Recommended age limit: Personally, I would recommend it for older children and up for despite its G-rating, it is rather dark. Content issues include a morally ambiguous depiction of thieves and scoundrels, a menacing villain who commits off-screen murder, veiled allusions to a supporting character’s profession as a prostitute, and scenes involving child abuse.
Is it edifying?: Despite these elements, the film touches upon the themes of hope, belonging, and identity within a world defined by brokenness and corruption. It is also a charming, whimsical introduction to the legacy of Charles Dickens, particularly his humanitarian vision, and his gravitas as a masterful storyteller.
In the world of screen adaptations, there exists two kinds of audiences: literary purists who cringe whenever the film fails to preserve the content and themes of the source material, and newcomers who are encouraged to read the original work after being dazzled by its cinematic counterpart. In my case, I would normally enjoy an adaptation for its merits and then critique it based on whether it honors the author’s intended vision. There are a host of excellent screen adaptations that are worth mentioning, but there remains one film that has been largely neglected except by the most ardent cinephiles and connoisseurs of musical theatre: Oliver!, which is adapted from Charles Dickens’ classic novel Oliver Twist.
For those who don’t know the story of Oliver Twist, it is best to provide a quick summary: Oliver (Mark Lester) is a young orphan born and raised in an English workhouse during the first half of the nineteenth century. After being sold as a mortician’s apprentice by the heartlessly pompous Mr. Bumble (Harry Secombe), Oliver escapes from his miserable situation and seeks to find his fortune in London. There he meets the wily, streetwise pickpocket Jack Dawkins (Jack Wild), nicknamed “the Artful Dodger,” who invites him to lounge at his hovel so he can join his gang of thieving street urchins.
Leading the boys is the crafty, conniving miser Fagin (Ron Moody), who hoards the stolen goods within a jewelry box. Serving as his accomplice is the evil-eyed Bill Sikes (Oliver Reed), a rugged criminal who breaks into houses and is not hesitant to use force to get what he wants. Bill’s mistress, Nancy (Shani Wallis) is displeased by the life her cronies has chosen, and though she chooses to remain faithful to Bill, her moment of moral reckoning occurs once she meets Oliver and sympathizes with his situation.
Technical Merits
Before delving into a discussion of the film’s moral themes, one must begin with its technical aspects. As a musical, the film is exuberantly entertaining with every number being a visual feast of beautifully organized choreography (directed by Oona White) complementing the joyous lyrics that tap into the emotional moods of the characters. These include the frantic energy of the opening number “Food, Glorious Food” (notably parodied in Ice Age 2) set inside a drab-and-dirty workhouse, followed by the faux elegance of “I’d Do Anything,” and the rousing nonsensical vibe of “Oom-Pah-Pah” sung by Nancy inside a tavern. Likewise, one must complement the sumptuous Oscar-winning art direction which manages to bring Victorian-era London to life with its intriguing mix of grimy streets, rugged buildings, and claustrophobic alleys.
The cinematography by Oswald Morris gives the film a gutsy, earthy realism that makes this environment feel immediate and even homelike for the viewer. Regarding the performances, the strongest is undoubtedly Ron Moody as Fagin. Here, he transforms the character from a cold, calculating villain imagined in the novel to a playful anti-hero possessing an almost fatherly aura towards the gang of street urchins. Similarly, Oliver Reed is convincingly menacing as the grizzly Bill Sikes; Harry Secombe is hilarious as the bumbling Mr. Bumble; and Shani Wallis is a scene-stealer as Nancy, giving the character an attractive, strong-willed demeanor that is a slight improvement over the miserly persona portrayed in the book.
Finally, one must attribute the film’s success to its masterful sense of direction. Carol Reed, who won an Oscar for his work here, was a revered legend in the British film industry, having crafted the three postwar masterpieces: Odd Man Out, The Fallen Idol, and The Third Man. The connection that Oliver! has with these films is their sense of immediacy, particularly in their stark depiction of underworld activities and the urgent moral awakening experienced by the characters wishing to escape from this environment. Though Oliver! strays away from the complex questions regarding the nature of human sinfulness, conscience, and grace that these other films ponder, it does offer a positive assertion of the hope for redemption signified through the characters of Nancy, and to a lesser extent, Fagin.
For Reed, criminals and renegades make fascinating character studies as they attest to the belief that human nature is not wholly divided into wholly good and wholly bad personas, but flawed individuals who make life-changing choices that ultimately define the type of persons they become. Like Harry Lime in The Third Man, Bill Sikes chooses to use brute force as a means of extracting influence over his fellow men, even to the extent of taking their lives. Whereas Nancy chooses to foster empathy that allows her to care for her neighbor’s well-being at the cost of her own life. In depicting these contrasting personas, Reed manages to show viewers the capacity to exhibit virtues and vices regardless of their social background, which is integral to the moral vision of Dickens’ story.
Oliver! as an Adaptation
When discussing the film’s distinction as an adaptation, it admittedly has a few drawbacks. It is not a complete retelling of the original source material for there are characters eliminated (e.g., the mysterious Monks and the sweet, motherly Rose Maylie), subplots truncated, and important articles of information that are briefly alluded, but not completely addressed. However, for all its faults, the film does make up for these omitted elements by providing younger viewers with a steady introduction to the key characters and themes that shaped the story. These include the meaning of identity and belonging that is experienced via Oliver’s journey from a penniless orphan to a loving child with a family, as well as the hope for spiritual regeneration that is found in Nancy’s character development.
As the novel was clearly written for an adult audience in mind, it is fortunate that the film’s accessibility towards a younger audience also meant toning down its darker themes. Though the film itself is quite dark, it is rather tame compared to the book which is replete with a more unsavory portrait of the criminal lifestyle, as well as the domestic abuse experienced by Oliver in the early chapters. Nonetheless, the film might encourage more adventurous readers to encounter the original work and make comparisons among themselves.
Why You Should See It
For those reading this review, you might be wondering “Why should families see this film?” Well, for two reasons: First, it is an engaging work of cinema that both children and adults will enjoy, especially with its rousing musical numbers and magical production values; Second, it is a stellar introduction to the legacy of Charles Dickens and his gravitas as an author of enriching, soulful stories. One of the defining qualities of Dickens’ artistry is his capacity to shape characters with an integrated pathos that define them as fully rounded persons with desires and dreams they wish to realize. In Carol Reed’s hands, the characters of Oliver Twist are given lively personas that make them sympathetic in the eyes of viewers, and even memorable for new generations.
Ultimately, the film’s appeal lies not merely through its lofty escapism, but also its thoughtful reflection on how the human soul can still find hope within the darkest of times. Like Oliver, we all are searching for our place in the sun, where we will feel neither rejection nor neglect by our superiors, but acceptance by someone who will love us for who we are. As Christians, this is the message found in Sacred Scripture, where God asserts us that despite all we go through, He will never abandon us but will remain with us out of love for our identity as His children. As it is written in the book of Deuteronomy, “Do manfully and be of good heart: fear not, nor be ye dismayed at their sight: for the Lord thy God he himself is thy leader, and will not leave thee nor forsake thee.” (Deut. 31:6 DRV). Though this world will continue to be populated by its own unruly characters, the film reminds us that there remains a light at the end of the tunnel, whose name happens to be “Love.”
Our choir director in high school took us to see “Oliver” and then we sang a medley of songs from the movie in our Spring Concert! I’ve always loved it :)