Oliver Twist (1922)

Director:

Frank Lloyd

Writers:

Walter Anthony (titles)
Charles Dickens (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

30 October 1922 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The GREATEST FILM TRIUMPH of the DECADE. A MATCHLESS CAST of SCREEN CELEBRITIES SUPPORTING JACKIE in THIS, HIS FINEST ACHIEVEMENT. Starring the GREATEST BOY ACTOR in the WORLD.

Plot:

Oliver's mother, a penniless outcast, died giving birth to him. As a young boy Oliver is brought up in a workhouse...

Plot Keywords:

1830s | England | Orphanage | Adoption | Children

Cast

Jackie Coogan	...	Oliver Twist
James A. Marcus	...	Mr. Bumble (as James Marcus)
Aggie Herring	...	Mrs. Corney
Lewis Sargent	...	Noah Claypole
Joan Standing	...	Charlotte
Carl Stockdale	...	Monks
Edouard Trebaol	...	The Artful Dodger
Lon Chaney	...	Fagin
Taylor Graves	...	Charley Bates
George Siegmann	...	Bill Sikes
Gladys Brockwell	...	Nancy
Lionel Belmore	...	Mr. Brownlow
Florence Hale	...	Mrs. Bedwin
Joseph Hazelton	...	Mr. Grimwig
Gertrude Claire	...	Mrs. Maylie
Esther Ralston	...	Rose Maylie
Eddie Boland	...	Toby Crackit
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nelson McDowell	...	Sowerberry (uncredited)

Directed by
Frank Lloyd

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Walter Anthony		titles
Charles Dickens		novel
Frank Lloyd		writer
Harry Weil		writer

Produced by
Sol Lesser	....	producer

Original Music by
John Muri		(1975)

Cinematography by
Glen MacWilliams
Robert Martin

Film Editing by
Irene Morra

Art Direction by
Stephen Goosson

Costume Design by
Walter J. Israel

Camera and Electrical Department
Louis Johnson	....	lighting technician

Production Companies

• Associated First National Pictures
• Jackie Coogan Productions

Distributors

• First National Pictures (1922) (USA) (theatrical)
• Maxim (1923) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Universum Film (UFA) (1925) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Blackhawk Films (197?) (USA) (all media) (16 mm) (non-theatrical)
• Viking Video Classics (1986) (USA) (VHS)
• Circulo Digital (DVD)
• Grapevine Video (video)
• Image Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Kino International
• Kino Video (video)
• Madacy Entertainment (USA) (VHS)
• Video Yesteryear

Also Known As:

Oliver Twist (Austria) (Germany) [de]
Oliver Twist (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Oliver Twist (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

74 min (video version) | Spain:98 min (DVD version)

Country:

USA

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Finland:S

Company:

Associated First National Pictures

Trivia:

When it was found without intertitles in the 1970s, the film was restored with the help of Jackie Coogan and Sol Lesser. The intertitles were created by Blackhawk Films.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Man of a Thousand Faces (1957)

Good Version of the Story With Coogan, Chaney, & More

With a good cast headed by Jackie Coogan and Lon Chaney, plus decent atmosphere that conjures up the sights of Dickens' world, this version of "Oliver Twist" works well. The Dickens story makes wonderful movie material, but it is also quite melodramatic, and for a film version to succeed requires convincing characters and a believable recreation of the world of the novel. Coogan, Chaney, and director Frank Lloyd all get the job done.

Coogan was of course the best and obvious choice in his day to play Oliver. But Chaney, although much more limited in his screen time, is even more memorable. Fagin is the kind of role that Chaney most excelled at. His make-up, mannerisms, and gestures are all impressive, and it is amazing the way that without dialogue he can so quickly and efficiently define his character's relationships with the other characters. The rest of the cast are mostly lesser-known names, but they all do a good job of establishing their characters, too. The settings are a bit plain at times, but are always consistent with the story, and they do the job of showing us the varied places where Oliver lived the different stages of his young life.

There have many versions of the Oliver story, and the terrific David Lean version from the 40's is still the one by which all others should be measured. But this is a good adaptation, and it has almost everything you could ask for in a silent version of the story.