A retelling of Charles Dickens's novel Oliver Twist (1838), moved to the present day and to the streets of Toronto. The story is told not from the point of view of the orphan, but from that of Dodge, a young man on the margins who takes Oliver under his wing and introduces him to drug use and prostitution. Their friendship becomes complicated when Oliver begins to see Dodge as his boyfriend, and Dodge does not share those feelings.

How it was made

The film was directed and written by Jacob Tierney and produced by Kevin Tierney. Nick Stahl and Joshua Close lead the cast, alongside Gary Farmer, Stephen McHattie and Emily Hampshire, among others. Dickens's story moves from nineteenth-century London to a contemporary urban setting, and the point of view shifts from the boy to the young man who becomes his guide. It is a Canadian drama with elements of LGBT cinema and the coming-of-age story.

Reception and legacy

Critical response was largely negative. Metacritic assigns it a score of 39 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. Its main interest for viewers lies in its reinterpretation of a classic of English literature in a contemporary urban key.

Stills

More films by Jacob Tierney

The Trotsky2009

Good Neighbours2010

Original Cinematopedia text based on Wikipedia (en) and Wikidata.