I didn't think the kangaroo costume was so bad. It did look reasonably realistic, certainly compared to most other animal costumes in movies.

That said, the problem with the movie was that the story was actually long and boring, and Matilda did not have much to do. It was basically intrigues among the human cast, and was hardly funny or exciting. Even the presence of mobsters was hardly enough to provide even minimal tension. The only tension was in the end where the human boxing audience was starting to dislike Matilda for beating humans in boxing, and in the end he had to stop his career.

Overall rather boring, and the kangaroo was not to blame.

Not for kids OR adults!

[Wizard-8 · 21 September 2003]

American-International cancelled its plans to widely market and release this movie after disasterous test runs - a wise plan, but upon seeing the movie you have to wonder why they even bothered with test runs. I have no idea how the tale of a boxing kangaroo played in the original Paul Gallico novel, but nothing works about it translated into a movie. Kids won't like it - they will be confused half the time with details like sports corruption and boxing rules/regulations, and the other half of the time they'll be finding the events remarkably unfunny and unengaging. Adults will be finding the events remarkably unfunny and unengaging *all* the time!

It's not just the script that's bad. Though the movie had something of a budget, the production looks remarkably cheap and tacky. Obviously, that includes the kangaroo animatronic costume, which looks so phony that even a two year-old will recognize it's a man in a costume. Though there are also things like sets that look like, well, SETS, and dirty and unfocused cinematography.

Nobody behind the scenes seems to have put any heart and passion in the production, and it's no wonder the actors are dragged down with it. Gould (who further killed his career with this movie) does put in some effort despite the fact you can see in his eyes that he knows he's in a stinker, but his broad performance ends up adding to the feeling the movie is mocking the viewer. At least it is a performance; Robert Mitchum doesn't even TRY putting in any effort in his scenes (which were clearly knocked off in a couple of days at most!)

Still, the movie clearly could have been worse. That's because there are signs that the movie was originally LONGER! One example: take the scene where the mobsters are attempting to jump the kangaroo for the first time - one of them utters "This time we'll...." - indicating there was originally another scene earlier when they tried to get the kangaroo. Think about it: somewhere in some vault, there exists a longer version of this movie! Scary!

Real Kangaroos Hurt People

[chrizfin · 1/10 · 15 September 2005]

This film is bad, yes, but had the producers used a REAL KANGAROO, it would have killed the actor it was boxing with. I am an Australian and I have seen two seven foot tall male 'Roos fighting each other, it is not a pretty sight as the object is for one or the other to kill it's opponent,(this is there way of securing the herd of females) and there are incidents where someone has boxed a kangaroo, and been injured or killed, so when you see a kangaroo on TV or Film it is likely to be a female, or Animated, as it is a good idea not to injure actors (they might be annoyed at losing the ability to breath). There is a strange idea that Australian animals are cute and cuddly, that is false, many are dangerous (10 of the 12 most deadliest snakes live here)and most are just plain ugly (Koalas are as soft as steal wool). So if you come to Australia BE CAREFULL!!!

Maybe a three-year-old would like it?

[HotToastyRag · 1/10 · 24 August 2018]

I knew exactly what I was getting into with Matilda. I knew it was a movie starring Elliott Gould as the manager of a boxing kangaroo. It was the most absurd premise I'd ever heard, but since it was Robert Mitchum's time as Star of the Week on Hot Toasty Rag, and since he's one of my favorite celebrity boyfriends, I wanted to show my loyalty by watching every movie of his I could get my hands on. My logic was, if he had to suffer through making such a terrible movie, the least I could do was support him by watching it.

Well, I made it through twenty minutes. It took that long for Robert Mitchum-who, thank goodness, got the respectful "and" in the credits-to show up. He's attending a fight featuring Matilda the boxing kangaroo, and he looks at a publicity poster outside the event. "That is absolutely preposterous," he says in his fantastic voice. I agreed with him so very much. I could practically hear his spirit whisper over my shoulder, "Honey, you've seen 74 of my movies. You don't have to sit through this one." So, I fast-forwarded through all the scenes Bob wasn't in. I still managed to see a man in a kangaroo costume hop around a boxing ring, Elliott Gould act like an idiot, and Clive Revill pretending the man-kangaroo is his family. I felt so sorry for director Daniel Mann, who once directed heavy dramas like Come Back, Little Sheba and Hot Spell. The only bright part of the movie was Robert Mitchum's beautifully thick, wavy hair.

Yet another example where a well-respected Hollywood actor seems anxious to destroy his career!

[planktonrules · 1/10 · 22 December 2019]

There are many, many examples of wonderful classic Hollywood actors appearing in films that are total garbage....and you wonder why Clark Gable would star in "Parnell" or Gene Kelly in "Xanadu" or Cary Grant in "It All Came True". I don't know if they had agents who were out of their minds or the studios were holding loved ones captive in order to force the actors to make these dreck films...but in yet another example, somehow Robert Mitchum starred in "Matilda"...and you wonder WHY!

"Matilda" is the story of a boxing kangaroo...and this one dons boxing gloves and boxes people! Does this sound ludicrous? Of course! And, when you think about it, so was seeing Francis the Talking Mule playing football or Mr. Ed trying out for the L.A. Dodgers....but they really DID make these movies no matter how ludicrous the premises would seem!

When the story begins, an ex-boxer brings Bernie Bonnelli (Elliot Gould) his boxing kangaroo, Matilda, to meet him. Bernie is shocked that the animal can box and he teams up with a sports writer (Robert Mitchum) to sell the public on the boxing beast. Unfortunately for Bernie, the kangaroo knocks out a top boxer who is owned by the Mob...and they vow to get revenge. In addition to these folks, Ms. Smith is an animal rights advocate and she vows to stop the animal from entering the ring.

