Rating: 
Summary: Excellent!
Review: As of this writing I do not have the DVD, but I just watched this version on the Canadian Broadcast Company network, and I must say that I was thoroughly impressed. The casting, the costumes, the 'out of the book' quotes. They have truly accurately portrayed the Victorian era in all its splendor and wretchedness. There's not any bad that I can say about this movie. Ok, there IS one thing: the ending is narrated rather than played out. They could have easily made this one more half hour longer to put it over the top. The Scrooge-like uncle is played to perfection, so well, in fact, that one finds they'd probably rather be with old Ebenezer than Uncle Ralph. That's just one of the variety of characters that you would expect to see in a Dickens novel/movie. There are many more, of course (besides Nicholas Nickleby, who is quite the wallflower compared to nearly everyone else in the story).
When this movie is released on DVD shortly (by the time this is being read, it should already be available), you can bet I will spend my hard earned cash to purchase it!Postscript: I now own the DVD and it is EXCELLENT! The picture quality is so much brighter and clearer than the broadcast version. And best of all, it's in the LETTER BOX format! Truly even better than I thought it would be!
Rating:
Summary: Dickensenian Delight!
Review: As this film so wonderfully illustrates, wealth and breeding are not necessarily accompaniments. The production itself, however, is a marvelous composition of both: a classily written rendition of the oft-told Victorian tale, richly replete with an amazing repertoire of actors who utterly pack each portrayal with charm, wit, and panache! The mood ranges from low-key pathos to manic buffoonery, the latter wrought by the gluttony, lust, and greed of what must be among the most scrumptiously scuzzy characters ever seen on the screen! Liz Smith in a familiar old-hag role and George Innes as a grubby lecher are definitely not to be missed! Throughout, Dickens' horrific vision of nineteenth-century poverty and child abuse is never compromised, and a number of the scenes are truly nightmarish in intensity. Particularly poignant is the portrayal of the waif Smike, brilliantly played by Lee Ingleby. Like an accomplished orchestra, the movie strikes the chord of every human emotion and is immensely enjoyable, enlightening, and uplifting!
Rating:
Summary: Dickensenian Delight!
Review: As this film so wonderfully illustrates, wealth and breeding are not necessarily accompaniments. The production itself, however, is a marvelous composition of both: a classily written rendition of the oft-told Victorian tale, richly replete with an amazing repertoire of actors who utterly pack each portrayal with charm, wit, and panache! The mood ranges from low-key pathos to manic buffoonery, the latter wrought by the gluttony, lust, and greed of what must be among the most scrumptiously scuzzy characters ever seen on the screen! Liz Smith in a familiar old-hag role and George Innes as a grubby lecher are definitely not to be missed! Throughout, Dickens' horrific vision of nineteenth-century poverty and child abuse is never compromised, and a number of the scenes are truly nightmarish in intensity. Particularly poignant is the portrayal of the waif Smike, brilliantly played by Lee Ingleby. Like an accomplished orchestra, the movie strikes the chord of every human emotion and is immensely enjoyable, enlightening, and uplifting!
Rating: 
Summary: A Degradation to Dickens
Review: By in large, most of Charles Dickens' novels are dark, melancholy, and morbid. But the majority of them have an uplifting ending, and main characters above reproach. "Nicholas Nickleby" is one of his lesser-known volumes, falling to the back of the line in favor of "A Tale of Two Cities" and "David Copperfield." But it's also one of my personal favorites. Thus said, this Bravo adaptation follows it very closely... but I disliked intensely many of the scriptwriter's own "inventions" in dealing with the text. What bleeds through is a strong sexual undercurrent not present in the novel, as well as the defacing of several minor characters who made complete turnarounds in the novel by means of redeeming themselves. The plot in novel form never comes across as being lecherous, even when dealing with Madeline Bray and the seventy-year-old swindler who wants to marry her for her money. Seeing him ogle her on the screen is much more disconcerting, as are the obvious sexual illusions, innuendo, and activity portrayed. Mr. and Mrs. Mantalini are all over each other, Mr. and Mrs. Squeers are constantly trading innuendo on jumping into bed at the earliest opportunity, and Sir Mulberry Hawke's advances toward Nicholas' sister Kate are much more lurid and offensive than in the book... like when he corners her against the pool table, puts his hand down her blouse, and then tries to force himself on her. The acting is quite good, but the offensive elements for me weighed out the fact that this adaptation tries to be faithful to the text. It seems very cold and shallow without any great character development and the climax turns out slightly flat. I would encourage viewers to see the excellent 2002 adaptation by Douglas McGrath, which is all around more faithful to the spirit of Dickens, much less visually offensive, and far better produced. The DVD is fair. The menu is nice, but includes virtually no extras except a photo gallery and menu selection. Since this was produced for TV, there's nothing glowing about the actual production itself. The darkness is slightly grainy, and some closeups seem a bit fuzzy.
