Great Expectations

I didn't have great expectations of Great Expectations, but agreed to watch it anyway, since I have seen David Lean's film from some time in the forties and wanted to compare the two.

Alfonso Cuarón's version of Great Expectations is very different from Lean's. For one thing, there is almost half a century between them, which in itself makes for big differences. For another, screenwriter Mitch Glazer has updated the story so that it takes place in our own time. It has also been moved to the USA, naturally.

In a small fishing village on the Florida coast, the orphaned Finn lives with his sister Maggie and her good-natured boyfriend Joe, who makes his living as a fisherman. Maggie grows tired of Joe, Finn and the gruelling life, so one day she walks out. A pivotal event is Finn's encounter with the convict Arthur Lustig, who, without Finn's knowledge, makes it possible for Finn to realise his dream of becoming a painter in New York. Before that, Finn has met the eccentric Mrs. Dinsmoor and her beautiful niece Estella, with whom Finn falls in love. His infatuation endures, but the problem is that Estella does not return Finn's love. She has been brought up to break hearts by her aunt, who had her own heart broken years ago and never got over it. Finn and Estella do end up together, but not before they have been through an awful lot.

Great Expectations is passably entertaining, but the film's biggest problem is that it is unnecessary. Why anyone felt a remake was needed is a mystery. Moreover, the plot is best suited to Dickens's own era, or perhaps the update might have worked better had Mitch Glazer thought less conventionally. Making Finn a promising young painter in NY is simply too clichéd. Ethan Hawke is likeable as Finn, but his co-star Gwyneth Paltrow completely lacks the allure that would make it plausible for Finn to become obsessed with her. No, for my part the film was mainly interesting as a point of comparison with the classic version.