Dennis the Menace (1993)

23% of critics liked it
(22 reviews)
44% of users liked it
(239,519 ratings)

John Hughes continues the trend he began with the Home Alone series in Dennis the Menace, the Hughes-scripted film version of Hank Ketcham's long-running comic strip, cartoon show, and television comedy. The film opens as Dennis (Mason Gamble) is seen careening down a sidewalk in a beautiful and… More John Hughes continues the trend he began with the Home Alone series in Dennis the Menace, the Hughes-scripted film version of Hank Ketcham's long-running comic strip, cartoon show, and television comedy. The film opens as Dennis (Mason Gamble) is seen careening down a sidewalk in a beautiful and idealistic suburban town on his training-wheeled bike -- cans on string clattering behind him, baseball cards flapping in the spokes of the wheel, his red wagon filled to the brim and his dog following him. "Hey! Mister Wilson!" he screams and slams his bike to a halt in front of his much put-upon neighbor, Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). Half of the film concerns vignettes of small-town Hank Ketcham life as Dennis' mom Alice (Lea Thompson) starts a new job, Dennis stays over at his friend Margaret's (Amy Sakasitz) house, and Mr. Wilson and his gentle, well-meaning wife, Martha (Joan Plowright), mind Dennis during the night of a big garden party. Through all this, Dennis continually gets into Mr. Wilson's hair. But then the Home Alone plot kicks in -- with an unsubtle dose of O. Henry -- when Switchblade Sam (Christopher Lloyd) makes an appearance. Switchblade Sam is a homeless drifter who combs the neighborhood stealing purses and small home items. But when Switchblade Sam steals Mr. Wilson's collection of gold coins, Dennis comes to the rescue and inflicts Dennis the Menace-type tortures upon the thief in order to reclaim the coins for Mr. Wilson. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 38 min.
Directed By: Nick Castle Jr., Nick Castle
Written By: Hank Ketcham, John Hughes
Genres: Comedy, Kids & Family

In Theaters: Jun 25, 1993 Wide
On DVD: Jan 28, 2003
Studio: Warner Home Video

Critic Reviews

Ty Burr, Entertainment Weekly
Its unholy mixture of peppy sadism and pious, self-righteous sentiment comes straight from Hughes' crabbed cinematic heart.
Todd McCarthy, Variety
Very young children may find the numskull, by-the-numbers gags here amusing, but teens will consider this kids' stuff and adults will be pained.
Vincent Canby, New York Times
Mr. Hughes and Mr. Castle try hard to re-create a kind of timeless, idealized comic-strip atmosphere, but except for the performances of Lea Thompson and Robert Stanton... nobody in the movie seems in touch with the nature of the comedy.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Those good qualities are undermined, unfortunately, by the Switchblade Sam character, who is dirty, threatening and scary.
James Berardinelli, ReelViews
Most children will get a kick out of it, although adults roped into accompanying their offspring may find themselves yearning to escape through the nearest exit.
Joe Brown, Washington Post
Beyond the booby traps and plentiful pranks, Dennis the Menace is truly a treat for all ages.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
John Hughes' vision of Dennis is much more menacing than Ketcham's fans and parents of small children might reasonably expect.
, Time Out
A smooth blend of sentiment and slapstick.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Someone ought to pay for this.
Alex Sandell, Juicy Cerebellum
Why, oh dear lord, why?!?
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com
How to turn an innocuous comic strip into an obnoxious movie.

Read all 11 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Coxxie M

OH HELL YEA!!! im bustin this one out tonight! and i aint talkin about Nicky Hilton.
Lady D

A highly amusing kids film with a big Home Alone influence I'm sure. Walter Matthau was ideal for the role of Mr Wilson and the film as a whole is a fun watch
Brad W

Dennis the Menace is a bad movie, but kids will love it and thats the important thing, that its target audience loves it, and to be honest its pretty funny.
Jeff "

Dennis the Menace is actually a decent family comedy film that has good moments of comedy. I thought the film was decent, and does bring on a few chuckles. Christopher Lloyd plays the films villain and he used to scare me as a kid. The film is not perfect, but it's fun for what… More
Dennis the Menace is actually a decent family comedy film that has good moments of comedy. I thought the film was decent, and does bring on a few chuckles. Christopher Lloyd plays the films villain and he used to scare me as a kid. The film is not perfect, but it's fun for what it is. Dennis the Menace is a decent family film, but not one of the classic films. I felt that it lacked something really special to truly make this film a classic. But for what it is, Dennis the Menace is a fun film that is worth seeing once. This is the perfect film to watch as a family, and it has some good, entertaining moments. But as I've said about many films of this caliber, Dennis the Menace is not a film that has stood the test of time, and I don't consider it a classic by any means. The film is decent at best, never great. The cast are good, but the here is of course Christopher Lloyd as the villain, he really has an intense evil look to him that makes you uneasy. Dennis the Menace is a decent film for what it is, and though it won't be remembered as something good, it's still an entertaining film to watch as a family. The film most likely make you smile, but it's not the best. Keep your expectations fairly average for this one, and you may not be disappointed.
AJ V