The way that Elliot Gould deals with the animal rights activist is just amazing....both stupid AND incredibly sexist. When she's in her hotel room showering, he breaks in to see her. When she comes out in a robe, he makes a few sexist remarks and grabs her...kissing her very soundly. Suddenly, she's under his spell and remains so throughout the film!! Talk about stupid and offensive!!! This is exactly the sort of writing you see through the movie--terrible beyond belief though the actors seem to try their best with an utterly ridiculous plot and less believable dialog.

But it's not all about stupid writing. The movie also suffers horribly from the Matilda costume. Obviously there's some guy inside the suit...and the creature is one of the creepiest animals I've ever seen in a movie. It's MORE creepy than the creatures in "Cats" or the title character in "Sonic the Hedgehog", that's for sure!

So is there any reason to see this? Well, if you like seeing actors like Gould and Mitchum committing career suicide, then by all means watch it! And, if you are a bad movie buff, it's also worth seeing. Otherwise....steer clear, as it's junk...and that's being charitable!!

Hop away from this one as fast as possible.

[mark.waltz · 2/10 · 28 March 2022]

There's such a thing as abuse against children, and parents dropping their kids off at the movies while they go shopping is grounds for a lawsuit. Kids who noticed that Godzilla was a man in a rubber suit would certainly not be fooled by the man in a smelly costume as a boxing kangaroo. It's not quite "Rocky" meets "Gus" (the football kicking mule), but more inept than that idea for a movie plot. Add Elliot Gould in (the most Overexposed actor of the 70's), and you've got even more evidence of abuse charges. Poor Robert Mitchum went from the critically maligned "Amsterdam Kill" and "Big Sleep" remake in 1978 to be in three of the year's worst movies.

Completely unfunny and absolutely uncharging and every way, this film just as badly as the costume from the moment you see the phony kangaroo. Veteran actors Clive Revill and Lionel Stander, along with country singer/"Hee Haw" host Roy Clark look most dreadfully embarrassed for being here, the film that killed Radio City Music Hall. At least there's some decent New York City location footage. The romantic scenes between Gould and Karen Carlson slows this down to a kangaroo's limp pace, and the squeaks and squalks that the phony hopping actor makes are eye rolling.

Have to remember it's a kid's movie

[christopher-morton-236-865257 · 6/10 · 7 May 2020]

My brother took me to this back in the 70s, and I loved it. And only recently found it again. No, it's not Citizen Kane or Vertigo, but it is a fun little story similar to Gus the Kicking Mule and The Cat from Outer Space (which is the best of those cheap but fun Disney movies of that era). This is a fun, cute and very silly movie that actually has good acting and a very bad faked Kangaroo. If it's snowing on a Saturday or you are in lockdown, it's a fun romp to watch with the kids.

Dreadful attempt at a kiddie flick.

[otter · 22 July 1999]

Extremely bad, deservedly one of the biggest financial disasters of the decade. There was little potential in a supposed feel-good kiddie movie about a boxing kangaroo trying to beat the human world champion, but it didn't have to be this bad. For instance, they could have trained a real kangaroo instead of using a ham actor in a cheap, heavy, molting kangaroo suit that bears no resemblance to an animal, even with the animatronic facial expressions. And if you've ever wondered why Elliot Gould's career tanked in the late seventies, this is a big reason. He tries to make up for the bad kangaroo by hamming it up and desperately trying to be cute. And they didn't have to have such an annoying, sexist romance subplot either.

Incredibly bad, but not enjoyably bad like an Ed Wood film. For serious Bad Film buffs only.

I Feel Compelled

[gengar843 · 6/10 · 3 November 2021]

.. to tell you that I liked this film. Not tremendously, mind you, but it draws you in.

First, let's talk about the so-called "sexist" scene at the hotel room between Elliott Gould and Karen Carlson. There are so many films where the bravado male does just this - bursts in, makes a statement, and walks out, leaving the female flabbergasted. Yeah, I thought in my post-modern brain "oh my gosh!" but then I also thought, "wow! He has guts!" because he does after all love her and marry her later.

Second, Matilda's weakness, which is getting hit. They telegraphed the ending, but they still made it semi-heart-warming when the kangaroo leaves as the loser. Not going to win an Oscar but also they went to some expense to fill Harrah's and carry out this scene.

Third, Matilda. Gary Morgan inside is a beast. That suit weighed close to 200 pounds and he's hopping around pretty handily with those big feet and tail! And the boxing was not shabby.

Negatively, the gangsters were expected stupidity for the kiddies, Robert Mitchum's character didn't add much at all, and many plot points were simplified down to move the film along.

Positively, love 1970's NYC atmosphere.

I was going to give this a 5 but I went 6, but call it 5.5. This film is not a 3.4 which it sits at currently here.

One of the last at Radio City.

[national_bouton-1 · 14 November 2008]

I was fortunate as a 12-year old to see this film at Radio City Music Hall, as one of the last regular engagements before the Music Hall converted to a concert hall. I don't remember much about the film and won't try and defend it, but it was exciting to see it in the context of a Radio City presentation, complete with Rockettes and organ and all!

It's a shame that there haven't been more films shown on that great and grand screen. I don't know why films like TITANIC and THE DARK KNIGHT and WALL-E wouldn't have worked a treat there for short runs at the start of their lives.

It is a blessing that the theatre is intact and still gloriously vibrant and active. What a joy to experience, even peripherally, the thrill that our parents and grandparents felt when going to the movies.