Nicholas Nickleby (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
After the death of his father, 19 yr. old country boy, Nicholas Nickleby (Charlie Hunnam) & the rest of his family travel to London for assistance from his dad's older brother, Ralph (Christopher Plummer) in 'Nicholas Nickleby', a Dickens adaptation directed by Douglas McGrath. Why must they seek old Uncle Ralph? Because Nicholas' father left the family penniless, & Ralph has the goods. A notorious tightwad with no concern for his brother's family, Ralph nevertheless shows some humanity to them by securing for Nicholas a position as asst. headmaster at a rural boys' school. There, he would work for one, Wackford Squeers (Jim Broadbent). In the interim, Ralph seeks to use Nicholas' sister, Kate (Romola Garai) as a ploy to influence his investors. Nicholas arrives at the North England school, but soon realizes that his uncle was not as genuine as he initially seemed; as the new job has not only torn apart his family, but proved to be quite awful.
You see, Squeers & his odious wife (Juliet Stevenson) are savage people; getting joy from inflicting mental & physical pain unto the children in his charge. One day, when Squeers is beating a crippled chap named Smike (Billy Elliot's Jamie Bell), Nicholas loses his cool with the headmaster & starts beating him with a cane! Nicholas then leaves, takes Smike with him, & on the road back to London, they meet up with a host of colorful characters (played by Timothy Spall, Tom Courtenay, Nathan Lane, Alan Cumming, Dame Edna, & the like). When word of this gets back to Uncle Ralph that Nicholas fled the school, he becomes enraged. And since Ralph wasn't wild about Nicholas in the 1st place, he decides to take out his anger on poor Kate.
Such is the engaging story of good-natured Nicholas Nickleby; and his quest to protect his family, his girlfriend (well played by Anne Hathaway), & see justice brought upon the cold-hearted Uncle Ralph. Its messages of independence & importance of family will resonate with today's audiences as much as it did 150 yrs. ago. What an intelligent, strong, yet delightful movie this is. I was reeled-in from minute one & was consistently involved throughout. And that's a testament to the interesting characters, beautifully acted by a plethora of stellar thespians. Funny enough, though he's quite good in the central role, I think the weakest link in the film IS Charlie Hunnam. But most of the action/narrative occurs 'around' him; so it all works well. Christopher Plummer is truly fantastic as sinister Uncle Ralph; lending curious dimension to the man behind the scowl. I was also moved by Jamie Bell's pitiable Smike. Who am I kidding? The entire cast is just great.
'Nicholas Nickleby' works for me because it's able to cut down an 800-page book to a 130 minute motion picture; and it does so, apparently, without negating character development or the essence of the plot. Sure, we're not gonna get the full scope of each character or all their interactions, but I feel like I knew these people onscreen, & enjoyed their eventual demise(s) or joy(s). Each character has allies & enemies. That makes them inherently interesting. I enjoyed the story. I enjoyed the mood of the film. I liked its themes. I was entertained. The characters are wonderfully defined. The pacing of the movie (episodic in structure) is solid. And the Victorian lighting, sets & costumes brought a smile to my face, as well. If I had to nitpick the film, I'd say that there are a few dull points. But that's all I can think of. Overall, watching this film is just an extremely fulfilling way to spend an afternoon/evening in the theater, or at home.
You see, Squeers & his odious wife (Juliet Stevenson) are savage people; getting joy from inflicting mental & physical pain unto the children in his charge. One day, when Squeers is beating a crippled chap named Smike (Billy Elliot's Jamie Bell), Nicholas loses his cool with the headmaster & starts beating him with a cane! Nicholas then leaves, takes Smike with him, & on the road back to London, they meet up with a host of colorful characters (played by Timothy Spall, Tom Courtenay, Nathan Lane, Alan Cumming, Dame Edna, & the like). When word of this gets back to Uncle Ralph that Nicholas fled the school, he becomes enraged. And since Ralph wasn't wild about Nicholas in the 1st place, he decides to take out his anger on poor Kate.
Such is the engaging story of good-natured Nicholas Nickleby; and his quest to protect his family, his girlfriend (well played by Anne Hathaway), & see justice brought upon the cold-hearted Uncle Ralph. Its messages of independence & importance of family will resonate with today's audiences as much as it did 150 yrs. ago. What an intelligent, strong, yet delightful movie this is. I was reeled-in from minute one & was consistently involved throughout. And that's a testament to the interesting characters, beautifully acted by a plethora of stellar thespians. Funny enough, though he's quite good in the central role, I think the weakest link in the film IS Charlie Hunnam. But most of the action/narrative occurs 'around' him; so it all works well. Christopher Plummer is truly fantastic as sinister Uncle Ralph; lending curious dimension to the man behind the scowl. I was also moved by Jamie Bell's pitiable Smike. Who am I kidding? The entire cast is just great.
'Nicholas Nickleby' works for me because it's able to cut down an 800-page book to a 130 minute motion picture; and it does so, apparently, without negating character development or the essence of the plot. Sure, we're not gonna get the full scope of each character or all their interactions, but I feel like I knew these people onscreen, & enjoyed their eventual demise(s) or joy(s). Each character has allies & enemies. That makes them inherently interesting. I enjoyed the story. I enjoyed the mood of the film. I liked its themes. I was entertained. The characters are wonderfully defined. The pacing of the movie (episodic in structure) is solid. And the Victorian lighting, sets & costumes brought a smile to my face, as well. If I had to nitpick the film, I'd say that there are a few dull points. But that's all I can think of. Overall, watching this film is just an extremely fulfilling way to spend an afternoon/evening in the theater, or at home.