Great Expectations: Adapted

Background

Great Expectations was first published as a serial from 1 December 1860 to August 1861. It was the thirteenth novel written by Charles Dickens.

It tells the story of an orphan named Pip who lives with his older sister and her gentle husband, a blacksmith named Joe Gargery, who is also Pip’s best friend. On Christmas Eve, Pip visits the graves of his parents where he unexpectedly encounters an escaped convict who threatens to kill him if he does not bring back food and tools.

A few years later, Pip begins visiting the eccentric Miss Havisham who is still wearing her old wedding dress after being jilted at the alter. Pip falls in love with her adopted daughter, Estella, but she does not reciprocate.

When an older Pip receives a large inheritance, he assumes his benefactor is Miss Havisham and he leaves for London where he soon gets into debt. Pip proposes to Estella but is heartbroken when he discovers she is to marry another.

.After many years abroad, Pip returns to England where he visits the site of Miss Havisham’s old house. There, he finds a widowed Estella who asks for his forgiveness. The novel ends with Pip and Estella walking away hand-in-hand.

FILMs

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1934)

The 1934 film was made by Universal Pictures and had a mostly American cast, including Phillips Holmes as Pip, Jane Wyatt as Estella and Florence Reed as Miss Havisham.

The film made some significant changes to the plot of the novel and was not well received by critics or viewers.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1946)

The most acclaimed film version of the book was made in 1946 and was directed by David Lean. It had a stellar cast, including John Mills as Pip and Valerie Hobson as Estella. The supporting cast included Bernard Miles, Francis L. Sullivan, Anthony Wager, Jean Simmons, Finlay Currie, Martita Hunt and Alec Guinness.

It won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction, Black-and-White, and Best Cinematography, Black-and-White. The film was also nominated for Best Director, Best Screenplay Adaptation, and Best Picture. The film is now regarded as one of Lean’s best and was named the 5th greatest British film of all time.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1974)

In 1974, the novel was adapted by Transcontinental Films for release on US television and in cinemas in the UK. It starred Michael York as Pip, Simon Gipps-Kent as Young Pip and Sarah Miles as Estella.

The film was not well received by audiences as it was accused of dumbing down the complex plot to make it more palatable. Critics also felt it was an odd choice to have the role of the young and older Estella played by the same actress while Pip was played by two actors.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1998)

A feature length film was made in 1998, starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Ethan Hawke, Robert de Niro, and Anne Bancroft. The film is set in the modern era and some of the character names have been changed, such as Pip being called Finn and Miss Havisham named Nora Dinsmoor.

The film got a lukewarm reception with actor Ethan Hawke blaming the obsession with Titanic which had been released a few week prior. However, co-writer and director, Alfonso Cuarón, expressed his own dissatisfaction with the finished film.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (2012)

A year later, a British-American film adaptation premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film was directed by Mike Newell and written by David Nicholls. It was released in the UK on 30 November 2012, and starred Jeremy Irvine as Pip, Helena Bonham Carter as Miss Havisham, and Holliday Grainger as Estella.

The film was generally well-received by Dickens’ fans who liked the casting choices and the modern feel of the characters.

TELEVISION

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1959)

The first major television series was made by the BBC in 1959 and was serialised in 13 half-hour episodes. It starred Dinsdale Landen as Pip, Helen Lindsay as Estella, and Marjorie Hawtrey as Miss Havisham.

The series was mostly true to the novel while being aimed at a family audience. It still survives today, however one episode is missing which has prevented it from being shown again.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1967)

The BBC made another series in 1967 starring Gary Bond as Pip and Francesca Annis as Estella.

The series was hugely popular with audiences when it was aired and was praised for its excellent acting. The series was released on DVD in 2017 but the episodes are of low quality as the original master videotapes were wiped in the 1970s and the surviving 16 mm film tapes had to be used. The DVDs were sold with a disclaimer regarding the poor quality.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1981)

A 3-part television series was made by The Disney Channel in 1989 but was aired on the ITV network in 6 parts. The series starred Anthony Calf as Pip, Kim Thomson as Estella, Anthony Hopkins as Magwitch and Jean Simmons as Miss Havisham.

The series was show in 12 half-hour episodes and seems to have been mostly accepted by audiences, however acting heavyweights Joan Hickson and Stratford Johns stole the show.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1989)

The length of the series allowed the adaptation to be faithful to the book and it meant minor characters could finally get their time in the limelight.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1999)

The following year Masterpiece Theatre made their own film version of the novel which was shown on the BBC in the UK. Written by playwright Tony Marchant, the cast included Ioan Gruffudd as Pip and Justine Waddell as Estella. The film also starred Charlotte Rampling as a very different Miss Haversham than shown before.

It won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Costume Design in 2000 and was nominated for the 1999 Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (2011)

It was twelve years before Great Expectations appeared on the small screen again in a new television adaptation by the BBC which began airing on 27 December 2011. The three part series starred Douglas Booth as Pip, Vanessa Kirby as Estella and Gillian Anderson as Miss Havisham.

The casting of Anderson was initially criticised as she was far younger and prettier than the previous actresses cast in the role, however her performance as a woman slowly descending into madness gained widespread praise.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (2023)

The latest BBC television series has perhaps been the most controversial out of all the adaptations as it changes the background of the characters and tries for a more “woke” approach. The series starred Olivia Colman as Miss Havisham, Fionn Whitehead as Pip, and Shalom Brune-Franklin as Estella.

Director Steven Knight made the bold claim that this version of the tale is the one Dickens would have written himself if he had not been constrained by society. Viewers disagreed and the ratings declined rapidly as the series progressed.