The 1968 musical "Oliver!" and its cheerful punctuation notwithstanding, Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist" is a dark, violent
story, a working-class nightmare begging for a happy ending that it only barely gets. Roman Polanski's version doesn't shy away from the text's alarming elements. They are instead put to good use, adding shadow and texture to the lively, plot-driven story that is still, after almost 200 years, pretty enjoyable. Oliver is played by Barney Clark, a small, angelic-faced boy who sheds tears more often than he smiles, a choice that seems to indicate Polanski's acceptance of the story's sadness. A kindly gentleman (Edward Hardwicke) sees goodness and innocence in the orphan boy, and young Clark matches that description. He has a face and voice that command sympathy, and his few positive interactions with adults make us yearn for his happiness as much as he does. Oliver starts life in an orphanage, as you know, then goes to a workhouse, then to a stint of servitude in a funeral parlor, and finally into the alleys of London to live on his own. There he meets the Artful Dodger (Harry Eden), a street-wise urchin highly skilled in the arts of shoplifting and pocket-picking. He takes Oliver back to his gang of boys and their leader, the grizzled, elderly Fagin (Ben Kingsley).
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