The Old Curiosity Shop

Starring: Peter Ustinov, Sally Walsh, Tom Courtenay, et al.

Product Description

Dickens' Little Nell and her grandfather lose their London shop to miserly moneylender Daniel Quilp.

• Format: DVD
• Language: English
• UPC: 096009328092
• Release Date: January 2005
• Rating: PG
• Publisher: Platinum Disc Corportation
• Starring: Peter Ustinov, Sally Walsh, Tom Courtenay, James Fox, William Mannering, Adam Blackwood, Timothy Watson, Martin Wimbush, Alan Sherman, Ricci Harnett
• Runtime: 3 hours, 10 minutes
• Number of Disks: 1
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 7.5" x 5.4"

Customer Reviews

Too Disneyfied? The Dickens, you say.

An owner of a curiosity shop loses it by gambling away money borrowed from an evil being, Daniel Quilp. The Made-for-TV movie starts after this event, at a time when Quilp (knowing the owner is old and senile and can be committed to an asylum) is hunting the grandfather for the fun of torturing him and giving false hope of riches to his acquaintances. You cannot properly distill a serial that was made into a book and now into a quick 135-minute movie (screenplay by John Goldsmith). So, I cannot blame them completely for cutting out the purpose of the story, but they did not have to make it all sugary and sweet. John Goldsmith A few new things have been added or corrupted to be sure that it plays well on the screen. However, doing so has distracted again from the essence of the original story that has kept people spellbound through the years. The original was more of a serial and the Harry Potter of its time. While Peter Ustinov made a good stab at the original grandfather, most of the other actors were a pale reflection of the originals in the book. Well, Jonathan Coy as Rev. Pratchett makes a good speech about “Don’t you see, there is nothing innocent or good that dies and is forgotten. We must hold to that faith or none’” It is close to the book where on that occasion the schoolmaster persuades her that “There is nothing, no, nothing innocent or good, that dies, and is forgotten;” its “blessed work” persists. I wonder what is missing from this presentation, as there is a version 3 hr. 4 min (184 min) (2 parts). A little further investigation leads me to believe the DVD is only the second half of the movie. And if you have not read the book, you can get lost. The case says Eco Bridge Home Entertainment (2013) 188 minutes. It lies. The Aspect Ratio 1.33: 1 Filming location: Ardmore Studios, Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland 1994.