plutus1947 The star of this drama mini series for me has to be Marc Warren.Although the main stars in this series were Robert Lindsay, Julie Walters, Michael Kitchen and David Ross, Marc Warren was unsurpassed in his portrayal of Monks.I would assume virtually all know the story of the poor Oliver Twist and they will be aware of the storyline.ITV however did more in this presentation. They actually started their story from before Oliver was born and the circumstances behind his mother becoming pregnant and her ultimate death.Although I believe the BBC is the worlds best at producing drama, especially period drama I feel the ITV presentation was as good as, indeed better than some of the BBC's offerings.The whole cast was skilfully put together and the writing and direction was flawless. Of course Messrs Walters Kitchen, Lindsay and Ross were their usual perfect selves.As I said at the beginning of my appraisal of Oliver Twist, Marc Warren was superlative in his role as Monks. I first saw Warren in an episode of Frost and thought then that this actor was destined for great things. I have since seen him in other dramas and my opinion has not changed. Neither can I wait to see him in Mutual Friends.POSSIBLE SPOILER.How great an actor he is came to the fore when he portrayed Monks in Oliver Twist. His role was by far the most difficult and demanding. The contortions of his face which he had to master, the way he had to use his eyes and the epileptic seizures he had to perform must have been extremely difficult but he performed these actions flawlessly.POSSIBLE SPOILER ENDS.Warren must have been completely drained after his filming sessions, but he should feel proud and delighted with the result. I cannot understand why he was never nominated for an award for his role.Marc, for what its worth, you have my nomination.I know this version of Oliver Twist was made in 1999 but I have only just seen it and to those who love Dickens but have not seen this version of Oliver Twist I urge you to do so as I feel you will not be disappointed.

Ciaran_haggerty The Oliver re-make cycle can stop now that we have this amazing version. I saw it when it first played on Itv back in 1999. After seeing the downfall that was Oliver Twist (2005) I made it my business to find this version so i was able to see an amazing, moving and thrilling story.This four part series is directed beautifully and magically enough it includes something that the Roman Polanski version forgot Emotion! The story of Oliver Twist runs on emotion and great characters! Through-out this version the audience are invited to follow and believe the story about the poor boy that asked for more. With great direction and performances (Julie Walters, Robert Lindsay, David Ross, Andy Serkis and Sam Smith as Oliver) along side stunning lighting and costume this mini series will provide high entertainment. If you were unimpressed by the Polanski version I highly recommend this one!

terraplane This production suffers from two problems. The locations in Prague look exactly like..........locations in Prague. There are plenty of places in London and even Paris that have the right Victorian look. But Prague is cheaper. Secondly, if you making a mini series then there is enough screen time to really get into the detail of Dickens' book. So why get in scriptwriters that seem to think they are better writers than Dickens and allow them to change significant parts of the story, leave out whole chapters of perfectly valid storyline and finally change the whole Bill Sikes death scene? On the whole the acting was very good, Julie Walters and Robert Lindsay deserve a special mention.But ultimately this was very disappointing.

martinu-2 This is a truly inspired version of the classic Dickens story.Alan Bleasdale has devised an explanation of the events which lead up to Oliver's mother arriving at the workhouse, and fleshes out minor characters such as Monks and Mrs Leeford.Some characters stand out:Fagin is mesmerising when played as part-villain and part-magician: the final scenes in the condemned cell are powerful as well as surprisingly moving, even if some of Robert Lindsay's nervous tics are rather too reminiscent of his portrayal of Michael Murray in GBH!Michael Kitchen makes a perfect Mr Brownlow: his rather pompous Oxford-English accent is exactly as I imagined Mr Brownlow having read the novel.Andy Serkis is superbly cast as Bill Sikes - I cannot imagine a more terrifying and brutal portrayal.Marc Warren's portrayal of Monks makes this rather shadowy character come alive in a way that Dickens' description never could, even if the double-act between the domineering Mrs Leeford and the inept and epileptic Monks is comical and farcical at times.A few minor details have been altered: the "crib at Chertsey", owned by Mrs Maylie and her daughter Rose, becomes Mr Brownlow's country residence, and Rose Maylie becomes Rose Fleming, Oliver Twist's aunt. However (in my opinion) these changes serve to bring together several unrelated threads of the novel and actually improve the story.