David Lean's prodigious adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic expands fervently on the theme of a lonely boy in a world of bullies. When the orphan hero, Oliver, escapes to London, the Artful Dodger delivers him to the notorious Fagan, who makes him part of the gang but soon allows for Oliver to take the fall for a bungled pickpocketing scam. To date, no movie has better captured Dickens's blend of sensitivity and violence.