Oliver Twist (1999)

As I've been working on my Period Drama Index, I usually write a brief review of each film or series. I try to keep each review to within a few sentences, but sometime they stretch into several paragraphs. . . such was the case here. I thought I might as well share it as a proper blog post, rather than let it hide away in my work-in-progress Index pages.

~Oliver Twist 1999~

Michael Kitchen as Mr. Brownlow with Sam Smith as Oliver

In my opinion, there has been no one truly definitive screen version of Oliver Twist, though there are several pretty good ones. The 1999 adaptation, a four-episode, six-hour miniseries, is the longest, most complete adaptation. It expands on the backstory of the novel in a major way. If you've ever been confused by any plot points of the story, this series should clear a lot of things up for you! The first episode - or two, I can't quite remember - deal solely with Oliver's origins, and where and how Monks comes into the picture.

It is a very adventurous adaptation, but in some aspects I felt it missed the mark. The portrayal of the Artful Dodger/Jack Dawkins was off. The backstory part of the series dragged on for too long - 30 minutes or so would have sufficed. And I had mixed feelings about how the characters of Monks and his mother were written. Here, Monks himself is a victim, while his mother is the true villain. It's an interesting interpretation, but I prefer my Monks to be more threatening and ambiguous - that is, after all, the point of his character.

On the other hand, this adaptation has the best, the scariest Bill Sikes ever (played by Andy Serkis, who definitely has a gift for playing creepy Dickensian - oh, and Tolkienesque - villains); and probably the most moving and disturbing murder scene of any Oliver Twist adaptation.

One other point of interest is the proliferation of talented actresses who starred in this series at an early stage in their careers: Isla Fisher as Nancy's friend Bet, 19-year-old Sophia Miles as Oliver's mother, and a 14-year-old Keira Knightley as Rose.

This Oliver Twist is definitely not for little ones, but for older fans of the book, or anyone looking for a good Victorian-era period drama, it is definitely worth a look. Stars Sam Smith, Michael Kitchen, Robert Lindsay, David Ross, Julie Walters, Marc Warren, Lindsay Duncan, Emiliy Woolf, Andy Serkis, Keira Knightley, and Alun Armstrong.

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars. Recommended for teenagers and up, and there are a few uncomfortable scenes that you may want to skip.

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Photos - unfortunately most of these are very small, though there are a couple of bigger ones:

Christy (1994)

~Christy (1994)~

Family-oriented drama that ran on CBS for two seasons, from 1994-1995. Inspired by the classic biographical novel by Catherine Marshall, which was in turn based on the life of Marshall's mother - the real-life "Christy", Leonora.

19-year-old Christy Huddleston feels God is calling her to the mission field. She leaves her comfortable home in Asheville, North Carolina, to work at a mission school deep in the Appalachian mountains. She dreams of doing great things for God, but soon struggles to cope as her sheltered upbringing leaves her utterly unprepared for the poverty and squalor with which she is quickly confronted.

Both the book and the series meant a great deal to me as a younger teen, and I am deeply attached to Cutter Gap and its residents. I sometimes found Kellie Martin slightly irritating as Christy - I liked Christy's character much better in the book. But whilst the book is far better, I can't deny that the series was also something special. There was wonderful chemistry between all the cast, and the show had a great vibe to it. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a good family drama in the mould of Little House on the Prairie or Lark Rise to Candleford, but especially for teenage girls! Fellow Christy fans, FYI, I ship Christy/Neil.

Parents, there are some mature issues dealt with in a few episodes - i.e. the PG rating is warranted. I should also warn potential viewers that the show was canceled after its second series, and so ends on a cliffhanger. If you want to find out what happens afterwards (sort of. . . ), read the book. Stars Kellie Martin, Tyne Daly, Randall Batinkoff, Tess Harper, and Stewart Finlay-McLennan. **** 

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