Good movie but grossly overrated

best movie i've ever seen.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Going back over the years it seems that every generation gets a new version of Great Expectations . We can't seem to get enough of telling of Charles Dickens's coming of age novel. In this version the brothers Toby and James Irvine playing different ages of Philip Pirrup, shortened to Pip our protagonist hero.Pip's an orphan kid brought up by his sister Sally Flemyng and her husband blacksmith Joe Gargery played by Jason Flemyng and a random act of kindness feeding escaped convict Magwitch played by Ralph Fiennes brings him unseen benefits. A change in lifestyle as he now lives like a gentleman. He can also aspire to court the haughty Estella played by Holiday Grainger. As her very strange guardian Miss Havisham has brought her up, she's to reek vengeance on the male of the species.. Helena Bonham-Carter and that's been a great part for character actresses. Left at the altar by the man she loved, Miss Havisham is the last word in warped. I wonder who in real life Charles Dickens took as his model for her.As it goes young Pip has been believing certain things in his life and based his life on false assumptions. In the end he's happy, but he's got quite a reality check in store for him.Another ten to twenty years there will be another version of Great Expectations. We don't seem to tire of the tale.

When you look at the cast list for this film you expect something that maybe won't topple David Lean's version of Dickens' classic novel, but at least will be equal to it.It's even more disappointing then at just how far short this adaptation falls. From some examples of poor casting, to some odd story additions/cuts, this version did not do a lot of me.Even the seemingly perfect casting of Helena Bonham Carter falls short, and that was the main selling point for this version going in. I did like that this version didn't make the same mistake as the 2011 TV series did and cut Biddy though.It's a real shame, because this could and should've been great.

Apart from Jason Flemyng, who's doing a marvelous job, as always, and Ewen Bremner, who is descent as Wemmick, mostly terrible casting choices and poor portray of the characters. Helena Bonham Carter as Miss Havisham? Please...Not to mention the poor, rushed script, which lacks crucial parts of the story (such as the odd man in the pub who gave Pip the two pound notes), It feels like Newell is trying too hard to make of the film to be too many things it's not, and was never meant to be (such as a love story). This movie was like Pip's great expectations - it came with high hopes, but unfolded into nothing.

it has a special beauty. far to be perfect, far to be convincing at whole, it has the science to use the kitsch and the light, the dialog and the details in wise manner. and that performance is its high virtue. old stereotypes - Helena Bonham Carter using Tim Burton recipes, remarkable parts - Jeremy Irvine as one of the most good Pip and the nuances of Magwitch by Joseph Fiennes, the crumbs of sentimentalism and the air of novel does it more than a correct adaptation. a beautiful film in profound sense. for the romanticism, for the links between characters, for the inspired way to tell the story. sure, nothing spectacular. sure, almost nothing new. but useful for remember the spirit of a great novel.