Rating:
Summary: How else to explain it? This is Dickens!
Review: Charles Dickens- love him or hate him, you must admit that there was never anyone like him. His books are full of social critiques, melodramatic romances, characters so eccentric that they border on crazy and of course jaw dropping coincidences. The books are also wildly entertaining. There has been a revival of Dickens lately in the form of TV mini-series and Nicholas Nickleby is the latest. The title character has just lost his father in death and now, in his late teens, he must find a way to support and protect his sweet sister Kate and somewhat silly mother. Their only relative is their uncle, the greedy and cold Ralph Nickleby. Ralph gets Nicholas a job as a teacher in Yorkshire and Kate a job assisting a dressmaker. Here is where the main problems of the story come into play. Both Kate and Nicholas have the same problems, they are too good looking and talented. That may seem like no problem but they have no money and their equals in station are jealous of them. Also, they have to fend off unwelcome advances at every turn. The young actors playing Kate and Nicholas manage to make their characters good without being saccarine, a challenge to say the least. The Yorkshire school where Nicholas is sent is a horror, the boys are abused particularly the silent waif Smike. Nicholas befriends Smike and then protects him from a beating. Forced to escape with Smike, Nicholas is disowned by his uncle for being ungrateful. He is told that if he sees his sister and mother again, Ralph will throw them into the street. Nicholas agrees to leave but swears vengeance if Kate or his mother suffer in any way at Ralph's hands. This is pretty much how the movie goes, more and more problems come up and the characters escape by the skin of their teeth. The rivalry between Nicholas and Ralph is very well acted and one of the highlights of this miniseries. Dickens purists will doubtlessly complain about the many cuts that had to be made due to time constraints but they were needed for the film to run smoothly. All in all, this is a very good adaptation that does not modernize the tale too much. (This has been a problem in far too many adaptions of the classics, over-modernization) There are abductions, rescues, duels, chases, forced marriages, and one BIG suprise ending. (no Dickens novel is complete without a murder/attempted murder, a suicide and a suprise ending) If you are looking for an old fashioned soaper, this is it. I could not reccommend it for children since some of the abuses at the school are rather disturbing. However, this is how things were in the worse schools in Dickens's time and it is rather an eye-opener. I would say in American ratings, this movie ranges from a PG to a PG-13 so parents will have to make their decisions accordingly.
Rating: 
Summary: What a great production!
Review: I am very glad that I saw this adaptation of Nicholas Nickleby. It is well-acted, and very evocative.
It is always good to see the time in which a story takes place depicted as honestly as possible. This is a really gritty story at times. The scenes at the boys' school, in which the children are routinely starved, beaten and humiliated by Mr. Squeers, are grim and disturbing, which is what Dickens intended. It is very sad that Wackford Squeers was based on a real schoolmaster, William Shaw. There are some wonderful performances in this show, particularly by Charles Dance (Ralph Nickleby), Lee Ingleby (Smike), and James D'Arcy (Nicholas). I loved James D'Arcy's portrayal of Nicholas- it was very kind and sincere, whereas the Nicholas of the recent movie (Charlie Hunnam?) seemed too bent on revenge. I hope James has a wonderful career because he sure is talented. Bravo! I have little to complain about with this production, only that the music is a little overbearing and intrusive at times. And Madeline Bray is really passive, even for the character and the times. You want her to look more averse to marrying that old man Ralph set her up with (who is one of the grossest characters I've ever seen on screen!). This is a very fine production, perfect for watching on a rainy night.
