Little Dorrit is period drama and adaptation of the work of the great Charles Dickens. It debuted March 26, 2008 on BBC. 

The story begins with an Introduction of William Dorrit (Tom Courtenay) inside the Marshalsea Debtors Prison, which is located in Marseilles, France. He is free to walk around his cell, as well as his friends and family members are free to come and go as they please. His daughter, Amy, Little Dorrit (Claire Foy) works dillegently sewing for the town’s people to provide for her father and herself. Unlike, her sister, Fanny (Emma Pierson) who is pretentious and acts all high and mighty, Amy is a very hard working, kind soul. The unproductive brother, Edward, just seems to go with the flow.

Amy is currently working for the very wealthy Mrs. Clennam (Judy Parfitt), who is debiliated and confined to a wheelchair. Mrs. Clennam is a very discordant lady that most people find very hard to tolerate. Her dedicated servant and his wife, Affrey (Sue Johnston) work deligently to keep the Clennam family business running and Mrs. Clennam content, which is a very difficult job, indeed.

Mrs. Clennam’s son, Arthur (Matthew Macfadyen, Ripper Street) returns from London to give his mother a strange item that his father had given him before he passed away. At the time he did not understand it’s meaning but he was sure that his father wanted his mother to have it because he murmered the worlds “mother” when he handed it to him. It would prove to be a very valuable item that held a multitude of secrets. 

Arthur discovers that William is in the debtors prison and tries to connect his being there with his mother. Arthur took it upon himself to help William in his moment of need, which would be repaid in ten folds, later on down the road. Amy feels beholden to Arthur for his kindness and she falls head over hills in love with him, but he never seems to notice.

Arthur becomes business partners with a struggling inventor, Daniel Doyce (Zubin Varla). Would this prove to be the end or the beginning of his true wealth?

William is awarded with a mere fortune when it is discovered that he is a soul beneficiary of a large enheritence and he decides to pack up his belongings and his family for a tour of Europe. Amy, broken hearted, reluctantly relents to her father’s wishes but joins him on his adventure.

Arthur is trying to find a good wife to marry when he meets paths with a former fiance’, Flora Finching (Ruth Jones) who he now finds repulsive. He also meets a beautiful woman, Pet Gowan (Georgia King) that he takes interest in, but only meets with disapointment because she is in love with another.

William becomes ill and passes away while he is in Rome and his family is shocked to find out that they have no inheritance thanks to Mr. Merdle (Anton Lesser), who earned his living by bunco gaming everyone he came into contact with including Mr. Dorrit and Arthur Clennam. What would happen to their poor children?

Amy returns to Marseilles to find that Arthur is now locked up in the debtors prison and he has been tainted with some sort of illness. She becomes his caretaker until he becomes well. Throughout the entire process of being poor, becoming wealthy, and poor again, Amy’s disposition on life never changed.

The mysterious item begins to reveal it’s true meaning, to which Mrs. Clennam knew all along. She feels so conscience-stricken that she miraculously gets up from her wheelchair and walks outside to afformally apoligize to Amy and beg for her forgiveness. Amy does not hesitate to oblige her.

Arthur and Amy are rewarded greatly for their kind heartedness. Will Arthur realize how much Amy cares for him? Will they live happily ever after? Or will John Chivery (Russell Tovey) steal Little Amy Dorrit’s heart?

Review

This movie is a conversion of Charles Dicken’s novel to the small screen. The writers and producers did an excellent job sticking to the original plot. I have been a big fan of Mathew Macfadyen since I watched Ripper Street and he did not disapoint in Little Dorrit. All of the actors performed superbly and brought their characters to life without a hitch. 

BBC really knows how to blow it how of the water with these period dramas. 

This mini series deserves 8.5 out of 10. The series is currently available for Amazon Prime members.