OLIVER! the film, the stage musical, the upcoming film

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:17pm

1) I just watched the Academy Award winner for Best Picture: 'Oliver' for the first time in at least a decade, so I didn't remember ANY of it. A very brief review:

a) the actors are FANTASTIC! Each and every one! Especially the kid who played Artful Dodger and the guy who played Fagan. OUTSTANDING! Kids just don't act this well nowadays.

b) I enjoyed how dark the film was. Great story.

c) I thought the score was VERY BEAUTIFUL. However it is terribly dated with the story. I couldn't see today's audiences liking it.

2) Is the film the same as the stage production? Which came first? How is the stage production different?

3) I'm very excited for the upcoming Roman Polankski film OLIVER TWIST. I saw a picture from the film today - VERY dark. I predict Best Picture and Best Directing nods.

[StickToPriest]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:22pm

The film fixes the problems that are in the stage version.
The score has always been first-rate, but the book has it's problems, both in flow and in general neatness.
The order of the show is somewhat choppy and some of the dialogue is forced.
But the stage show is still terriffic, despite some flaws.

The movie managed to fix virtually all of the problems, including making the dialogue more real. The major problem with the original book was that the song 'Oom-pah-pah' had no real purpose but to open Act II. It served no dramatic purpose. The film fixes this by making the song into a distraction Nancy cooks up to keep Bill's attention.

Unfortunately, the film cuts three great songs, 'I Shall Scream' sung by Bumble and Widow Corney, 'That's Your Funeral,' sung by the Sowerberrys and 'My Name' sung by Sykes.
However, a lot of people dislike 'That's Your Funeral' b/c it kind of breaks the 4th wall but its still a good song.

Both are great, but the film version is nearly flawless.

"the guy who played Fagan."
That would be Ron Moody.

Updated On: 6/29/05 at 03:22 PM

[JohnPopa]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:25pm

'Oliver' won Best Picture the year '2001: A Space Odyssey' was released.

There is no God.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:29pm

Then CLEARLY, "Oliver" rightfully won.

Priest: "My Name" a great song? I think it's wretched.

[StickToPriest]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:30pm

Eh. Fine. It's an okay song.

I've seen productions where it works marvelously and productions where it completely falls flat.
The key is for the actor playing Sykes to underplay it.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:31pm

Jack Wild (Dodger) and Rob Moody (Fagin) are starring together in an upcoming film: 'Moussaka & Chips', which is in post-production. It might be an indie film.

Coindidence they're in a film together?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0451130/

[roquat]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:33pm

I heartily agree. Even diehard techno-film geeks have trouble staying awake through "2001" these days, while "Oliver" will always enchant. I agree that the film improves on and transforms the stage musical, and that the three songs jettisoned were highly expendable. "That's My Funeral" came about because the original actor cast as Mr. Sowerberry was Barry Humphries (known today as Dame Edna) and he was so funny in rehearsal the director thought he had to give him a song. Without the original Humphries delivery, the song is quite an ordeal.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:41pm

I never liked Shani Wallis as Nancy. She seemed too clean and pretty to be Nancy.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 3:45pm

http://www.olivertwist-lefilm.com/site.htm

A trailer for the upcoming film (non-musical).

Which character is Mr. Sowerberry?

[robbiej]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:06pm

Though she is a little too clean, I absolutely adore Wallis in this film. Her singing is spectacular, her acting is sublime. In a marvelous film, she's my favorite thing about it.

[Mythus]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:15pm

Mr. Sowerberry is the owner (co-owner?) of a funeral parlor. He's the one who buys Oliver from Mr. Bumble.

I just finished a production of Oliver, and I've yet to see the movie. I should.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:20pm

Ah, I see. Sowerberry is the one who insults his mother, which is why Oliver runs away.

[Mythus]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:35pm

No, Noah Claypole insults Oliver's mother. In the stage version, anyway. Noah works for the Sowerberrys, I think. He's also more than friends with Charlotte, who works for the Sowerberrys.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:39pm

I loved this movie when I was younger, I had the video of it and used to watch it almost every day after school.

Is the upcoming movie a remake of the musical, or is it based on the book?

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:43pm

See above:

"A trailer for the upcoming film (non-musical)."

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:45pm

WOW... looks very cool

[Unknown User]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:50pm

It's probably a little confusing since you posted "Oliver! the upcoming film", and the title is Oliver Twist.

[cturtle]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 4:51pm

FUN FACT:

JACK WILD and MARK LESTER (artful dodger and oliver in the musical film) also appeared together in 1971's MELODY (british title - MELODY FAIR). it's a charming movie and unfortunately not released on DVD great music by THE BEE GEES and CROSBY STILLS NASH & YOUNG.

Updated On: 6/29/05 at 04:51 PM

[Beergoggles]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 5:04pm

I love Shani as Nancy. Really gives As Long As He Needs Me the acting chops it needs and gets the message across. The stage show is really good and i prefer the wording of Nancys death scene. I remember reading somewhere that in the recent(ish) London revival that when Nancy is killed she fell behind a bush or something and Sikes hit the stage with his "jimmy". As they had uplighted behind the bush the shadows looked like he was hitting the body. I think that's brilliant.

The film is really good but they changed the ending. In the show Fagin is left alone at the end to contemplate his future and he realises there really isn't one for him. It's quite sad really!

[kec]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 5:10pm

I had SUCH a crush on Mark Lester when I was a kid... Nowadays, I think he's a doctor or something!

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/29/05 at 5:19pm

Ah, sorry CapnHook, I missed that post, I was trying to figure it out from the just info in the first post.

A few years ago they had this article in People Magazine where they went back and found a bunch of kid stars from movie musicals and Mark Lester was one of them. I just remember that he said that he took the part just because he got to miss school. They also interviewed all the kids from The Sound of Music as well.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 6/30/05 at 12:17am

I remember reading somewhere that in the recent(ish) London revival that when Nancy is killed she fell behind a bush or something and Sikes hit the stage with his "jimmy".

Yes, but not a bush. In the 1996 London Palladium production directed by Sam Mendes, Nancy encounters Sikes on a bridge. she falls behind a bridge pillar set-piece, and Sikes pounds her repeatedly to death with his "jimmy" (but really just hitting the stage floor). I remember watching it as a teenager, and it was quite disturbing and gruesome.

Incidently, this Cameron Mackintosh-produced, Mendes-directed production had a North American premiere in Toronto, and was intended to make its way to Broadway. But the cost of paying all those boy actors adult equity fees proved too expensive, so it never made the Great White Way. Too bad, because it was really spectacular (and spawned the best OLIVER cast recording, by far).