Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: Oliver Twist (2005) - Polanski flops bigtime with respectable adaptation

10/07/2022

Oliver Twist (2005) - Polanski flops bigtime with respectable adaptation

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A simple paper-cut image of the title character in a fix makes up this poster for Roman Polanski's Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist is an orphan boy in 19th century London with terrible luck. He is hated by the system and winds up in a gang of thieves, but he also gets familiar with kindness and human warmth, before he himself is stolen away ...

Oliver Twist is written by Ronald Harwood (The Pianist (2002)), adapting the same-titled 1838 novel by Charles Dickens (The Battle of Life (1846)), and directed by Polish-French master filmmaker Roman Polanski (Knife in the Water/Nóz w Wodzie (1962)), whose 17th feature it is.

A Dickens adaptation is a respectable task for Polanski, who does a fair job with Oliver Twist. - However, a 'fair job' is far from the type of compliment that a master filmmaker covets.

The story is so good that the film still achieves a certain amount of tension and feeling: Barney Clark (Lawless Heart (2001)) as Twist is alright if no true find; Ben Kingsley (Bugsy (1991)) is deeply engaged as Fagin, even if he still can't match the detestable heights conjured up by Dickens' words in the novel; and Mark Strong (Day of the Falcon (2011)) is nearly irrecognizable as Toby Crackit.

Polanski is not the best match to Dickens' adventure. Oliver Twist has a too instructive score (by Rachel Portman (Bel Ami (2012))) and too little sensuousness and horror, regrettably.

2011 in films - according to Film Excess
Carnage (2011) - Polanski castigates modern parents in great play adaptation
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess
The Ghost Writer/The Ghost (2010) - A master at work

The Ninth Gate (1999) - Class and atmosphere galore in underrated Polanski thriller
Chinatown (1974) - Polanski's masterpiece

Top 10: Best UK movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Film Excess' 7th birthday movie masterpiece: The Fearless Vampire Killers/Dance of the Vampires (1967) - Witness Polanski's incredible, underrated Gothic horror comedy
Cul-de-Sac (1966) - Edge-of-the-world island tale meanders at times, but is ultimately a winner
Two Men and a Wardrobe/Dwaj Ludzie z Szafą (1958, short) - Polanski's remarkable, surreal short

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 60 mil. $

Box office: 42.5 mil. $

= Huge flop (returned 0.70 times its cost)

[Oliver Twist premiered 11 September (Toronto International Film Festival) and runs 130 minutes. Clark was paid 50k £ for his performance in the film. Shooting took place from July - November 2004 in the Czech Republic, including in Prague. The film opened #46 to a 68k $ first weekend in 5 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #18 and in 779 theaters, grossing 2 mil. $ (4.7 % of the total gross). The film's biggest markets were France with 8.9 mil. $ (20.9 %), Japan with 5.9 mil. $ (13.9 %) and Italy with 5 mil. $ (11.8 %). The film was nominated for a European Film award, among other honors. Roger Ebert gave it a 3.5/4 star review, translating to 2 notches over this one. Polanski returned with To Each His Own Cinema (2007, segment), a 2009 commercial and theatrically with The Ghost Writer (2010). Clark returned in Moog (2007, short) and theatrically in Savage Grace (2007); Kingsley in Mrs. Harris (2005, TV movie) and theatrically in BloodRayne (2005). Oliver Twist is fresh at 60 % with a 6.30/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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10/07/2022

Oliver Twist (2005) - Polanski flops bigtime with respectable adaptation

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