A Telekinetic Experience

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We all wanted the power to move objects with our mind; we all wanted to be like little Matilda.

It’sa timeless, feel-good, family movie about an eight- year-old girl who develops telekinesis in spite (or maybe because) of her ignorant, mean-spirited family, and the tortures of the unforgiving principal ofher new school. Starring Mara Wilson as Matilda, the 1996 film tells us that being a little different from the rest of the world can be extraordinarily magical. It tells us that family can also be found, not just in your blood relatives, but also in friends, schoolmates, or teachers.

Based on a novel by Roald Dahl, Matilda, with its funny and endearing allure, is a movie worth watching over and over again. Though the idea of having powers at eight years old is fantastical, it does not come off as a purely children’s movie— rather, it’s a movie that empathizes with kids who struggle with being misunderstood by their own kin; and more importantly, it’s a movie that shows us we shouldn’t need powers to feel safe and wanted.

Being a kid in a grown up world is hard, but with movies like Matilda that show the little light at the end of the tunnel, life gets more hopeful and more interesting.