Every Roald Dahl Movie Adaptation Ranked Worst To Best – Screen Rant

To date, sixteen feature films have been adapted from Roald Dahls work to varying degrees of success; heres how they all rank from worst to best.

To date, and including Robert Zemeckis' The Witches, sixteen feature films have been adapted from Roald Dahls work to varying degrees of success, but which is best? Including several repeat adaptations, some of the beloved author's poetry and short stories, and of course his dark but charming children's stories, there is a real spectrum in those adaptations.

Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, Dahls books are popular worldwide and he is known for his darkly comic childrens stories that never fail to delight. Traditionally accompanied by Quentin Blakes gorgeous illustrations, Dahls work lends itself to film very well. In fact, he even worked on a number of screenplays - including Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the James Bond film You Only Live Twice - but like Stephen King, tended to dislike adaptations of his own work, aside from a few notable exceptions.

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Given Dahls extensive bibliography, its a wonder that more movie adaptations havent manifested over the years - though Netflix are due to produce a string of animated Dahl projects in the near future, including Taika Waititis take on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and its lesser-known sequel, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. As they currently stand, heres every Roald Dahl movie adaptation ranked from worst to best.

The most insulting Dahl adaptation by a country-mile, Tom and Jerry: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory manages to butcher both properties - its dedication to the late Gene Wilder (who played Wonka in the 1971 classic) feeling like a slap in the face to the great actors memory. Its basically an animated remake of the original film, but with Tom and Jerry added for seemingly no reason at all. Essentially, its a feature-length meme - and feels like something the animators pitched when they were high, only to regret their choices during the actual production of the movie.

Esio Trot is one of Dahls lesser-known works, about a lonely old man (Dustin Hoffman) falling in love with his tortoise-keeping neighbor (Judi Dench) and hatching a plan to win her affection. While that might be an unusual plot for a childrens story (it totally is), Dahl made it work - with a heightened, comic tone and snappy pacing throughout. The TV movie, adapted by Richard Curtis, is a by-the-numbers rom-com that pads out the plot with cliche, unnecessary conflict, and offers little kid-appeal while simultaneously patronizing older viewers. That said, Judi Dench does her best - while Hoffman is frightfully bland in the lead role.

36 Hours is an adaptation of Dahls WWII short story Beware of the Dog, about an RAF pilot who wakes up in a British hospital but begins to suspect that his caregivers have ulterior motives. Its a great premise, one of Dahls best, but the film doesnt really go anywhere with it - building tension and suspense in the first half, before tossing every cliche at its audience in the second. Breaking Point, a TV movie, re-tells the same story - but in a cheaper, more theatrical manner. Neither is good enough to recommend, nor bad enough to laugh at, which is mostly all that can be said for both.

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A toothless adaptation of Dahls classic novel, Robert Zemeckiss The Witches re-locates the story to the American south, with Jahzir Kadeem Bruno playing an orphan who is turned into a mouse by the Grand High Witch (Anne Hathaway) and her minions. Teaming up with his grandmother (Octavia Spencer), the boy-mouse races to overthrow the witches plans to rid the world of children. Sadly, the film is more concerned with CGI spectacle than storytelling and ends up falling extremely flat. Though it retains most of Dahls plot, the film lacks his heart and feels cheaply-made: a cash-grab, looking to ride on Nicolas Roegs coattails and the cult status of his 1990 adaptation.

Four Rooms - an anthology film, with segments directed by Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino (among others) - is likely the strangest adaptation in the Dahl canon; inspired by his adult short stories and starring Tim Roth as a bellhop who cant catch a break. Each director wrote their own chunk of the script, with Roth encountering a variety of strange guests in the hotel from Hell. As is often the case with anthology films, some of the segments are more effective than others, leading to a disjointed feature that might be of interest to Tarantino fans, but will likely alienate general audiences. At the very least, its bold - with an outsized, comedic performance from Roth, a questionable cameo from QT, and a fun, animated title sequence that recalls the work of Saul Bass and Chuck Jones.

The weirdest of the straight adaptations, Tim Burtons Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is an ill-advised mess - with Johnny Depps performance as Wonka clearly (and regrettably) based on Michael Jackson. Intellectually, this connection makes sense, with Wonka portrayed as psychologically stunted in some way as a result of childhood trauma, but - in practice - hes unlikeable and creepy and, largely, insufferable. The rest of the film also feels off; like Dahls book, its sinister, but not in the right way, and (in a bizarre sequence) explores Wonkas childhood under the iron fist of his dentist father (Christopher Lee). The whole thing is like a parody of a Tim Burton film, steeped in Gothicism whether it suits the material or not, and - for that reason- is almost worth seeing. While Depp has jumped the shark many a time, Willy Wonka might be his greatest acting sin yet.

The BFG, based on Roald Dahls novel about a young girl being whisked away to the land of giants, is one of director Steven Spielbergs biggest box-office failures - a harsh indictment of what is, by most accounts, a perfectly okay movie. Stacked with CGI and whimsy (in that order), the film sanitizes Dahls vision somewhat, though Mark Rylance delivers in the title role. Spielberg certainly attempts to imbue the proceedings with a sense of wonder, but things tend to feel pretty forced - like someone whos become bored re-telling the same bedtime story, over and over again. Its not bad, but its definitely not great either - which actually makes it far less interesting than some of the lower entries in this list.

