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Oliver Twist

2005

Roman Polanski

Barney Clark, Ben Kingsley, Harry Eden, Jamie Foreman ...

6.4

20,174

Drama Charles Dickens' classic story of a young orphan boy who gets involved with a gang of boy pickpockets in 19th-century London seems, on the surface, a long way from being children's entertainment. But this can be deceiving.

	Author	Review
United States	Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"Polanski's film is visually exact and detailed without being too picturesque (…) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 4)"	POS
United States	Todd McCarthy Variety	"This handsome film is a respectable literary adaptation but lacks dramatic urgency and intriguing undercurrents"	NEU
United States	A. O. Scott The New York Times	"With tact and enthusiasm, Mr. Polanski grabs hold of a great book and rediscovers its true and enduring vitality."	POS
United States	James Berardinelli ReelViews	"[It] comes across as uninspired and flat. Only two performances - that of Leanne Rowe as Nancy Sikes and Jamie Foreman as Bill Sikes - have energy (…) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"	NEU
United Kingdom	Andy Jacobs BBC	"Polanski's 'Oliver Twist' never feels necessary (...) There is no freshness or visual flair in this drab realisation (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"	NEG
United Kingdom	Adam Smith Radio Times	"There's something just a little too reverent about this well-crafted take on the tale (...) Polanski never channels the rage at the social conditions of the poor that inspired Dickens (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU

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