Great Expectations

Part of our project is to read the book 'Great Expectations' so we have an understanding about the plot and characters. I have never read this book before so I was very interested to start reading it and it has made me excited for this project!

Great Expectations Book (1992)

'Considered by many to be Dickens' finest novel, Great Expectations traces the growth of the books narrator, the orphan Philip Pirrip (Pip), from a boy of shallow dreams to a man with depth of character. From its famous dramatic opening on the bleak Kentish marshes, the story abounds with some of Dickens' most memorable characters. Among them are the kindly blacksmith Joe Gargery, the mysterious convict Abel Magwitch, the eccentric Miss Havisham and her beautiful ward Estella, Pip's good-hearted room-mate Herbert Pocket and the pompous Pumblechook. As Pip unravels the truth behind his own 'great expectations' in his quest to become a gentleman, the mysteries of the past and the convolutions of fate through a series of thrilling adventures serve to steer him towards maturity and his most important discovery of all - the truth about himself.'

-synopsis from the book-

My review

I enjoy reading but I do find it quite easy to lose interest if I can't get in to the book, which is why I tend to prefer watching films as it is easier to understand what is going on as you can see it. I found it very hard to read this book as it is such a different style of writing to what I would normally read. Obviously films are based on books so they can be slightly different or have a complete twist, but generally they are very similar so I much preferred watching the film adaptations! Some of the words were quite hard to understand and I had to keep looking up what some words meant to help me understand. 

Great Expectations (TV Mini Series 2011) 

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Director - Brian Kirk

Abel Magwitch - Ray Winstone

Miss Havisham - Gillian Anderson

Jaggers - David Suchet

Pip - Douglas Booth

Young Pip - Oscar Kennedy

Joe Gargery - Shaun Dooley

Mrs Joe - Claire Rushbrook

Pumblechook - Mark Addy

Compeyson - Paul Rhys

Sergeant - Charlie Creed-Miles

Young Estella - Izzy Meikle-Small

Young Herbert - Eros Vlahos

Estella - Vanessa Kirby

Information from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b018wmm1

My review

I come across this 3 part mini-series on Netflix and I just had to watch it! There are so many adaptations, this one is very similar to the book which helped me to understand it when I went back over to read it. I thought the characters were really good, especially Abel Magwitch and Miss Havisham! They fitted each characters description perfectly and I enjoyed watching them. Out of all the film adaptations I have watched, I would say this one is my favourite because I loved the way it was produced, everything about it was close to how I imagined it to be, including some of the characters. In this version, Miss Havisham sets herself on fire by igniting letters and then dropping them on her dress, it is almost like she enjoyed the pain. 

Great Expectations (1998)

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Director - Alfonso Cuaron 

Finnegan Bell - Ethan Hawke

Estella - Gwyneth Paltrow

Walter Plane - Hank Azaria

Joe - Chris Cooper

Ms. Dismoor - Anne Bancroft

Prisoner/Lustig - Robert De Niro

Jerry Rango - Josh Mostel

Maggie - Kim Dickens

Erica Thrall - Nell Campbell

Young Finnegan - Jeremy James Kissner

Young Estella - Raquel Beaudene

Information from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119223/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

My review

This was the second version I watched and it is completely different! Firstly it is set in New York and they have changed some of the characters names! Pip now being called Finn and Miss Havisham being renamed to Nora Dinsmoor! Rather than Pip moving to London to become a gentleman. Finn loves art and his benefactor buys all of the paintings in his gallery to make him rich. Although there are some different factors, the storyline is still the same and you can understand what is going on, its just a more contemporary version. 

Great Expectations (2012)

Image from: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91R-xpa%2BAvL._SL1500_.jpg 

Director - Mike Newell

Young Pip - Toby Irvine

Magwitch - Ralph Fiennes

Joe Gargery - Jason Flemyng

Mrs. Joe - Sally Hawkins

Compeyson - William Ellis

Mr. Pumblechook - David Walliams

Mr Hubble - Alan Rushton

Mrs Hubble - Bernice Stegers

Mr Wopsle - Tim Freeman

Mrs Wopsle - Sheila Simpson

Sergeant - Ralph Ineson

Young Estella - Helena Barlow

Cousin Raymond - Richard James

Mrs Raymond - Roberta Burton

Miss Havisham - Helena Bonham Carter

Young Biddy - Bebe Cave

Sarah Pocket - Pooky Quesnel

Camilla Pocket - Kate Lock

Jaggers - Robbie Coltrane

Young Herbert - Charlie Callaghan 

Pip - Jeremy Irvine

Biddy - Jessie Cave

Information from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1836808/fullcredits?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm

My Review

In my opinion, this film is very dark and even quite scary. It isn't my favourite version of Great Expectations, although Helena Bonham Carter played Miss Havisham very well. It just wasn't really what I expected it to be, the characters aren't really what I pictured in my head and I was a bit disappointed as I had high expectations after watching the 2011 TV mini series. It is still very similar to the book which I like, it annoys me when directors change the film so much that it is completely different to the original book! Pip is in love with Estella but she is mean to him and claims she has no heart. Towards the end of the film, Miss Havisham realises that she has hurt Pip and asks for his forgiveness. In this version, Miss Havisham accidently gets caught on fire and burns to death, Pip rushes back to save her but its too late, she is severely burnt and dies from her injuries. Estella comes back to find Pip as she wanted to see “her only friend”. I believe now she is free of Miss Havisham, she has changed, becoming less cold and heartless, and she misses Pip. I am quite upset at the reunion of Pip and Estella at the end of the film, they weren't as intimate as I thought, the last thing we see is them holding hands, it would have been the perfect ending to the story if it was a bit more romantic.