Playback / Matilda
Matilda · 1996
Trunchbull
A villain introduced from below, at scale, through the faces of the children looking at her.
Watch for
- The low angles that put her above the camera and above the children.
- How much of the introduction is reaction shots — we learn her from their faces.
- The costume: military cut, belt, boots, whistle. A headmistress dressed as an army officer.
A worked reading · COCA
CContention
DeVito introduces Trunchbull using the conventions of a monster introduction rather than those of a school story.
OObservation
Trunchbull's arrival at Crunchem Hall is shot from low angles that exaggerate her height, intercut with reaction shots of terrified children, and she is costumed in belted military dress rather than anything a teacher would wear.
CConnotation
Borrowing the grammar of a monster's entrance codes her as a threat rather than an authority figure, and the military costume suggests an institution run as an occupation.
AAudience
We are aligned with the children's fear before she has done anything, so every later cruelty confirms an impression the audience already formed.
Your turn
- Where is the camera in relation to her, and what does that do?
- How much do you learn from her, and how much from the children watching her?
- What is she dressed as? Why not dress her as a teacher?
For teachers
An ideal first character-introduction lesson for junior classes — the conventions are exaggerated enough to be obvious. Sits at the front of the character-introduction shelf with Jack Sparrow and Gene Hunt.
