Oliver Twist

Dickens, for all his strengths as a writer, wasn't really crafting well-structured, traditional stories. His narratives, mainly by virtue of the episodic nature of their initial publishing, drift languidly down tangents, double-back in confusing or unexpected ways, and generally violate the precepts of standard, 3 act structure. So, even though they have lots of terrifically colorful characters and an expressive, fog-laden London setting, the novels prove difficult to adapt.

Roman Polanski has managed to hack up the Dickens' novel "Oliver Twist" sufficiently to get a breezy, entertaining 2 hour film out of the book. Though he's sacrificed a lot of nuance and color, he hasn't lost the main narrative thread of Dickens' major debut as a novelist (having published only "Pickwick Papers" previously). Polanski, an abandoned youth himself with a life-long obsession with isolated, alienated characters, is a natural to tell the story of an unwanted orhpan boy finding his place in the cruel underworld of Victorian London. And though is film evokes the period splendidly and includes some nice performances and expressive cinematography, Polanski never really makes the subject uniquely his own, as he has when adapting other's material in films like Rosemary's Baby or even The Pianist. He's made a great Dickens adaptation, rather than a great Polanski film. And as far as Oliver Twist adaptations go, I think I'll still take David Lean's 1948 version, anti-Semitism and all.



Don't get me wrong...Polanski does bring with him some insights into the world of Oliver Twist. This is not some thoughtless, made-for-the-classroom adaptation that gets the incidents right while ignoring any subtext. In this version, unlike Lean's classic or other interpretations, Fagin is no longer the loathsome Jewish caricature of a shameless, money-grubbing huckster. As played wonderfully (if a bit broadly) by Ben Kingsley, Fagin here is both more sympathetic and more of a pathetic, deluded fool. Though he uses these boys and their skills as pickpockets for a living, he genuinely seems to want to father them, to save them from a life of misery on the streets. With his celebratory dinners and his limp attempts at "table manners," he's like some mad homeless patriarch trying to keep the family together.

Additionally, Polanski uses a lot of low-angle shots and close-ups on legs and feet, to put the viewer in the frame of mind of a young boy. We view this world as Oliver sees it - an intimidating and confusing place where villains compete for the opportunity to take advantage of helpless innocents. Frequently, particularly during early sequences where Oliver is shuttled from the workhouse to various foster homes, the technique is striking and effective.

After angering his keepers for daring to request MORE gruel at supper (fans of the musical Oliver! will easily recall this sequence), Oliver (a well-cast Barney Clark) is sent off to toil at an undertaker's home business. Though the undertaker himself is kind, the rest of the staff and the undertaker's wife are all exceptionally violent and cruel, so Oliver runs away. This will set the pattern for the rest of the story - Oliver will encounter all manner of cruelty and exploitation, with occasional spurts of kindness.

The main appeal of a film version of Oliver Twist (or, for that matter, "David Copperfield" or "Great Expectations") is the opportunity to cast some of Dickens' colorful supporting characters. And, overall, Polanski's cast rises to the challenge. Clark mercifully isn't asked to act so much as witness much of the film's action, and never seems fraudulent or like he's overplaying the role. Young actor Harry Eden is likewise very natural as the Artful Dodger, probably the film's most nuanced role outside of Fagin. And Jamie Foreman, whom I distinctly hated in this year's Layer Cake almost makes up for that travesty with his turn as the impossibly evil Bill Sykes, who lusts to kill orphans like Curella De Vil lusts to kill adorable puppies. Foreman makes Sykes distinctly nasty without ever veering into camp or dark comedy.

That's not to say that Polanski brings no humor at all to the film. In fact, the opening half hour may be a bit too funny. As Mr. Bumble, the ill-tempered "social worker" of sorts appointed to shuttle Oliver to the workhouse, Jeremy Swift bugs out his eyes, mugs and generally plays the part for laughs. A courtroom proceeding, in which Oliver's future savoir Mr. Brownlow (exceptionally mustachoied Edward Hardwicke) accuses him of picking pockets, as well dissolves quickly into overblown farce.

Once Oliver falls in with the Dodger and Fagin, the movie finds surer footing and proceeds nicely. But despite a few terrific sequences, including a well-shot scene modeled on Bresson's Pickpocket in which the young thieves teach Oliver the tricks of the trade, the movie never really shakes the Handsome PBS Adaptation vibe. The sets are nice, but never EXPANSIVE. The performances nice, but not CLASSIC (save Foreman and some scenes of Kingsley). Only the cinematography consistantly impresses, presenting a dank, grim and grey environment with the feeling of a worn old storybook.