Dennis the Menace (1993)
Rating – 2.5/4
*SPOILERS*
An innocent boy, his antics, and people around him getting hurt in various slapstick ways. That’s Dennis the Menace. It’s fun, it’s funny, and heartwarming, but is that enough to save a movie? Will you find Dennis’s antics hilarious and charming, or annoying and unpleasant?
Based on the long-running and popular comic strip, Dennis the Menace follows the titular Dennis Mitchell (Mason Gamble), as he goes through life and unintentionally pesters the living hell out of his neighbor, Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). But when a dangerous criminal named Switchblade Sam (Christopher Lloyd) arrives and commits a string of robberies in the otherwise peaceful town, it’s up to Dennis to stop him.
That’s prime for slapstick comedy. How can a five-year-old kid outsmart a criminal? By just being a kid, that’s what. And of course, seeing Mr. Wilson at the mercy of Dennis is ripe for humor, from groin attacks, to slingshots, to one-liners. But it gets old and you start to feel sorry for Mr. Wilson for everything he has to put up with. If you’re an adult and have to put up with kids’ antics, you’ll understand more clearly.
Despite being funny, the plot is somewhat thin. It’s just one Dennis antic after another and usually involves Mr. Wilson, almost like a sketch comedy. Even Switchblade Sam doesn’t become relevant to Dennis two-thirds into the movie. Every Dennis moment could’ve been a simple short story, like the comic strip. But it can be difficult to stretch a plot into something already short.
I’ve heard this movie compared to Home Alone and it’s true. It’s not a rip-off but it’s the same formula of a kid stopping a criminal. It helps that it both were written by John Hughes. But Home Alone works because Kevin goes through a character arc and we care about him and his flaws. He learns to accept other people, but we also understand his troubles as well.
But Dennis doesn’t go through the same arc. He stays the same throughout, causing trouble and never changing as a person. Again, I get it, he’s only a kid and he’s not expected to become an adult overnight, but his antics can get old. What’s the character arc for other people like Mr. Wilson? Let misbehavior slide? His moments might be funny, but even innocence has its limits.
I know it seems like I’m trashing this movie, but I’m not. It has funny moments, is quotable, and can be pleasantly heartwarming. Dennis is devilishly adorable and everyone is cast perfectly. Walter Matthau is perfect as the grumpy old man (pun intended) and is the perfect foil as the straight man to Dennis’s comic relief. Christopher Lloyd is simultaneously menacing and goofy as Switchblade Sam and you’ll get some laughs watching him get tossed around. Hey, I love slapstick comedy and cartoon violence so I found myself laughing too.
The movie certainly isn’t boring, I’ll give it that.
Dennis the Menace is harmless. Harmless fun and harmless pleasure. It has its funny moments and charm and it won’t offend people but nor will it leave a lasting mark on cinema. It has a thin plot and repetitive scenes, but it can still be watchable and fun as long as you’re in the right mindset. It’s a harmless comedy, but harmless is all it is. No more, no less.
