As I recall, I took in a screening of 1968’s Oliver! as a very young child, and it was something I'd remembered semi-positively, largely because my father thought it was such a great movie. I didn't see it again until it was shown to us during my eighth grade English class.

Well, whatever positive thoughts I had about the film prior to that time went straight out the window. This was 32 years ago now so I don't remember what specifically I disliked about Oliver! other than I just thought it sucked. (Really, what more do you need when you're 14?)

Surely age has mellowed me somewhat and I'd be more receptive to the giddy charms of Oliver! at this stage of my life. And you know what?

I still dislike the film as much as I did when I was 14. Clearly I've matured over the last 42 years since I can now better articulate why I disliked Oliver!.

When I was 14, all I thought was that it "sucked." Now that I'm 41 I can fully recognize that it "really sucks”.

Set in 1830s England, Oliver Twist (Mark Lester) lives in a workhouse for orphans. Facility governor Mr. Bumble (Harry Secombe) sells Oliver to mortician Mr Sowerberry (Leonard Rossiter), but this goes poorly and Oliver flees.

Oliver settles in London, where young thief “Artful Dodger” (Jack Wild) recruits him for a gang of young pickpockets headed by “fatberly” Fagin (Ron Moody). Oliver adapts to his new “family” and finds other new options that challenge his stability.

As strange as it feels to say this about a film "freely adapted" from a classic novel, Oliver! seems frightfully thin on plot and it also appears radically overextended. It doesn't seem like a whole lot happens during the film's two and a half hour running time - certainly not enough to sustain such a length, as we get maybe an hour's worth of actual story at best.

Otherwise, the movie's 14 - yes, that's right, 14 - musical numbers dominate the affair. The cloying little ditties of Oliver! become absolutely inescapable.

153 minutes divided by 14 songs equals one song every ten minutes or so, which doesn’t sound like that much. But these aren't brief two or three minute quickies, so it's not like you get one song for every seven or so minutes of story.

No, lots of these numbers go on and on (and on, and on). Literally the first two-thirds of the film consists almost totally of music with very little spoken dialogue.

It's clear many exist simply to fill space. Most of them go on far too long, as well, so almost every number tries to be a "show stopper" as a cast of thousands dances and warbles across the screen.

Maybe musical fans eat this up, but I'd think even they would get tired of it. I certainly know that I did.

If the excessive amount of time devoted to music didn’t turn me off Oliver! the acting would have did the trick. Oliver! was adapted from a stage musical, and it shows in the overly broad performances.

It's unclear to me how many of the actors got their start on the stage. However, almost all of them over-emote and use tricks that seem much better suited to the broadness required by the live setting.

In this regard, I found almost all of the adult actors to be at fault. You could practically see them pause as they wait for the laughter or applause to die down before they deliver their next lines.

I doubt they could have made a sequel to Oliver!, as they would have wanted to reuse the sets, but they were destroyed by the scenery-chewing of these actors. It looked to me like they all needed Ritalin.

Of all the adults, only Oliver Reed as Bill Sikes works because he offers an appropriate air of menace and danger. Reed also gets off without a song, which may have been the only bit of conservative thinking in this production. Clearly it would have been much harder to view Sikes as much of a villain if he spent his time singing and dancing.

The remainder of the lead cast features the two children, Lester and Wild. Lester is a fairly bland kid who seems to have gotten the role mainly because he's so darned cute, but he makes for a mildly compelling presence, so I almost sort of cared about him from time to time.

Wild becomes less successful, if just because he has the more interesting character. His Dodger lacks the charm and magnetism that he needs, and he largely tends to blend into the scenery.

Really, the best piece of acting in the film comes from the dog who plays Sikes' sidekick Bullseye. Toward the end of the movie he sees just how brutal Sikes really is and he turns on him.

That dog truly conveys his conflicting emotions as he decides to do the right thing. He's the scraggliest looking mutt I've ever seen, but Bullseye is the only participant who shows any realistic emotions or any actual character development. Bullseye rules!

Unfortunately the same cannot be said for the film. It's an overly long, uninteresting mockery of a classic novel.

What was the Academy smoking when they saw fit to name Oliver! Best Picture of 1968, and can I get some? That must have been some good stuff!

Oliver! appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this 4K UHD disc. Expect a solid presentation here.

For the most part, sharpness seemed satisfying. Due to the nature of the photography, some mild softness materialized at times, but most of the film became accurate and well-defined.

I noticed no issues with jagged edges or shimmering, and edge haloes remained absent. Print flaws also failed to materialize.

Colors tended toward a low-key vibe to match the grimy setting of working-class England. Nonetheless, the hues felt appropriately depicted and boasted nice range when brighter elements appeared. In addition, HDR gave the colors added vivacity and punch.

Blacks appeared deep and tight, while low-light shots became smooth and clear – again, within the constraints of the original photography. HDR gave whites and contrast extra power. This turned into a fine presentation.

