In Universal’s 1993 film Matinee, I was not surprised that John Goodman seemed perfect for the part of Lawrence Woolsey, a filmmaker known for making cheesy/horrifying monster movies. However, I was surprised to see that much of this movie was focused on a bunch of kids, and even more surprising was that the child actors playing them were really quite good and believable. While the film starts off slow, and seems to struggle to establish all of its main characters in a fast but logical way, around 40 minutes in it gets really interesting and lots of fun.
It’s a shame that the film is not more appropriate for young kids since the kids in the movie are pretty much the main focus of the film. Sadly, there were not that many big laughs, but it was still delightful watching these great characters interact, and watching the way that this film brilliantly satires old monster movies. Overall, Matinee has good writing, good acting, good directing, and even good music. It’s simply fun.