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Revolting Rhymes, loosely based on Dahls poetry collection of the same name, is an animated TV movie that riffs on classic fairytales with a darkly comic twist. Aimed primarily at young children, it feels understandably cutesy but manages to link the stories well - something that the book doesnt really attempt. Re-telling classic fairytales with a subversive twist has become a subgenre unto itself and, while Revolting Rhymes is entertaining enough, Dahls poems are shorter and funnier than the film is ultimately able to muster.

One of the few adaptations that Dahl actively endorsed, Danny, the Champion of the World is an underrated gem. Based on the novel of the same name, the TV movie tells the story of Danny and his father William (Jeremy Irons) who plot to overturn a millionaires plans to buy their land by poaching his pheasants. Like Dahls book, its understated and charming, with a wonderful father/son relationship at its heart - played by real-life father/son duo Jeremy and Samuel Irons. Robbie Coltrane is menacing as the despotic millionaire, and the Oxfordshire scenery shines in every frame - though the pacing is a little slow at times.

When orphan James drops a bag of crocodile tongues in his back garden, they cause a tree to bear giant fruit. Climbing inside, James discovers a group of talking insects who unmoor the peach - whisking them away on a grand adventure. Thus is the plot of James and the Giant Peach - adapted using a combination of the same stop-motion animation as The Nightmare Before Christmasand live-action footage by director Henry Selick. A box-office bomb on release, it has since become a cult hit - though the film is pretty disjointed and Randy Newmans musical numbers are, largely, uninspired. Its stylish, sure, and the stop-motion portions have a certain charm, but the narrative is pretty ropey (Dahls novel is guilty of this too, to be fair) and the whole thing comes off like a surreal, messy experiment.

The BFG is a delightful animation produced for TV by Britains Cosgrove Hall - with Only Fools and Horses star David Jason voicing the titular giant. Stylistically, its reminiscent of the work of Ralph Bakshi or Disneys The Black Cauldron; gloomy and atmospheric, with textured backgrounds and simple character animations that perfectly capture the tone of Dahls dreamlike novel. The author, it is reported, thought so too - giving the film a standing ovation at a screening in London. Like Danny, the Champion of the World, The BFG is understated and quintessentially British - with Jasons performance among the best that any Dahl adaptation can offer.

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Nicolas Roegs adaptation of The Witches is likely the darkest in the Dahl canon - offering genuinely creepy moments and grotesque imagery while maintaining the authors dark sense of humor throughout. Angelica Hustons Grand High Witch is the highlight of the movie and her transformation from seductive femme fatale to hideous creature is executed brilliantly by The Jim Henson Company with elaborate, practical effects. The only real flaw with this film is its saccharine ending; very different from Dahls novel and at odds with the dark tone - though, the change was likely enforced to quell some of that darkness, allowing the earlier scenes to hit harder by delivering a happier, more traditional ending that parents could more readily get behind. Either way - it gave kids nightmares.

Matilda is, essentially, Stephen Kings Carrie for kids - with its young protagonist developing telekinetic powers and using them to get revenge on a bully. Danny DeVitos film adaptation stars Mara Wilson in the title role, with DeVito and Rhea Pearlman as her neglectful parents and the excellent Pam Ferris as her thuggish principal, Miss Trunchbull. DeVitos voice is felt keenly throughout, offering an Americanized take on the source material while retaining Dahls heightened characters and twisted sense of humor. Like Dahl, DeVito understands children and refuses to talk down to his audience - cementing Matilda as a family classic, and proof that the actor ought to direct more often.

While Tim Burtons trademark stylings didnt do Dahl any favors, Wes Andersons Fantastic Mr. Fox is a horse of a different color (or, rather, a fox) - Andersons picture-book, stop-motion aesthetic working in perfect harmony with Dahls farmyard heist story. Mr. Fox (George Clooney) plots to steal food from three notorious farmers but, when the plan goes awry, he and his family are forced underground. Charming, funny, and a loving tribute to Dahl (the animators going so far as to replicate the authors belongings in the films model sets), Fantastic Mr. Fox fires on all cylinders to create the perfect family-viewing experience.

Youd be hard-pressed to find a more iconic film in existence than Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory - with a screenplay written by Dahl himself, though he disowned the film after numerous rewrites and disliked the casting of Gene Wilder in the title role. A musical adaptation, it never fails to inspire wonder in its audience and, while the filmmakers certainly take some liberties with Dahls book, its all in service of their technicolor joy-ride. With a Pythonesque sense of humor, almost every character is memorable - from the scientist arguing with his computer, all the way up to Wilders volatile Wonka. Roald Dahl may have disliked it - but audiences are firmly on-board with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory: a beloved classic.

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Joe Gillis is a writer and cynic based in Edinburgh, Scotland. He likes pia coladas, getting caught in the rain, and hates referring to himself in the third person. Alas, them's the breaks.

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Every Roald Dahl Movie Adaptation Ranked Worst To Best - Screen Rant

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero