Oliver Twist
TriStar Pictures | Release Date: September 23, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
65
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 36 Critic Reviews
Positive:
26
Mixed:
9
Negative:
1
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
Altogether remarkable, a near-masterpiece. Read full review
100
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
A grounded and unusually matter-of-fact adaptation. Read full review
90
SalonStephanie Zacharek
This is that rare movie version of a great novel in which watching IS reading. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Polanski's film is visually exact and detailed without being too picturesque. This is not Ye Olde London, but Ye Harrowing London, teeming with life and dispute. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Yet precisely because this is by Roman Polanski, it's irresistible to read his sorrowful and seemingly classical take, from a filmmaker known as much for the schisms in his personal history as for the lurches in his work, as something much more personal and poignant. Read full review
83
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Despite the movie's several shortcomings, it leaves us sated. That's because, unlike Oliver's workhouse, it does give "some more" - more emotional breadth, more hardscrabble farce, and more haunting drama. Read full review
80
The New York TimesDana Stevens
With tact and enthusiasm, Mr. Polanski grabs hold of a great book and rediscovers its true and enduring vitality. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
Dark, dank and violent, filled with terrifying scenes in which exploited children are beaten, shot or starving to death. In other words, it's just as Dickens wrote. Read full review
75
PremiereRyan Devlin
It's worth noting that Oliver Twist will likely be no Harry Potter at the box office, due in no small part to a lack of bombastic special effects and supernatural subplots, yet it's nearly as entertaining, even without the wizardry. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
The movie about literature's luckiest orphan may teem with children, but it is not for them. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
The movie is 23 minutes longer than the Lean version, yet it somehow seems much less evocative of the novel's immense scope and texture. And its Cockney accents are such a strain to understand that as much as a third of the dialogue is indecipherable. Read full review
70
VarietyTodd McCarthy
A respectable literary adaptation but lacks dramatic urgency and intriguing undercurrents. Read full review
70
Village VoiceJessica Winter
Accomplished if lacking in urgency, this Oliver Twist (scripted by Ronald Harwood, who also wrote "The Pianist") showcases Polanski's proven gift for Dickensian caricature. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
Polanski's version, though handsomely realized, is a fairly conventional rendering of the novel that probably won't be counted among his best films. Read full review
70
The New YorkerAnthony Lane
Without Nancy and her demon lover, Polanski's Oliver Twist feels handsome, steady, and respectful; it has that touch of mummification which wins awards. But Dickens had murder in mind--women killed for their kindness, children for lack of food--and he wanted us to howl and hyperventilate. He asked for more. Read full review
70
SlateDavid Edelstein
The most effective counterweight to Polanski's fatalism is young Barney Clark, whose Oliver--although given to few words--is unshakably alive and responsive, even as he's being buffeted violently by forces beyond his control. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Polanski honors the craft of classical storytelling and never flinches from the book's melodramatic extremes in portraying the horrors of poverty. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
And that ultimately may be the problem with the Polanski version: by bringing Oliver forward, you push the drama backward. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve Davis
As in "The Pianist," Polanski is content to allow the film's narrative to evoke the emotions he wishes his audience to experience. Read full review
63
USA TodayMike Clark
The big surprise in Polanski's Oliver is the lack of a discernible personal stamp, especially from such a directorial master of the macabre. Read full review
63
New York PostKyle Smith
Dickens was a sentimentalist, but even his happy endings are more nuanced than Polanski's brutal anti-sentimentalism. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
So what's surprising here isn't Polanski's choice of material but his utter failure to put any distinctive stamp on it. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Filming on locations in Prague and in various Czech locations serving as London and the English countryside, the director delivers Dickens' tale with some style. The style, however, is that of a more cautious artist than Polanski is at his best. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
Turns out to be far more interesting for grown-ups (the movie is probably too long, and too much, for little kids anyway). Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
As an introduction to the story for someone with no previous exposure to Oliver Twist, Polanski's movie is adequate. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The result is an expertly made, very watchable film that's curiously lacking in impact. By Polanski standards that has to be a disappointment. Read full review
More From This Movie

65 Critic Reviews

7.2 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 77 Project Hail Mary
2 75 Send Help
3 73 Hoppers
4 72 The Sheep Detectives
5 68 Crime 101
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL