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

I find it hard to rate this production because it is so unusual and daring. That is to say, some things have to be forgiven to give it five stars. The story is told in two overlapping films and their cumulative effect makes the viewing experience quite out of the ordinary. It really works. The big test for most reviewers seems to be the performance of Sarah Pickering as Little Dorrit. Surrounded by a cast drippng with big name actors, she was on a hiding to nothing. (Among them, Derek Jacobi, Alec Guiness and Joan Greenwood give performances that must rank among their finest on screen.) Added to that, she had to play one of the most difficult of all Dickins' characters - difficult because of the fine line to be trod this side of sentimentality; difficult because, in literally diminishing the figure of the character, Dickens requires us to attend so much more closely to comprehend her moral and personal powers. I think Pickering is very fine in this role. In the second film - told from her perspective - she is able to move directly towards the audience (in the first part she is occluded - deliberately, but riskily, in dramatic terms). The things I feel that have to be forgiven about the production are: some bad overdubbing of dialogue and clumsy staging in the first film; some erratic sound mixing; a slightly mechanical style of directing, again especially in the first film; a tendency to rely too much on the verbal content of the thing to carry off a scene or a transition, when a keener sense of pacing, change of angle, tighter editing, and other cinemagraphic devices would have assisted the audience by shaping the story. But there are great performances and fine sequences too. If I am able to say just one thing about this "Little Dorrit" it is to commend the director and the actor for the approach they have taken to the role of the daughter of the Marshalsea herself.

The actors (Derk Jacobi, Alec Guiness) are remarkable and Joan Greenwood, as the formidable old Mrs Clennam, is unforgettable. Dickens'lovers will enjoy a very dickensian ambiance; but the idea of two parts, one as Arthur's story and the other as Amy's, though quite interesting, is not a success: the spectator gets even a little bored while viewing the second episode because too many scenes have been seen in the first one. However, once again, it is a very enjoyable film,following the novel, although some parts (Mrs Mead, miss Wade, Tattycoram) have been omitted, which is hardly avoidable in an adaptation from such a huge novel.

LITTLE DORRIT, being a splendid and most fine adaptation, if you please, of the celebrated and exquisite novel penned by that most esteemed personage, the very great Mr Charles Dickens esquire, wherein lies, may I say, a most affectionate, captivating and detailed account of diverse characters, in short, namely: the gentlemanly and proud Mr William Dorrit, who, many years ago, chanced upon hard times and who has, these past years, abandoned all hope of ever rising beyond his squalid existence; his ever so petite, yet diligent daughter, Miss Amy Dorrit, sadly born into poverty, and whose heart, we shall learn in due course, lies elsewhere; the distinguished gentleman, the humble Mr Arthur Clennam, recently returned from ventures overseas and now seeking to engage himself in a suitable business enterprise, AND a multitude of relatives and acquaintances, and their interrelated convoluted machinations, in what I may describe as, in its grand entirety, begging your indulgence: A most glorious Dickensian period recreation for your delight and delectation, unfolding at, indeed, a most leisurely pace, requiring much attendance and comprehension, resulting in, no less than splendid pleasure and satisfaction beyond all expectations! If I may be so bold, if you please, I earnestly beseech you, if indeed you are of a certain age and disposition, to indulge yourself whole heartedly in this gargantuan undertaking, where your attentiveness will be richly rewarded with the multitude of delights, both visual and verbal, that lie within its vast narrative, encompassing as it does in great abundance: mystery, intrigue, drama, tears and joy, all finely woven together to gladden the heart and stir the emotions. With sincere thanks to Christine Edzard and company - a most satisfactory accomplishment indeed! KAN

This is an outstanding production and the quality of the media was excellent. None of this should surprise. What did surprise me was the ease and promptness of delivery. I could not find this production available from a U.S. distributor (including Amazon.com). I feared that copyright conflicts might make purchase impossible or that transatlantic delivery would be slow. Not so: arrived here intact in a few days. It is good to know that Amazon.com.uk is available to customers in the U.S.

For me this is the best dramatization of Dickens ever. It doesn’t stick strictly to the novel, but then adaptations of Dickens never do. It has the intense feel of Dickens in a way that no other dramatization I have seen has ever had. It is like vicariously experiencing being there. It is magnificent now on a very large 4K screen. Doesn’t matter that it isn’t a high resolution Blu Ray. You could freeze-frame the film all the way through at be entranced by the images. Images that are like wonderful Victorian paintings. The attention to detail is astonishing, the acting is mostly superb, and I know of no other film that conveys a sense of weather as this one does. Weather is so important to our everyday lives and yet most films almost always ignore it entirely in all ordinary day to day domestic interior scenes. If I could only have 10 films on a desert island, this would be one of them.

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.