---
title: "Dennis the Menace: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/dennis-the-menace/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/dennis-the-menace"
critics_score: 57
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Dennis the Menace (1993): what the critics said

Critics' score 57 from 7 reviews: 1 positive, 5 mixed, 1 negative.

Most critics land on mixed, and the agreement is almost entirely about one man. Walter Matthau’s Mr Wilson is the performance the reviews return to: the crotchety neighbour makes Dennis’s scenes work and is, for some, the only real pleasure for an adult in the audience. Beyond him, the praise is faint. The film is called agreeably low-key, a change from the more frenetic children’s comedies of its day, and Mason Gamble’s Dennis is found endearing by some and only just adequate by others.

The reservations gather around the plot, which is called thin, and the jokes, which several find scarce. Empire is the most forgiving, finding it entertaining regardless; Variety is the outlier at the bottom, judging it safe, largely unfunny and suited mainly to the youngest children. The spread is otherwise narrow, with the reviews clustering in the middle, and one or two of the older notices say too little to place with any confidence.

## Empire — Jenny Cooney

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

The review finds the film entertaining despite its thin plot. It praises Walter Matthau and Jill Plowright’s comic performances and Mason Gamble’s endearing turn as Dennis.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/dennis-review/)

## Los Angeles Times — Peter Rainer

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 25 June 1993. 

Rainer finds the film tepid but agreeably low-key, with its lack of crassness a welcome change from more frenetic children’s films. He especially praises Walter Matthau’s performance as the crotchety Mr. Wilson, which makes many of Dennis’ scenes work.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-25-ca-7057-story.html)

## Time Out — NF

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 

The available metadata presents this as a family comedy adapted from Hank Ketcham’s comic strip, but does not reveal the critic’s overall verdict. It notes John Hughes’s skill with family comedies, while the specific praise or complaint is unavailable.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/dennis-the-menace)

## The New York Times

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 25 June 1993. 

The accessible page does not reveal the critic’s verdict. Its blocked text also prevents identifying anything specifically praised or criticized.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/25/movies/review-film-dennis-mr-wilson-slow-burns-and-cats.html)

## Radio Times — David Parkinson

Rating 3/5. 

The review finds the film often funny but also painfully poor. It singles out Walter Matthau’s performance as brilliant, while Mason Gamble only just gets by.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-c7dxk9/dennis/)

## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert

Rating 2/4. 

The review’s verdict and specific praise or complaint cannot be verified from the blocked page. The accessible page contains only a browser check, not the review text.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/dennis-the-menace-1993)

## Variety — Todd McCarthy

Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 21 June 1993. 

The review finds the film safe and largely unfunny, with appeal mostly limited to very young children. It singles out Walter Matthau’s performance as the film’s one real pleasure for adults.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1993/film/reviews/dennis-the-menace-2-1200432431/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/dennis-the-menace.md