The works of Charles Dickens have enjoyed enduring popularity since they were written in the mid-to-late 1800s. His novels and short stories have become synonymous with Victorian England. Well over 100 film and TV adaptations have been created, stretching as far back as 1901.
The multitude of A Christmas Carol adaptations immediately come to mind, but there are direct adaptations of all of Dickens' novels and several of his short stories. Divkens has influenced countless more authors, writers and filmmakers and his works have been adapted in more subtle ways. There are a lot of Charles Dickens adaptations, but not all of them are worth your time. Here are 10 that certainly are.
10 Martin Chuzzlewit (1994) - 8.1
Martin Chuzzlewit is one of Dickens' least subtle works. That's saying something for the writer of A Christmas Carol. Everyone in this story is a selfish and terrible human being. Dickens tells readers that's the point in a preface. The 1994 BBC TV series encapsulates this idea almost perfectly.
It captures the original spirit of the novel while improving on it in many aspects, especially in the portrayal of the novel's main villains. Keith Allen and Pete Postelwaithe play their characters in a way that emphasizes the time crunch these characters feel as Old Martin Chuzzlewit nears death.
9 Our Mutual Friend (1998) - 8.1
The BBC broadcast their third serial adaptation of Dickens' 1865 novel in 1998. It stars Paul McGann as Eugene Wrayburn and Steven Mackintosh as John Harmon, the two heroes of the story. The six-hour adaptation charts the complex web of relationships and ramifications after Harmon's apparent death.
The death affects several families, including the couple who take in his bride-to-be, the ferryman accused of murdering Harmon and the suitors who pursue both Harmon's bridge-to-be and the ferryman's daughter. McGann's morally gray, but sympathetic Wrayburn eventually wins the hand of the ferryman's daughter. Harmon isn't nearly as dead as he seems.
8 Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) - 8.1
Far from the only Christmas Carol adaptation on the list, Mickey's Christmas Carol fits various Disney characters in roles from Dickens' most famous story. Most of the characters are from the Mickey Mouse universe; Scrooge McDuck appropriately plays Scrooge and Mickey takes on the part of Bob Crachit.
The story also finds room for appearances by Jiminy Cricket, Mr. Toad, Otto from Robin Hood and Chip and Dale. Goofy as Jacob Marley's ghost sets the short's decidedly lighter tone early on in the piece. Mickey's Christmas Carol is notable for being the first Mickey Mouse cartoon since 1953.
7 A Christmas Carol (1951) - 8.1
This 1951 adaptation of A Christmas Carol stars Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge. The film is considered by some critics to be the definitive film adaptation of the tale and it is certainly among the most faithful to Dickens' text.
1951's A Christmas Carol is a moody piece that foregrounds the original novella's Christian overtones. Scrooge not only forsakes Christmas, he forsakes Jesus Christ himself. The film includes multiple images comparing Tiny Tim to Jesus and it remains one of the most stunning adaptations.
6 Little Dorrit (2008) - 8.2
Little Dorrit focuses on Amy Dorrit (Claire Foy), a young woman born in a debtor's prison. Amy works as a seamstress for Mrs. Clennam (Judy Parfitt). The story also focuses on Arthur Clennam (Matthew Macfadyen), a man returning to London after spending 15 years in China with his father.
Arthur's father gave him a watch to bring to his mother but did not tell him what the watch means to either. Amy's father becomes the heir to a large fortune, but he cannot escape his past as a debtor and dies.
5 Bleak House (2005) - 8.3
The 2005 serial was the third BBC adaptation of Dickens' novel. Bleak House centers around a fictional court case winding its way through England's chancery court system.
The futile case about an inheritance has gone on for generations when the story begins. Almost every character in the story has a stake in the case's outcome; some die spending their entire lives obsessed with it. Several wills appear throughout the story and purport to end the case, but legal fees have eaten through the inheritance to make the wills meaningless.
4 The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - 8.4
This makes absolutely zero sense at first glance. According to the Nolans, The Dark Knight Rises is influenced by A Tale of Two Cities. The film mirrors Madame Defarge in the character of Bane, who knits in several scenes throughout the film.
Commissioner Gordon's eulogy in the film's finale is also directly lifted from Two Cities. The Dark Knight Rises is less a straight adaptation and more a gritty re-imagining of Dickens' work. One might assume the film's sequence in Florence takes the place of London, while Gotham takes the place of Paris.
3 "A Christmas Carol" (2010) - 8.6
"A Christmas Carol" was Matt Smith and Steven Moffat's first Doctor Who Christmas special. "Carol" sees the Doctor take on a role similar to the three ghosts. He, Amy Pond and Rory Williams are on a space liner that loses control as it passes over a planet. The planet's clouds are controlled by a man who refuses to save the ship.
The Doctor endeavors to change the man's past to save the ship. It's revealed the man's father developed the ability to control the clouds, but the man is afraid of becoming like his father.
2 The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1982) - 8.8
This Channel 4 miniseries adapts Dickens' third novel. The title character has to support his mother and sister after his father dies. The trio initially moves from Devonshire to London to seek out their uncle Ralph. However, their uncle has no intention of helping them and hates Nicholas with a passion.
Nicholas sets out to earn an independent fortune to support his mother and sister. Ralph states he will never support the Nicklebys so long as Nicholas is with them. Nicholas becomes a schoolmaster and befriends one of the students, who eventually accompanies him on his quest.
1 John Grin's Christmas (1986) - 8.9
This 1986 TV adaptation of A Christmas Carol moves the story to the present day. It stars Robert Guillaume as John Grin, a modern Ebenezer Scrooge.
Grin is a particularly nasty version of Scrooge; he refuses to give toys to a children's hospital and exasperates all around him, even the Ghost of Christmas Present. The film also stars Roscoe Lee Browne and Ted Lange as the Ghosts of Christmas Past and Present.
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