
Great Expectations
DVD - 2012



Opinion
From the critics

Community Activity
Quotes
Add a QuoteMrs. Joe (after smacking her daydreaming brother Pip in the head): "My food not good enough for ya?!?" Joe Gargery: "It's Christmas, Misses!" Uncle Pumblechook: "If you can't beat a boy at Christmas, when can you beat 'im?"
Miss Havisham (to Pip, of a butterfly collection): "Look closer, if you wish... My brother's collection. He went to the furthest reaches of the Earth in his quest for the purest specimen of beauty. And when he found it, he stuck a pin through its heart... He's dead now. Cholera. In the tropics. Struck down in his relentless pursuit of beauty. Perhaps it was beauty's revenge, to stop his heart, when he had stopped so many others."
Miss Havisham (to young Estella, in her abandoned unused wedding cake room): "...You have not learned to control your passions. You are too unruly. Has this taught you nothing? We will begin again. And this time, you will learn. ...What is beauty?" Young Estella: "The destroyer." Miss Havisham: "What is happiness?" Young Estella: "Deception." Miss Havisham: "...What is love?" Young Estella: "Death."

Comment
Add a CommentDreadful....If you loved the book and have fond memories of the wonderful production staring John Mills, Alec Guiness and an enchanting Jean Simmons as the young Estella you'll be sadly disappointed. Even David Suchet couldn't redeem it for me.
Outstanding. Lots of additional complications to the original, making it even better, dare I say it. Acting, sets, writing. All just wonderful. Fabulous.
Been a very long time since I've the book, don't remember some of the scenes in the DVD. Good DVD, with the usual Dickens characters. Ms. Havisham's life long desire to destroy all things beautiful and happy was portrayed beautifully by Gillian Anderson (yes, Scully from the X-Files. She was raised in England, so has a good British accent!) I didn't care for the actress playing Estella - who is supposed to be beyond beautiful. The actor playing adult Pip was prettier! Several other comments disliked Estella--you're supposed to! As she says, "I have no heart." Ms. Havisham raised her to be heartless. That was her personal revenge for being dumped on her wedding day. Of course, that destroyed her and she made it her mission to destroy others. Can Pip overcome the beautiful hatred? If you have never read the book and want to see a dramatized version, this DVD is a good start. Better yet, read the book!
While the filming and atmosphere are excellent, the film departs from the book in many details, some small, but others quite significant. The portrayal of Mr. Jaggers and the young Pip are excellent, the elder Pip less successful, especially since the two do not "match" very well. The life at the forge is greatly reduced in scope, especially as regards the role of Joe Gargery. The finale at "Satis House" is significantly altered. While the film "works" well, the Dickensian character of the novel has been appreciably diluted, the producer evidently believing that he could improve on Dickens' masterpiece.
I've been meaning to read this book forever so finally just borrowed the DVD to see if it was worth it. Loved it! Found Miss Havisham to be a little creepy and felt so sorry for Magwitch. I agree that Estella was very cold - don't know what Pip saw in her. Will definitely be reading the book soon now that I've been inspired by the DVD. .
The three-part production from BBC followed the general plot, taking shortcuts where needed, but of course could not capture all the characters in the book. What I thought was missing was the razor wit of the book. Overall pretty good, but I found it somewhat flat.
I liked the movie but I felt exactly as another comment. I really didn't like Estella, she's supposed to be the most beautiful girl ever that she'll even make you cry, but I didn't feel this way about the actress used in this adaptation.
I was totally engrossed in this modern BBC/Masterpiece take on Dickens' piece. Purists have some unattainable vision of what they feel the classics should live up to, and I pity them, for they will never be satisfied. Gillian Anderson was outstanding as the spooky misandristic lovelorn Miss Havisham, who should've been more careful what she wished for; Ray Winstone as Abel Magwitch, the gruff convict so impressed by a child's simple kindness... everyone in the cast (agreed that the actress playing Estella was snotty and deadpan, undoubtedly as she was directed to be). The Victorian trappings, the lighting, the score -- I wholeheartedly enjoyed this production. FIVE STARS.
As I don't remember the book anymore I cannot say if this adaption is truthful to the book. But as a made-for-TV, 3-part film totalling some 3 hours it was enjoyable to watch. Young Pip was better portrayed than his grown-up version in my opinion.
An interesting and very non-traditional interpretation of the book. Very different from other filmings.