A really fantastic kids movie based on the old TV show and cartoons of Dennis the Menace. The story starts out simple, and gets more complicated and even scary at times. I loved this movie when I was a kid, and I think kids today will like it too.
Lenny M

The script is insanely good for a kids' comedy, colorful cast, I still can't figure out why 90's child actors were so good, Nickelodeon and Disney have blown hard nuts since Y2K, well Disney has never been good on TV except for Even Stevens; Shia Labeouf actually has… More
The script is insanely good for a kids' comedy, colorful cast, I still can't figure out why 90's child actors were so good, Nickelodeon and Disney have blown hard nuts since Y2K, well Disney has never been good on TV except for Even Stevens; Shia Labeouf actually has yet to make a movie as good as that show. John Hughes gave up his adult/teenage oriented comedies by the 90's, focusing on da chillren for his screenplays with movies like Beethoven and Dennis. Christopher Lloyd is a hideous creeper, one of the all time creeper roles.
Dean M

This family comedy film based on the Hank Ketcham comic strip and TV comedy series is just good and that stands on something solid. It's a bit like <i>Home Alone</i> movies. Walter Matthau was wonderful in his comic performance as Dennis' neighbour, Mr. Wilson.… More
This family comedy film based on the Hank Ketcham comic strip and TV comedy series is just good and that stands on something solid. It's a bit like <i>Home Alone</i> movies. Walter Matthau was wonderful in his comic performance as Dennis' neighbour, Mr. Wilson. And Mason Gamble is alright as the title role. Switchblad Sam, played by Christopher Lloyd, was a typical writer John Hughes device, although it was surprisingly violent compared to his other films (watching a cute little five year old force feed and then accidentally set a villain on fire was slightly disturbing, to say the least).
KJ P

Hilarious! One of the first movies I've ever seen! I have to say it's good, just because of that!
Conner R

A priceless movie, full of great moments. It's one of the few kid themed movies that can still be enjoyed by adults as well. Christopher Lloyd made for a perfectly creepy bum/kidnapper with nothing to lose. It has decent child performances and is a great story of man vs. child.
Anthony L

Walter Matthau was well cast, I loved the cartoon but this was awful! Destroy that child!
Jason O

In my opinion, "Dennis The Menace" was one of the best comedies to come out of the 90's. Dennis (Mason Gamble) is having fun again with Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). Like in all of his comedy movies, Walter Matthau puts on an unforgettable performance, and so does… More
In my opinion, "Dennis The Menace" was one of the best comedies to come out of the 90's. Dennis (Mason Gamble) is having fun again with Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). Like in all of his comedy movies, Walter Matthau puts on an unforgettable performance, and so does Dennis. There are a lot of sequences from this movie that you'll never forget because of how hard you'll laugh at them. Some of them are when Mr. Wilson finds out that somebody has changed some of the liquids around in the bathroom and when the kidnapper does the bean farting scene. If you like comedy movies that will make you laugh a lot, and I mean a lot, you've got to get "Dennis The Menace." It will make you laugh nearly all the way through the whole movie. NOTE: That was my Amazon review from the year 2000. Definitely one of the best comedy films of the 90's, and I know tons of people that agree with me. Used to love watching the old black & white TV show but think I like this even better! Walter Matthau was awesome. So many funny parts in this movie I could quote.
Cassandra M

I saw this film when it first came out I was 7 years old and I loved it then and still do so I'm pleased to have finally bought it on DVD. Just watch it!!! I found it funny throughout and the end of the film where the villain (played beautifully) suffered at the unknowing hands… More
I saw this film when it first came out I was 7 years old and I loved it then and still do so I'm pleased to have finally bought it on DVD. Just watch it!!! I found it funny throughout and the end of the film where the villain (played beautifully) suffered at the unknowing hands of Dennis is a joy to watch. Just watch it!!!.
vieras e

I think I was about 12 or 13 the last time I saw this. I doubt I'd enjoy it as much now as I did then.
Curtis L

Ehh....
Candy R

Loved the cartoons. Cute adaptation.
Lafe F

Like Problem Child, a decent bad-kid movie, with Dennis the Menace (Mason Gamble) tormenting the old man living next door Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). There's the funny plot of a criminal (Christopher Lloyd) being tortured by Dennis, which reminded me of the "Home… More
Like Problem Child, a decent bad-kid movie, with Dennis the Menace (Mason Gamble) tormenting the old man living next door Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). There's the funny plot of a criminal (Christopher Lloyd) being tortured by Dennis, which reminded me of the "Home Alone" series. Mason was cute, but not the mop-haired freckle-faced runt which the comic strips show. There should've been some Dairy Queen product placements, for their long-standing promotions featuring Dennis the Menace. Alright movie with an ultimately good-natured kid.
Jennifer X

from what i can remember, i thought it was very entertainig.
Steve B

Hughes manages to ruin this one by bringing in some Home Alone antics.
Leigh R

It was cute.
Bradley W

Dennis the Menace is a bad movie, but kids will love it and thats the important thing, that its target audience loves it, and to be honest its pretty funny.