LITTLE DORRIT
A film review by Ben Hoffman
Copyright 1994 Ben Hoffman
Has anyone else seen this wonderful film?
The story is divided in two parts, each of about three hours.
Part One is entitled NOBODY'S FAULT, referring to the general feeling among the rich in Dickens' day that no one was to blame for the miserable conditions that existed among the less fortunate. Everyone, it appears, passed the buck, while child labor, homelessness, illness, and hunger engulfed the country. Bureaucracy was rife. One could spend forever trying to get a patent, shuffling from one bureaucrat to another. But it's nobody's fault.
The cast reads like a who's who of England's finest actors, with Alec Guinness superb as the ex-wealthy patriarch of his family as he keeps up his standards while in debtors' prison. Derek Jacobi is equally wonderful as the man who tries to help Little Dorrit by getting her brother and father out of the prison, the same debtors prison where she was born and lived for 20 years. Little Dorrit, as an adult, is played by Sarah Pickering.
Part Two, entitled LITTLE DORRIT'S STORY, covers her birth in prison, the death of her mother, how she learns to read and write and sew and cook and take care of her "royal" father. At times it covers parts of what we have seen in NOBODY'S FAULT but here it is shown from her perspective.
George Bernard Shaw claimed Dickens' story was more seditious than DAS KAPITAL because of what it revealed of society. Although the film showed the poverty and showed people sleeping under wagons in the street, it did not dwell on it. On the other hand it showed that there were kind and generous people in debtors prison who would spend their entire lives there unless some miracle caused their debts to be paid.
Throughout the six hours, Christine Edzard's adaptation for the screen, and direction, never falters; the interest and excitement are sustained. The acting is flawless, with many Dickensian characters peppered along the way. In addition, the sets and costumes, as well as the extras employed as background, are wonderfully authentic. This belongs on a list of best films ever made.
4 big bytes. 4 Bytes = Absolutely must see. 3 Bytes = Too good to be missed. 2 Bytes = So so. 1 Byte = Save your money.
Ben Hoffman
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