Little Dorrit (1987 film)
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''Little Dorrit'' is a 1987 film adaptation of the 1857 novel ''
Little Dorrit ''Little Dorrit'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and 1857. The story features Amy Dorrit, youngest child of her family, born and raised in the Marshalsea prison for debtors in London. Arthur Cl ...
'' by
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
. It was written and directed by
Christine Edzard Christine Edzard (born 15 February 1945)Christine Edzard
IMDb. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
is a
John Brabourne John Ulick Knatchbull, 7th Baron Brabourne, (9 November 1924 – 23 September 2005), professionally known as John Brabourne, was a British peer, television producer and Oscar-nominated film producer. Married to the eldest daughter of the 1st ...
and Richard B. Goodwin. The music by
Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
was arranged by Michael Sanvoisin. The film stars
Derek Jacobi Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared in various stage productions of William Shakespeare such as ''Hamlet'', ''Much Ado About Nothing'', ''Macbeth'', ''Twelfth Night'', ''The Tempest'', ''King ...
as Arthur Clennam,
Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. After an early career on the stage, Guinness was featured in several of the Ealing comedies, including ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (194 ...
as William Dorrit, and Sarah Pickering in the title role. A huge cast of seasoned British and Irish stage and film actors was assembled to play the dozens of roles, including Simon Dormandy,
Joan Greenwood Joan Mary Waller Greenwood (4 March 1921 – 28 February 1987) was an English actress. Her husky voice, coupled with her slow, precise elocution, was her trademark. She played Sibella in the 1949 film ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'', and also app ...
,
Roshan Seth Roshan Seth (born 2 April 1942) is a British-Indian actor, writer and theatre director who has worked in the United Kingdom, United States and India. He began his acting career in the early 1960s in the UK, but left acting the following decade ...
,
Miriam Margolyes Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tora ...
,
Cyril Cusack Cyril James Cusack (26 November 1910 – 7 October 1993) was an Irish stage and screen actor with a career that spanned more than 70 years. During his lifetime, he was considered one of Ireland’s finest thespians, and was renowned for his int ...
and Max Wall. Pickering, in contrast, had never acted on screen; she was cast after writing to the production team claiming to 'be' Little Dorrit. It remains her only screen acting role.


Production

''Little Dorrit'' lasts nearly six hours and was released in two parts, of approximately three hours each. The first part was subtitled ''Nobody's Fault'', an allusion to one of Dickens' proposed titles for the original novel, and the story developed from the perspective and experiences of the Arthur Clennam character. The second film, titled ''Little Dorrit's Story'', took many of the same events and presented them through the eyes of the heroine. Together they represented overlapping chronicles. Sands Films, the production company that made the film, is run by
Christine Edzard Christine Edzard (born 15 February 1945)Christine Edzard
IMDb. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
is a
http://www.sandsfilms.co.uk/shop.html


Full cast

In addition, minor roles were played by:
Michael Elphick Michael John Elphick (19 September 1946 – 7 September 2002) was an English film and television actor. He played the eponymous private investigator in the ITV series ''Boon'' and Harry Slater in BBC's ''EastEnders''. He was nominated for ...
, Arthur Blake,
Eleanor Bron Eleanor Bron (born 14 March 1938) is an English stage, film and television actress, and an author. Her film roles include Ahme in the Beatles musical ''Help!'' (1965), the Doctor in '' Alfie'' (1966), Margaret Spencer in '' Bedazzled'' (1967), a ...
,
Heathcote Williams John Henley Heathcote-Williams (15 November 1941 – 1 July 2017), known as Heathcote Williams, was an English poet, actor, political activist and dramatist. He wrote a number of book-length polemical poems including ''Autogeddon'', ''Falling ...
,
John Savident John Savident (born 21 January 1938) is a retired British actor, known for his numerous television roles, including his portrayal of Fred Elliott in the soap opera '' Coronation Street'' from 1994-2006. He is also known for his performance as ...
,
Betty Marsden Betty Marsden (24 February 1919 – 18 July 1998) was an English comedy actress. She is particularly remembered as a cast member of the radio series '' Beyond Our Ken'' and ''Round the Horne''. Marsden also appeared in two Carry On films, ''Carr ...
, Liz Smith,
Brian Pettifer Brian Pettifer (born 1953) is a British actor who has appeared in many television shows, and also on stage and in film. He is the younger brother of folk musician Linda Thompson. Biography He intended to become a photographer, but pursued a career ...
,
Kathy Staff Kathy Staff (born Minnie Higginbottom; 12 July 1928 – 13 December 2008) was an English actress known for her work on British television. She is best known for her portrayal of Nora Batty in ''Last of the Summer Wine'', the longest running sit ...
, Ian Hogg,
Tony Jay Tony Jay (2 February 1933 – 13 August 2006) was a British actor. A former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he was known for his voice work in radio, animation, film, and video games. Jay was particularly noted for his distinctive bari ...
, Julia Lang,
Christopher Hancock Christopher Anthony Arthur Hancock (5 June 1928 – 29 September 2004) was a British television and theatre actor. He was born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England. His brother was actor Stephen Hancock. He and his brother trained a ...
,
Malcolm Tierney Malcolm Tierney (25 February 1938 – 18 February 2013) was an English actor who appeared in many film and television roles. Early life Tierney's father, Ernest, was a boilermaker and trained draughtsman, from Warrington, who worked at Blackpoo ...
, John Warner,
Harold Innocent Harold Sidney Innocent (18 April 1933 – 12 September 1993) was an English actor who appeared in many film and television roles. After attending Broad Street Secondary Modern School in Coventry, Innocent worked for a short time as an office c ...
, Edward Burnham,
Gerald Campion Gerald Theron Campion (23 April 1921 – 9 July 2002) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his role as Billy Bunter in a 1950s television adaptation ('' Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School'') of books by Frank Richards (Charles Hamil ...
, Nadia Chambers and
David Thewlis David Wheeler (born 20 March 1963), better known as David Thewlis (), is a British actor, author, director and screenwriter. Thewlis rose to prominence when he starred in the film ''Naked'' (1993), for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Aw ...
.


See also

*
List of longest films by running time A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...


References


External links

* * * * * * *
Sands Films
(production company and DVD)
''Little Dorrit''
film trailer 1987 films British historical drama films Films based on Little Dorrit 1980s historical drama films Golan-Globus films Films released in separate parts 1987 drama films 1980s English-language films 1980s British films {{historic-film-stub