Oliver Twist

David Lean's second attempt to bring Dickens to the screen is no less detailed in terms of sheer cinematic craft than its predecessor, Great Expectations. Oliver Twist (1948) is a visually lavish spectacle which demonstrates a meticulous sense of planning and foresight. Occasionally, however, Lean's attention to clear visual storytelling, and his skilful composition of each shot, is at the expense of the kind of pictorial characterisation which Dickens revelled in.

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