Rating:
Summary: See it
Review: I could not wish for a more faithful adaptation to Nicholas Nickleby. While i have yet to see the 2002 feature film with Charlie Hunnam and Jamie Bell, i am satisfied very much with this DVD. What impressed me the most was the choices made depending on what should be left out, left in, or changed entirely. The omission of several unimportant characters and side stories as well as the changing of certain parts were more than appropiate and executed very well. The acting was superb and the backgrounds and characters appeared as if they were ripped from the illustrations in the novel: Fanny Squeers, Arthur Gride and Peg Sliderskew were absolutely hideous; Smike looked absolutely wretched; Newman Noggs looked exactly how Boz had portrayed him in his illustrations, etc. Lee Ingleby's Smike was particularly worthy of mention. Smike was pitiful, sad, wretched, and utterly desperate, and Mr. Ingleby represented all of these qualities in his performance. I am glad because Smike was my favorite character in this novel, and it brought me great joy to see that his character was portrayed so flawlessly by Mr. Ingleby(bravo!). There's an extension of Smike's scene as the "emaciated apothecary", and its both charming and funny at the same time. I have one complaint, however, and that is that the final scenes with Smike and Nicholas could have been more drawn out; the poor boy's death was so sudden as to surprise even one who is acquainted with the novel, and the promise with Kate's lock of hair was ommitted! I was saddened to see that touching scene left out. I admit that the music can be, and i hate to say it but its true, somewhat cheesy at times. There were times when i wish no music had been played, and times in which i wish there was. But no matter. The movie is EXCELLENT. Do yourself a favor and see this worthy film. You will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: See it
Review: I could not wish for a more faithful adaptation to Nicholas Nickleby. While i have yet to see the 2002 feature film with Charlie Hunnam and Jamie Bell, i am satisfied very much with this DVD. What impressed me the most was the choices made depending on what should be left out, left in, or changed entirely. The omission of several unimportant characters and side stories as well as the changing of certain parts were more than appropiate and executed very well. The acting was superb and the backgrounds and characters appeared as if they were ripped from the illustrations in the novel: Fanny Squeers, Arthur Gride and Peg Sliderskew were absolutely hideous; Smike looked absolutely wretched; Newman Noggs looked exactly how Boz had portrayed him in his illustrations, etc. Lee Ingleby's Smike was particularly worthy of mention. Smike was pitiful, sad, wretched, and utterly desperate, and Mr. Ingleby represented all of these qualities in his performance. I am glad because Smike was my favorite character in this novel, and it brought me great joy to see that his character was portrayed so flawlessly by Mr. Ingleby(bravo!). There's an extension of Smike's scene as the "emaciated apothecary", and its both charming and funny at the same time. I have one complaint, however, and that is that the final scenes with Smike and Nicholas could have been more drawn out; the poor boy's death was so sudden as to surprise even one who is acquainted with the novel, and the promise with Kate's lock of hair was ommitted! I was saddened to see that touching scene left out. I admit that the music can be, and i hate to say it but its true, somewhat cheesy at times. There were times when i wish no music had been played, and times in which i wish there was. But no matter. The movie is EXCELLENT. Do yourself a favor and see this worthy film. You will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Superb!!
Review: I just finished watching this on the BRAVO network and can't wait to get the DVD so that I could watch it again (and again)! This is an excellent adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic with high production values and a superb cast. Some of the highlights are: Charles Dance as greedy and cruel Ralph Nickleby who makes his nephew Nicholas' life miserable; Sophia Myles is enchanting as Kate Nickleby; Ian (?) Ingleby as the tragic Smike, Nicholas' loyal friend; Dominic West as the devilish and cold-hearted Sir Mulberry Hawk; and particularly James D'Arcy as Nicholas, who plays the role with such passion and earnestness (lanky and handsome, with piercing green eyes and a striking resemblance to a young Ralph Fiennes - he certainly is a heartthrob in his own right). I thoroughly enjoyed this miniseries, which was shown in 2 parts on tv. I don't know if this is a BBC production but it certainly has the qualities of one. The sets and costumes are excellent and I found myself very much involved with the story and characters. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: truly entertaining
Review: I've just seen this movie on Bravo. I don't own the dvd but I have every intention of getting it. I've read Nicholas Nickleby at least a dozen times and each time the story is well told. Even while watching it on Bravo, I felt a lump come into my throat for the sister and brother and anger rise up at the uncle and yes, even at the stupidity of the mother. When a movie can still draw you in like that (even when you know what to expect) then it is truly a superb movie with truly excellent acting. This is absolutely a keeper.
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