75
McGrath has managed to turn Dickens into a cozy date movie. When was the last time anybody could make that claim?
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
70
The New York Times by Dana Stevens
The director has produced a colorful, affecting collage of Dickensian moods and motifs, a movie that elicits an overwhelming desire to plunge into 900 pages of 19th-century prose.
75
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
It's an uneven film, but Dickens admirers shouldn't miss it.
50
Washington Post by Desson Thomson
Watchable, certainly. It should have been so much more.
70
Los Angeles Times by Manohla Dargis
McGrath, who adapted the novel, manages to catch the flavor of it without its tang.
75
Portland Oregonian by Marc Mohan
An enjoyable sojourn into the world of Dickens and could inspire a trend. Shakespeare and Austen have had their Hollywood moments during the past few years; why not the proto-Hollywood Dickens?
75
Rolling Stone by Peter Travers
Christopher Plummer steals the show without resorting to camp as Nicholas' wounded and wounding Uncle Ralph. It's a great performance and a reminder of Dickens' grandeur. This Cliff's Notes of a film, though lively fun, only hints at that.
60
McGrath's new film offers a treat for fans of Dickens and moviegoers who love to see a fairly large cast ham it up with delirious abandon.
90
Now and then McGrath's film feels a bit rushed and breathless, but mostly you sink gratefully into its handsomely staged plenitude.
88
A rambunctious joy.