| The
Review: |
Does the audience need another cinematic
adaptation of the great novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens?
There has already been great ones such a David Lean’s version
from 1948 where Alec Guinness provides a brilliant portrayal
of the villain Fagin. Then there is the silent masterpiece
of Oliver Twist that Frank Lloyd directed in 1922 while Oliver
Twist that also received a unique musical treatment directed
by Carol Reed in 1968. At first thought, maybe no, but after
some deliberation in Roman Polanski’s perspective, I must
say yes. The audience definitely needs to see Polanski’s version
of the legendary tale of the orphan Oliver Twist. ***
There are significant parallels
between the director Roman Polanski’s childhood and the fictional
character Oliver Twist’s upbringing. Both faced brutality
and injustice while being completely dependent on others for
their survival amidst a time of great difficulty. The story
of Oliver Twist does not need much explanation here, however,
to understand Polanski’s version one should understand his
upbringing at the age of ten. Polanski was born in Paris,
but his parents moved back to Poland in 1937. Six years later,
Polanski had reached the age of ten and he had to evade the
Nazis after his parent’s apprehension. His escape brought
him from the Krakow Ghetto to the Polish countryside where
he most likely survived with the help of strangers that probably
exploited the situation. ***
The beauty of Polanski’s Oliver
Twist is that he captures Dickens’ social criticism of the
time while also making use of the opportunity to display society’s
impact on countless orphan youths. Just as Polanski prematurely
tests his own wings, many others faced life alone without
the protection of parents, in this case Oliver Twist (Barney
Clark). In situations such as these, children are extremely
susceptible to the actions of others, which often have life
long consequences for the children. Nonetheless, on rare occasions
a few sunflower children emerge with strong enough character
to resist the corrupting evils. In this case, Oliver’s innocence
helps protect his virtue, which the audience learns more about
as the film unfolds. However, the film presents another interesting
notion, how does the orphan upbringing affect the child once
they have entered adulthood? ***
In the opening, it is evident that
the obese gentlemen that runs the orphanage exploits the young
children to pad his own fat and wallet while the children
find themselves dreamless in hunger. The worst thing with
these men is that they have the law and religion on their
side, but it is to be expected, as these men seem to be the
ones that influence the moral code in their favor. It is much
like a despotic micro society. Later, Fagin (Ben Kingsley)
tries to deceive Oliver that his trade, theft, is an honorable
trade. Yet, one could not deny that Fagin’s assistance is
far healthier than the legal oppression of the children that
the orphanage poses on the children. With Fagin, the children
learn how to stand on their own legs, but do so without consideration
of others. Then there is the vicious Bill Sykes (Jamie Foreman)
who uses children as tools for personal gain without regard
to their safety or well-being. These three steps, from the
orphanage to Sykes, provides an intriguing notion of how many
children are fostered when they seek the streets and what
happens to them when love and affection is not nurtured for
them. ***
Polanski also portrays Dickens’
version the judicial system where the judge throws judgment
upon people without consideration of humanity, compassion,
and fairness. The film illustrates society’s callous machinery
that affects the lives of children and the future of a nation.
Polanski goes so far to provide the notion that the innocence
of children is what the society should be embracing, as it
does not hate or cause bedlam. Oliver’s innocence turns out
to be a source of goodness, which society tends to ridicule
due to its naďve perspective of the world. However, it also
raises the idea that what one does not know, one could not
do. This emerges strongly in the scene where Artful Dodger
(Harry Eden) and the thuggish kids point out Oliver’s “green”
character. ***
All of the characters in Oliver
Twist have all once been innocent children including the rich
men at the orphanage, Fagin, and Sykes. Along these men’s
upbringing, they have changed their innocence to rough and
uncaring characters in order to survive, or make life better
for themselves. Some has been more fortunate and learned how
to share and love such as Mr. Brownlow (Edward Hardwicke)
whose kindness does not know limits, as the audience learns
in the film. Unfortunately, the audience never learns what
happens to Oliver when he grows old, but most likely, something
good happened to him. However, the audience has the fortune
to view Polanski as an adult, and the events through his life.
Some of his choices have not been exemplary, and the ending
maybe tosses some light on how Polanski feels himself. Thus,
Polanski’s film presents an intriguing cinematic perspective
on Oliver Twist with a strong personal touch where Polanski
exorcises his own demons from his past. *** ---
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