I felt more conflicted when it came to the overly ambitious Dolby Atmos soundtrack of Oliver!. Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the soundscape tended to use the various speakers in a way that didn’t feel especially natural.

While the front soundstage brought good stereo presence as well as some movement from effects, I thought the back speakers played too heavy a role. This meant localization felt less precise than it should, and the soundfield could seem somewhat vague and blobby at times.

Audio quality seemed dated but good. Unsurprisingly, music worked best, as the score and songs felt warm and vivid.

Effects appeared acceptable for their age, though they tended to seem somewhat tinny and a bit rough at times. Dialogue also appeared somewhat stiff, though the lines always remained intelligible.

The disc also came with a DTS-HD MA 2.0 track that felt more satisfying than the Atmos mix, mainly because it came across as better integrated. The 2.0 track lacked the ambition of the Atmos version, and I regarded that as a positive.

The 2.0 version – as well as its DTS-HD MA 5.1 counterpart – focused more heavily on the forward channels, where we got fine stereo music and an appealing sense of place. The surrounds added some reinforcement but didn’t become as prominent as during the Atmos mix.

I thought this seemed like a better fit with the material. For those who want a track to become as active as possible, the Atmos will work best, but I preferred the more organic 2.0 and 5.1 versions.

Normally I would compare the 4K to the movie’s Blu-ray version, but that becomes impossible right now – at least in terms of comparisons between the 4K and any Blu-ray available on the market separately. Twilight Time put out Oliver! on BD in 2013, and then Sony produced their own BD of the film in 2018.

The Blu-ray included in this set offers a new disc that only appears here – for the time being, at least, as it seems possible it eventually gets a standalone release. If that happens, I’ll review it, but until/unless that time, it makes no sense to compare the 4K to a Blu-ray no one can buy on its own.

No extras appear on the 4K disc itself, but a mix of features show up on this aforementioned Blu-ray, and we start with an audio commentary from film historian Steven C. Smith. He offers a running, screen-specific look at the life/career of author Charles Dickens, the source novel and its adaptation, the musical’s origins and path to the screen, cast and crew, changes between the stage musical and the movie, and related topics.

Smith delivers a pretty terrific commentary. He touches on a strong mix of subjects and makes this an engaging and informative chat.

Next comes a Jack Wild Screen Test. This one-minute, 26-second clip offers what the title implies and lets us see Wild’s audition. It becomes a brief but fun addition.

From 1968, we find a Behind the Scenes Featurette. It goes for seven minutes, 35 seconds and get a few notes from choreographer Onna White, director Carol Reed and composer John Green.

However, we mostly hear from a narrator and see a mix of shots from the set and movie clips. The program lacks great substance – and looks awful – but it brings a few decent glimpses of the production.

For the next two featurettes, we concentrate on the movie’s lead actors. Meeting Oliver! lasts 14 minutes, 43 seconds, and looks at Mark Lester, while Meeting Fagin! spans 13 minutes, 21 seconds and concentrates on Ron Moody.

Each one offers an interview with the respective actors, as the performers talk about their casting in the flick and their experiences during the shoot. Both men give us many interesting and fun thoughts about their time on the film.

The Locations of Oliver! allows you to click on various parts of London and learn a little more about them via video clips. With a total running time of four minutes, 37 seconds, these provide interesting basics about the spots found in Oliver! and their use in the film.

Sing-Alongs cover eight songs and take up a total of 36 minutes, nine seconds. These just show movie clips and run the lyrics along the bottom of the screen.

This concept gets a twist with Dance-Alongs, as a dancer demonstrates the steps for each number. With a total running time of 12 minutes, 53 second, the feature accompanies “I’d Do Anything”, “Food Glorious Food!”, “Be Back Soon”.

I have no idea how many viewers will want to dance along with the flick, but it’s kind of a clever component.

Dance and Sing-Alongs combines these two features for the three songs mentioned above. We see the dance instructor on the right side of the screen while the movie with lyrics runs on the left.

Unlike the prior tutorial, the teacher provides no formal instructions, so she just dances. This seems more pointless than the previous “Dance-Alongs”.

Finally, the disc ends with three trailers for the film.

If one wrote a short list of the worst ever Oscar Best Picture Winners, Oliver! demands to land on it. Even when I try to account for my general dislike of musicals, I cannot find much here to appeal to the viewer. The 4K UHD offers very good picture, acceptable audio and a positive set of supplements. While I dislike the movie, this release treats it well.

Note that as of October 2022, the 4K UHD disc of Oliver! can be purchased only as part of a six-movie “Columbia Classics Collection Volume 2”. This set also includes 4K UHD versions of The Social Network, Anatomy of a Murder, Stripes, Sense and Sensibility and Taxi Driver.

To rate this film, visit the DVD review of OLIVER!