Oliver Twist (1982/I) (TV)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Clive Donner

Writers:

Charles Dickens (novel)
James Goldman (writer)

Release Date:

23 March 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

A Compelling New Version of the Great Victorian Classic

Plot:

The classic Dickens tale of an orphan boy who escapes the horrors of the orphanage only to be taken in by a band of thieves and pickpockets. |

Plot Keywords:

Dickens | Orphan | Pickpocket | Children | Murder

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy.

Cast

George C. Scott	...	Fagin
Tim Curry	...	Bill Sikes
Michael Hordern	...	Mr. Brownlow
Timothy West	...	Mr. Bumble
Eileen Atkins	...	Mrs. Mann
Cherie Lunghi	...	Nancy
Oliver Cotton	...	Monks
Richard Charles	...	Oliver Twist
Lysette Anthony	...	Oliver's Mother
Eleanor David	...	Rose Maylie
Philip Locke	...	Mr. Sowerberry
Ann Beach	...	Mrs. Sowerberry
Artro Morris	...	Mr. Giles
John Barrard	...	Dr. Losborne
Brenda Cowling	...	Mrs. Bedwin

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:PG | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Elstree Film Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Claridge Productions

Trivia:

This film was made for and premiered on US television, but it was released theatrically in some overseas territories.

Quotes:

Noah Claypole: [Sowerberry has handed Claypoole mourning clothes, instructing him to give them to Oliver] But these are funeral clothes! You promised me the job of silent mourner!
Mr. Sowerberry: I never did. Besides, he has a much better face for it than you. He looks so sad.

Movie Connections:

Version of "The Further Adventures of Oliver Twist" (1980)

Gets at the Dirty Side

Because I like George C. Scott, I am fond of this film. He is a very worthy Fagin, one with a hard edge, and a sense of evil. Too often, we forget he is an opportunist and a user of young boys. He is not the sweet old man that we see in the musical. I also thought that Tim Curry had that look of evil that he is quite good at. There are scenes, such as the death of Nancy, that are almost too cruel for the audience. Fagin betrays her because of self interest and sets the psychopathic Sykes after her. The boys are pretty good because they get at the baser sides of life. The back streets of London are well presented. The workhouse scenes are acceptable. The one really weak characterization is that of Oliver. The child who plays him is really weak and seems to be coached. When he cries he's not convincing. The rest of the people are so much more interesting. Then again, I don't know if I like Oliver all that much anyway. What Clive Donner does capture is the spirit of the times, much as he does in the later Scott version of A Christmas Carol. This is entertaining enough, though it suffers a bit from the made-for-television syndrome of parceling out commercials.