Great Expectations (1989 film)
Encyclopedia
Great Expectations is a British television serial based on Charles Dickens
' novel
of the same title. The six-part serial was first broadcast on the ITV
network in 1991 though it was distributed on video in the United States in 1989.
Jean Simmons
, who played the role of the young Estella in the 1946 movie
, played Miss Havisham in the 1989 version. Other key roles include John Rhys-Davies
as Joe Gargery, Ray McAnally
as Jaggers, Anthony Calf
as the adult Pip, Kim Thomson
as both young and adult Estella, Adam Blackwood
as Herbert Pocket, Anthony Hopkins
as Abel Magwitch, Niven Boyd as Orlick, Susan Franklyn as Biddy and Martin Harvey as young Pip. Having the same actress play Estella as a child and adult provided a smoother transition in following the character than in some adaptations.
The miniseries
format, running five hours, enabled much more of the original story to be filmed than other versions, allowed the restoration of significant characters omitted in other versions, such as Orlick and Wopsle, and the better examination of the roles of other characters, such as Biddy, Drummle, Miss Havisham and the adult Estella. The result is more understandable plot development, and the revelation of themes of the work that tend to be obscured in shorter versions, such as class
striving and the values of character vs. wealth. This version takes relatively few liberties with characters and plot turns, and adheres closely to Dickens' published ending.
Jean Simmons
who had played Estella, the exquisite young woman encouraged to break men's hearts by the bitter and reclusive Miss Havisham in David Lean
's film of 1946, returned here to Dickens' late masterpiece. But whereas Martita Hunt
, 'played Miss Havisham as a magisterial Queen Mary figure', Simmons saw Miss Havisham, 'as a physically frail woman; her hate and disappointment give her strength.'
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
' novel
Great Expectations
Great Expectations is a novel by Charles Dickens. It was first published in serial form in the publication All the Year Round from 1 December 1860 to August 1861. It has been adapted for stage and screen over 250 times....
of the same title. The six-part serial was first broadcast on the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
network in 1991 though it was distributed on video in the United States in 1989.
Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
, who played the role of the young Estella in the 1946 movie
Great Expectations (1946 film)
Great Expectations is a 1946 British film which won two Academy Awards and was nominated for three others...
, played Miss Havisham in the 1989 version. Other key roles include John Rhys-Davies
John Rhys-Davies
John Rhys-Davies is a Welsh actor and voice actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the charismatic Arab excavator Sallah in the Indiana Jones films and the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
as Joe Gargery, Ray McAnally
Ray McAnally
Ray McAnally was an Irish actor famous for his performances in films such as The Mission, My Left Foot, and A Very British Coup.-Background:...
as Jaggers, Anthony Calf
Anthony Calf
Anthony Calf is a British actor, born in Hammersmith, London, England. He studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art . He has recurring roles in the television medical drama Holby City, as Michael Beauchamp, and New Tricks as Strickland...
as the adult Pip, Kim Thomson
Kim Thomson
Kim Thomson is an English actress who has appeared on stage, television and film since the early 1980s in both the United Kingdom and the United States.-Early life:...
as both young and adult Estella, Adam Blackwood
Adam Blackwood (actor)
Adam Blackwood is an actor who has appeared in several films and television programs, mostly in the United Kingdom.Born in Chichester in 1959, Blackwood is the only son of Rona and John Blackwood. Blackwood has an older sister Nicola, and a younger sister Catriona...
as Herbert Pocket, Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
as Abel Magwitch, Niven Boyd as Orlick, Susan Franklyn as Biddy and Martin Harvey as young Pip. Having the same actress play Estella as a child and adult provided a smoother transition in following the character than in some adaptations.
The miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
format, running five hours, enabled much more of the original story to be filmed than other versions, allowed the restoration of significant characters omitted in other versions, such as Orlick and Wopsle, and the better examination of the roles of other characters, such as Biddy, Drummle, Miss Havisham and the adult Estella. The result is more understandable plot development, and the revelation of themes of the work that tend to be obscured in shorter versions, such as class
Social class
Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'...
striving and the values of character vs. wealth. This version takes relatively few liberties with characters and plot turns, and adheres closely to Dickens' published ending.
Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
who had played Estella, the exquisite young woman encouraged to break men's hearts by the bitter and reclusive Miss Havisham in David Lean
David Lean
Sir David Lean CBE was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor best remembered for big-screen epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai , Lawrence of Arabia ,...
's film of 1946, returned here to Dickens' late masterpiece. But whereas Martita Hunt
Martita Hunt
Martita Hunt was an English theatre and film actress.-Early life:Hunt was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 30 January 1900 to British parents Alfred and Marta Hunt...
, 'played Miss Havisham as a magisterial Queen Mary figure', Simmons saw Miss Havisham, 'as a physically frail woman; her hate and disappointment give her strength.'
Cast
- Magwitch - Anthony HopkinsAnthony HopkinsSir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
- Miss Havisham - Jean SimmonsJean SimmonsJean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
- Joe Gargery - John Rhys-DaviesJohn Rhys-DaviesJohn Rhys-Davies is a Welsh actor and voice actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the charismatic Arab excavator Sallah in the Indiana Jones films and the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
- Mr Jaggers - Ray McAnallyRay McAnallyRay McAnally was an Irish actor famous for his performances in films such as The Mission, My Left Foot, and A Very British Coup.-Background:...
- Pip - Anthony CalfAnthony CalfAnthony Calf is a British actor, born in Hammersmith, London, England. He studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art . He has recurring roles in the television medical drama Holby City, as Michael Beauchamp, and New Tricks as Strickland...
- Estella - Kim ThomsonKim ThomsonKim Thomson is an English actress who has appeared on stage, television and film since the early 1980s in both the United Kingdom and the United States.-Early life:...
- Herbert - Adam BlackwoodAdam Blackwood (actor)Adam Blackwood is an actor who has appeared in several films and television programs, mostly in the United Kingdom.Born in Chichester in 1959, Blackwood is the only son of Rona and John Blackwood. Blackwood has an older sister Nicola, and a younger sister Catriona...
- Young Pip - Martin Harvey
- Mrs Gargery - Rosemary McHale
- Orlick - Niven Boyd
- Compeyson - Sean ArnoldSean ArnoldSean Arnold is an English actor.He is best-known for his roles as Mr Llewelyn inGrange Hill in the 1970s and 1980s, and as Barney Crozier in the 1980s BBC television series Bergerac....
- Uncle Pumplechook - Frank MiddlemassFrank MiddlemassFrancis George Middlemass was an English actor, who even in his early career played older roles. He is best remembered for his television roles as Rocky Hardcastle in As Time Goes By, Algy Herries in To Serve Them All My Days and Dr. Alex Ferrenby in Heartbeat...
- Mr Wopsle - John Quentin
- Mr Hubble - Preston LockwoodPreston LockwoodPreston Lockwood was an English actor.He is best known for his television credits, including the role of Butterfield the butler in several episodes of Jeeves and Wooster...
- Mrs Hubble - Eve PearceEve PearceEve Pearce is a Scottish actress. She has performed in many Royal Shakespeare Company productions.-Early life:Eve Pearce was born on 17 April 1929 in Aberdeen to a very poor family and was brought up in a one-roomed tenement, her mother dying when she was seven years old. When she was twelve her...