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Great Expectations

Play trailer Poster for Great Expectations R 1998 1h 51m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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41% Tomatometer 37 Reviews 58% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
Loosely based on the Charles Dickens' classic novel, "Great Expectations" is a sensual tale of a young man's unforgettable passage into manhood, and the three individuals who will undeniably change his life forever. Through the surprising interactions of these vivid characters, "Great Expectations" takes a unique and contemporary look at life's great coincidences.
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Great Expectations

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Critics Consensus

Great Expectations is all surface tension: beautiful people shot in beautiful locations without any depth or emotion.

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Critics Reviews

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Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times 01/01/2000
3/4
The film is a successful translation of the basic material from one period and approach to another. Especially in the early Florida scenes, it seems timeless. Go to Full Review
Joe Botten Loud and Clear Reviews Aug 4
4/5
It's a gorgeously flawed gem, one that manages to be genuinely seductive despite, or perhaps because of, its imperfections. Go to Full Review
Dan DiNicola The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY) 01/19/2023
B+
The film has a defining contemporary hipness, and features good work by Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow. But it's more a meditation on its source than a filming of it. Go to Full Review
PJ Nabarro Patrick Nabarro 01/27/2019
3/5
Where the film fails is in its commercial proclivity to centre the narrative trajectory around a fairly asinine updating of the Pip/Estella love-match into a soppy romance. Go to Full Review
Grace Montgomery Common Sense Media 06/08/2016
3/5
Visually stunning retelling has nudity, lots of swearing. Go to Full Review
Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy 09/22/2013
5/10
Cuarn and company end up throwing all the style they've got at the film... to compensate for a perpetually stalled drama. Go to Full Review
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David O @Olsendm04 17h One of the dumbest movies I have ever seen. Lacked depth. Don’t recommend. See more K K Nov 14 We are lucky in many ways, to have actors who understand the medium, they are also movie stars. This does not always happen, someone that can and does offer both. Ethan Hawke again in Great Expectations, proves these points. Although Hawke does not come across as, say, Anthony Hopkins, Ian McKellen, those British type actors who I find just get recognition of being ACTORS by their country of birth. Well, not quite, and Hopkins and McKellen are two of the best actors in history. One has to consider Hawke up there too, and he still has some years to catch Hopkins and Mckellen, who both really became movie stars way later than Hawke. The beauty of movies is that who knows when and where actors of this caliber will appear. I would wager to guess if one asked Hopkins and McKellen their thoughts on Hawke as a movie, TV and stage actor, they would applaud him in all three. Not all actors can do these different mediums to the level Hawke has done. OK enough with the homage to Hawke, which really comes from him being fearless and taking on horror or scary movie roles, from Sinister to Black Phone 1 and 2 (these films show how impactful movie stars can act impact and help a studio like Blumhouse. Hawke really saved the day for Black Phone 2 and Blumhouse Slump)and did it with the same commitment as the work some same is more important; stage and dramatic TV and movie roles. I don't agree, as horror and scare is a fantastic genre that really allows for something special. Yet it takes good actor, director, script to make it work. Hawke has created GRABBER in Black Phone movies, and now I wait to see if a prequel giving more air time to Hawke happens, perhaps one closer to a physiological scare drama, some heavy-hitting drama with some gore and slash to keep it in the genre like Black Phone but with the ability to get past biases with Academy and places that discount horror. Demi Moore has done so with Substance. Yet for this role, a more classic tale from our greatest literature and Hawke took on Finnegan "Finn" Bell, and Hawke nailed this part in one of the better movies of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Overall, I love these types of movies when the actors can handle the role and deliver the goods. Hawke did here, and yes, of course, we got some fuel in front of Hawke in the face and at least kissed Gwyneth Paltrow as Estella. Although perhaps if a prequel to Black Phone happens, the producer and director will demand Hawke as the Grabber, give it all up, remove the mask full-on frontal so we can see all the Grabber. The actors using their bodies as Grabber by Hawke in Black Phone 1 kitchen scenes prove how vital it is. Women have been doing it, giving it all up for us to take in the physical aspects of the characters as Paltrow did here in Great Expectations as Estella in the paintings which are her body images. The kissing two of these two brought chemistry the needed element to the relationship Finn and Estella shared. WOW smoking chemistry. I like the evolved usage of bodies in modern cinema compared to the classic time. The human body is art. So yes it would be excellent to see the character operates as Grabber from the inside out! I would imagine an actor of Hawke's caliber would be UP for the challenge. Enjoy this movie and, yes, I know this is more about Hawke overall, other movies, but that is what makes Hawke so good in this role, his whole body of work, which, by the way, has some of the widest acting range we have seen by an actor in the last 50 years. Horror, drama, thrillers, action, sci-fi and more, check Hawke out! This is a great holiday and New Years movie to watch! See more thiago s @Thiagostone Sep 27 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Jeremy W Jun 28 This was a brillaint adaptation. - a little slim on the values it is true. But wow! Gwyneth Paltrow - she needs to act so much more. She is amazing. See more Eye C @ECinc May 27 I've watched this film as a young fellow, and then it doesn't work for me just the music, but now this felted different. Mr. Cuaron makes a beautiful movie, with an excellent soundtrack, one of my favorites sountracks of all times. See more alan g @agenser 01/25/2025 Read the book. Horribly acted. Unworthy of the source material. See more Read all reviews
Great Expectations

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Movie Info

Synopsis Loosely based on the Charles Dickens' classic novel, "Great Expectations" is a sensual tale of a young man's unforgettable passage into manhood, and the three individuals who will undeniably change his life forever. Through the surprising interactions of these vivid characters, "Great Expectations" takes a unique and contemporary look at life's great coincidences.
Director
Alfonso Cuarón
Producer
Art Linson
Screenwriter
Charles Dickens, Mitch Glazer
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
Twentieth Century Fox, Art Linson Productions
Rating
R (Some Sexuality|Language)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 30, 1998, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$26.3M
Runtime
1h 51m
Sound Mix
Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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