--- title: "Great Expectations: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/great-expectations-2012/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/great-expectations-2012" critics_score: 55 critics_reviews: 13 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Great Expectations (2012): what the critics said Critics' score 55 from 13 reviews: 1 positive, 9 mixed, 3 negative. Most critics find Mike Newell’s Great Expectations watchable and well performed, but too cautious to make a persuasive case for another adaptation. Praise clusters around the supporting cast, particularly Helena Bonham Carter’s Miss Havisham and Ralph Fiennes’s Magwitch, who provide much of the energy and feeling the reviews find missing elsewhere. Several critics also admire the production’s handsome appearance, though that polish does not settle doubts about its emotional force. The spread runs from enjoyment with reservations to disappointment, with most reviews sitting between those positions. Eye for Film is the most enthusiastic, especially about Bonham Carter and her elaborate wedding costume. The young leads divide opinion: Total Film praises the central romance and its performances, while IndieWire faults Jeremy Irvine. Complaints otherwise centre on compression, familiarity and a reluctance to take risks; some find the film attractive but safe, others grim or drab. ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 13 December 2012. The review finds Newell’s adaptation enjoyable despite its uneven young leads, with the experienced cast providing much of its appeal. It especially praises Helena Bonham Carter for revealing Miss Havisham’s hidden passion. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/great-expectations-cert-12a-129-mins-review-8371356.html) ## Screen Daily — Mark Adams Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 11 September 2012. The accessible page identifies this as Mark Adams’s review, but its verdict is behind the paywall. No specific praise or complaint is visible in the available text. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/great-expectations/5046436.article) ## IndieWire — Jason Anderson Rating C+. 11 September 2012. Festival review. Anderson finds the adaptation stiff and ultimately superfluous, despite its strong production and cast. He praises Helena Bonham Carter and Ralph Fiennes as effective casting choices, while criticizing Jeremy Irvine’s performance and the condensed screenplay. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/tiff-capsule-review-great-expectations-241666/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 29 November 2012. Bradshaw finds the adaptation watchable and accessible, but less emotionally powerful than Dickens’s story. He praises the performances, especially the cameo turns by Sally Hawkins and David Walliams. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/nov/29/great-expectations-review) ## Time Out — Cath Clarke Rating 3/5. 27 November 2012. The available metadata frames this as another adaptation arriving soon after a television version. It poses the question of what distinguishes Mike Newell and David Nicholls’s take, but the page provides no further verdict or praise to report. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/great-expectations-4) ## Total Film — Kate Stables Rating 3/5. 26 November 2012. Stables finds the adaptation visually beautiful and well acted, but too cautious and rushed to do justice to Dickens. She singles out the central romance and the leads’ performances as what lifts it above its cosy approach. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/great-expectations-3-review/) ## Variety — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 11 September 2012. Festival review. Chang finds the adaptation competent but uninspired, with its pleasures too meager to match Dickens’s novel. He praises Helena Bonham Carter and Ralph Fiennes for their vivid scene-stealing performances. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2012/film/markets-festivals/great-expectations-2-1117948302/) ## Los Angeles Times — Annlee Ellingson Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 9 November 2013. Ellingson calls the adaptation skillful and well performed, but says it adds little to the canon and feels rushed near the end. She praises the performances, especially those of the young leads and the supporting cast. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-cm-great-expectations-review-20131109-story.html) ## Radio Times — Stella Papamichael Rating 2/5. Papamichael finds the adaptation grim and cheerless. She singles out Ralph Fiennes and Helena Bonham Carter as its high points. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-ubr9bn/great-expectations/) ## Empire — Guy Lodge Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 11 November 2011. Lodge finds the adaptation handsome and watchable but too safe to justify another retelling. He praises Jeremy Irvine’s appealing Pip and the film’s pacing, while faulting it for offering little that earlier versions have not done better. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/great-expectations-3-review/) ## Eye for Film — Maria Realf Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 27 November 2012. The review finds Mike Newell’s adaptation enjoyable and visually sumptuous despite questioning whether another version was needed. It particularly praises Helena Bonham Carter’s Miss Havisham and her elaborate wedding costume. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/great-expectations-2012-film-review-by-maria-realf) ## HeyUGuys — Lisa Giles-Keddie Rating 3/5. 27 November 2012. The reviewer finds Newell’s adaptation safe and unremarkable, though still an admirable watch for Dickens fans. She praises Jeremy Irvine and Holliday Grainger’s compelling portrayals of Pip and Estella. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/great-expectations-review/) ## Digital Spy — Stella Papamichael Rating 2. 26 November 2012. The review finds the adaptation too grey, drab and meandering, despite its strong supporting cast. It particularly praises Ralph Fiennes’s textured performance as Magwitch and his gentle outpouring near the end. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a438482/great-expectations-review-mike-newell-retells-charles-dickens-classic/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/great-expectations-2012.md