Oliver Twist

This review brought to you courtesy of a FunkyGrad contest, otherwise, I really won't think I have the time to watch this when it premieres (stay tuned for a crazy week ahead I tell ya!)

"Please sir, may I have some more?" Ah, the immortal line from Charles Dickens' classic, from the book Oliver Twist, telling the story of an orphaned boy, with sheer incredible luck and a melancholic, likeable face. The book has been remade into movies countless of times, and this one is Roman Polanski's take.

I haven't read the novel (yes, I heard gasps of horror) so I can't offer a scene for scene comparison. So perhaps you could shed some light on the short summary I'm about to give. The first 10 minutes will highlight the immortal line where Oliver is sent to a factory made up of orphaned boys. There, he gets sold to a coffin maker, where he makes his escape. Throughout his journeys, he meets up with many benefactors who assist him in one way or another. Some good, like Mr Brownlow, and some bad, like Fagin, who's the caretaker of a group of child pickpockets.

And it is in London where Oliver was picked up by the Artful Dodger, and introduced to the rest of the crew led by Fagin. He learns the trade, but in a botched first attempt, gets sort of rescued by Mr Brownlow, and has his first taste of a decent life.

However, the lowlifes are afraid of him squealing their whereabouts to the police, and hence, recapture Oliver and uses him to steal from Mr Brownlow. And of course I won't bore you with the details but suffice to say that the main villain of the show, Bill Sykes, an associate of Fagin, gets more screentime than Oliver himself towards the end.

It's a lavish production, with big sets. The streets of Old London were beautifully created, and so was the soundtrack chugging so indiscreetly in the background. Ben Kingsley, as Fagin, disappears into his role behind the makeup - you'll hardly recognize him, and Barney Clark as Oliver seemed likeable enough too, and provided enough emotions to punctuate the final scene.

So for those, like me, who have not read the book, this should prove to be an invaluable 130 minute introduction to the real thing. Sure you can have more, by picking up the book.

P.S. Surprisingly, there are both English and Mandarin subtitles, so you won't get lost in the Old English used by the characters. My dear, indeed.