Little Dorrit [1987] [DVD]

I own this DVD and also the Andrew Davies adaptation for the BBC and both are wonderful in their own ways. The Christine Edzard film is only marred by the poor sound transfer and the fact that it is studio bound for it's entire length. A few outdoor location scenes would have been nice. The positives far outweigh the negatives though and I would encourage any Dickens fan to get hold of a copy of this DVD. Adapting any novel for film or TV presents problems with what to include or leave out and Little Dorrit is one of Dickens longer efforts so it is impossible to include everything. Miss Wade and Tattycorum are left out of this production as is Rigaud but the film does not suffer as a result. Indeed it is better to omit some characters than include them and then twist the plot in order to imply elements entirely missing from the novel, as Andrew Davies does by seemingly hinting at a lesbian relationship between the two female characters already mentioned. Some of the reviewers of this DVD and the BBC adaptation freely admit they have not read the novel. I suspect this may be one reason why Sarah Pickering gets some poor reviews. In the book Amy Dorrit is a quiet, unassuming but honest and loyal daughter to her father and a never-ending support to her feckless and irresponsible siblings. She is the quiet heart of the book and Sarah Pickering brings this off to perfection in a role with no scope for over-acting or histrionics. The role is not made for Bafta or Oscar material. Why she has made no other films, I don't know, but there is no fault in this portrayal. The rest of the cast are exemplary also and this is one of the most satisfying Dickens adaptations I have seen, and I have seen most of them. I would put it on a par with the classic David Lean film of Great Expectations. I can not praise it more highly than that.

An interpretation for the dedicated Dickensian. This film of the novel is more than true to the book. It not only faithfully follows the plot(although one subplot is omitted altogether)and characterisation of Dickens, but looks at the story through the eyes of both priciple characters. The themes are curiously current. The pace and length of the film are a its only weakness. But watch it as Dickens published it, in episode, it is worth the watching.

Christine Edzard's films (note the plural) of "Little Dorrit" make up perhaps the greatest and most comprehensive adaptation of Dickens ever produced for the big screen. I use the plural because the work comes in the form of two 3-hour films called "Nobody's Fault" and "Little Dorrit's Story". To get the best out of them, both must be viewed and in that order. The film is studded with great names - Derek Jacobi, Alec Guinness, Cyril Cusack, Joan Greenwood (in her last film appearance) and a host of mostly British acting talent including Robert Morley, Michael Elphick, Bill Fraser and Eleanor Bron, all in little more than bit parts. But for me, the star of the show has to be Sarah Pickering, the unknown actress entrusted with the title role. I have tried, without success, to find just one other film in which she appeared. The film is set mostly in the notorious Marshalsea debtors prison in Borough, south London, where Dickens' own father was once incarcerated. A debtors prison is a perfect example of what Joseph Heller would later dub "catch 22". A person imprisoned for debt was denied the right to work, hence had no means of earning the money to pay off the debt(s) of which he/she was accused. The film is essentially a story of the love between Arthur Clennam, a man in his 40s (Jacobi) and Amy Dorrit, usually called Little Dorrit, a young woman of 22 though, according to Dickens, she looked half that age (Pickering). It is set in the period preceding the Reform Act of 1855, and indeed, the novel contributed in no small way to the debate leading up to that piece of legislation. It is a very complex plot (this is, after all, based on a Dickens novel) but one of the devices used is a government department called the Circumlocution Office, in which Dickens and the film makers parody bureaucratic processes by taking them to extremes. Dickens did not go as far as Kafka, who saw authority as actively plotting the destruction of its victims, but he savagely attacks the processes and procedures whereby government is carried out and the means whereby people found their way into high office. At that time, progress through a civil service career was mostly through family connections, a process that enabled illiterates to attain high office. Edzard's 1987/89 adaptation of the novel is lovingly crafted and filmed exclusively on sets created for the purpose, i.e. there was no location shooting. The background music is adapted from the work of Dickens' Italian contemporary Guiseppe Verdi. This is not for everyone, but for those who like Dickens and like to see attempts to be true to his work it is an absolute must. Only now (2008) has it appeared on DVD, remastered from the negatives by the original production company. Guinness, Greenwood and Cusack are, sadly, no longer with us, but this serves as a wonderful reminder of the quality of their work

Absolutely magnificent. Everything about this production is superb. The quality of the print is excellent. The atmosphere of London and the Continent at the time is spellbinding. The performances of the amazing actors impeccable and absorbing. The screenwriter portrays Dickens with respect and imagination. The direction absolutely spot on! Love it. Perhaps it is even a masterpiece.

I love this version more than the new one which I like as well. The cast is extraordinary and it is filmed through the eyes of Little Dorrit and then through the eyes of Mr. Clenam. I believe Dickens was the greatest writer of all time. His characters are rich and complex and his stories are full of the color of the times he lived in. This is a particularly good production. It is only available as Region 2 so I bought a multi-regional DVD player so I could watch it. I have since bought many other Region 2 DVDs that I have been wanting. Don't hesitate to get this series and the player. I bought the player on Amazon and it was very reasonably priced and works great for all my DVDs. I just connected it to my HDMI on the TV, very easy.

I was somewhat disappointed with this movie. The sound quality is poor so I couldn't hear parts of it. It is very slow-moving, too. I suppose if I hadn't been familiar with the newer version this one may have seemed better, but I'm almost sorry I ordered this one except I had been curious about it. My curiosity being satisfied I will probably not watch it again.

One of the most satisfying dramatic adaptations of a Dickens novel I've ever seen. Alec Guiness's performance as William Dorrit, imprisoned for debt for over a quarter century, was Oscar-nominated (and probably deserved to win), as was the script by director Christine Edzard. One of the particular treats of the film is the set design. It is simply a pleasure to look at this film. The film (actually two films) takes an unusual approach to the story. Rather than simply adapt the novel straightforwardly, the two films tell the same story twice, the first from the point of view of the hero, William Clennam (Derek Jacobi), and the second from the point of view of the heroine, Amy Dorrit, the daughter of William, and the titular "Little Dorrit" (Sarah Pickering in what is, as far as I can tell, her only screen role). Since there are many scenes in which only one of the characters are present, each film contains considerable material that is not in the other, and the shared material is seen from two different perspectives. However, as a consequence of, to a degree, telling the same story twice, large parts of the novel, and, despite the huge cast, many important characters, are eliminated from the screenplay. Characters like Tattycoram and Miss Wade get short shrift, and the ruthless criminal Rigaud (aka Blandois and Lagnier) is completely absent. While the structure of the film(s) is interesting, it probably would have been better to adapt the first half of the book in the first film and the second half of the book in the second film in order to make a more complete narrative.

I did not, sadly, look at other reviews of purchasers from this seller, before making my purchase. There are multiple other complaints about poor packaging, and the items having arrived damaged. My DVD was packed in an unprotected plastic envelope, and the case was badly crushed in transit. However, the seller replied immediately, when contacted, and offered to either accept a return, or give me a partial refund, to cover the cost of my needing to purchase a new case. The DVDs themselves were in perfect order, so I accepted the refund of the cost of a new case. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to review the actual film itself in this blurb, but I had already seen the movie before purchasing, and knew I loved it. It's a really great version, even better than the more recent one (in my opinion). You just have to have a region-free DVD player, as it appears all available DVDs are Region 2.