Critical Essay Part II

"I didn't want him to be this cute, effeminate cherub, as Oliver is often presented.  I wanted him to be a bit rougher." ~Roman Polanski

Innocence creates a strong presence in Polanski’s adaptation of Oliver Twist throughout the film in Oliver’s great adventure.  The presence of the innocence within Oliver is portrayed in various mediums and forms in the novel such as appearance of the character, personality, and even the tidal pull that creates a strong effect on the other characters of the film.  It is the strength of Oliver’s innocence that gives him his identity and separates him from the other characters of the film.  Despite his given situation of an orphan boy who finds himself out on the street filled with loneliness and desperation and the mere luck of always ending up in a situation driven with corruption, Oliver still holds true to the innocence that defines him.     

            Polanski makes this innocence obvious to the audience in the casting of the character.  The boy has long blonde hair, tossled with the carefree attitude of a young boy.  While the face has soft features that only show a constant sadness. Oliver’s mannerism and personality are also key factors in his innocence as he is polite to all he encounters and he goes about with a naive and curious sense of wonder to the world around him.  Oliver was never one to doubt another’s ambitions or intentions and take experiences as an act of morality until the bitter true reveals itself.  Such behaviors were evident when Oliver first met Fagin.  Oliver strove to show respect towards Fagin in his manners and eagerness to learn the trade of Fagin and the boys.  The very work the boys did and Fagin’s discipline were all honest and well earned in Oliver’s initial understanding.  Once Oliver discovered the truth behind the sort of work the boys participated in, Oliver immediately tried to separate himself from it as his innocence and need to do what is moral never falters.  It is in this strength of innocence that attracts Brownlow to Oliver and his well-being.  This bond with Oliver continues to grow as Mr. Brownlow sees Oliver for what he is.  The meek and appreciative creature also develops a strong bond after melting the heart of Mr. Brownlow’s maid as her service is needed in caring for a small helpless being who’s heart knows no malice.

            The innocence within Oliver creates a strong tidal pull on other characters he encounters in his adventure.  This pull creates a change in the character of others as it softens the hardened exterior exposing the good within these characters.  One of these characters that have fallen under the spell of the vulnerable innocence of a boy would be Nancy, a prostitute of Fagin’s gang.  Raised to look out for only herself in a world of corruption that will take any victim who try to ignore it, she begins to put herself in the way of danger on many accounts for the protection of the young boy.  She has put herself between Oliver and Sikes to protect the boy and is even murdered for her actions to free Oliver from danger and the corrupted life she has no choice but to live.  Even in this act of protection creates another change in Nancy as she becomes aware of her strong desire to start afresh and become moral and forgiven for the life she has lead, though bound by its strong ties, she is left with no choice but to continue to be corrupt. 

            The film focuses on yet another example of that tidal pull created by innocence and its ability to expose the good within the corrupt would be in the way Fagin takes to Oliver.  After having been wounded and returned to Fagin after the failed robbery of Mr. Brownlow’s house, Fagin takes on a completely new role in Oliver’s life.  The wounded Oliver turns Fagin into a maternal figure from the sheer fact that his innocence has been punished and it was in the hands of their corruption that has given him this unjust punishment.  It seems as though Fagin feels responsible for the cruelty done to Oliver and it is his duty to set things right by nursing Oliver back into health.  During Oliver’s recovery, the bond that develops between Fagin and Oliver steadily grows as Fagin treats Oliver as if he were his own son.  This becomes evident in the scene where Fagin shares the family secret tonic to ease the pain from the bullet wound and help speed up the healing process.  This scene unveils Fagin’s ability to be something other than a heartless criminal, that there is a human underneath after all.

            Out of all the bonds created between the characters of the film and Oliver, the strongest and most meaningful would be the one Oliver develops with Fagin.  The film takes on a different approach from the novel with the relationship that develops between these two.  It is in this relationship that a message is the strength of innocence and its power to bring about the good in others even in the most unlikely sources.  The strength in the bond between Oliver and Fagin also creates the idea for the ability for one to change as Oliver begs for Fagin to be forgiven the night before his death sentence is carried out.  Oliver repeatedly thanks Fagin for the kindness he has show for Oliver as was nursed back into health.  The strong need to convince others that Fagin is truly good and all his acts of corruption have been misunderstood.   A corrupt world will lead to corrupt actions, but there is still good within people.  If someone makes the change to leave the corruption behind, can that someone become forgiven?

            Both the Dickens novel and Polanski’s movie adaptation depict the character of Oliver Twist as being meek and innocent.  The audience’s visions of Oliver are however altered when comparing these two sources side by side.  The novel’s image of innocence is read through the depiction of Oliver as a young, naïve child or the Victorian ideal; depicting children, such as Oliver as innocent yet susceptible to moral corruption.  Polanski’s movie adaptation shows Oliver in the same light of the novel, but reinterprets his character by making him more independent.  These two sources offer the audience two interpretations of Oliver’s character, one of complete innocence and the other of innocence and independence.