Orphelin de naissance, Oliver Twist semble subir une vie marquée par la déveine et l'hostilité. S'échappant de la pension putride de Mudfog tenue par l'injuste Mr. Bumble, il rejoint Londres au prix d'une longue et épuisante marche. Il y fait alors la connaissance de Fagin, homme roublard qui initie les gamins des rues à l'art du chapardage. Accusé à tort d'un larcin qu'il n'a pas commis, le courageux Oliver est innocenté par Mr. Brownlow lors de son procès. Son destin semble alors prendre une nouvelle tournure...

Sikes escapes back to London with a badly wounded Oliver, and Nancy nurses him, determined to save his life. Mr Bumble declares his love for Mrs Corney. Rose continues to search for Oliver, but is discovered by Monks, who tells Brownlow of her secret mission

Despite Corney and Bumble's attempts to extort money from him, Monks quickly gets the upper hand and leaves with the necklace, letter and a page of the register recording Oliver's birth. Nancy cares for Oliver, promising that she will get him back to the safety of the Brownlows. Dodger, however, is aware of Nancy's betrayal, putting her in grave danger.

At the moment, wicked Bill Sikes (Tom Hardy) has the boy in his clutches, but nasty Monks (a slyly charming Julian Rhind-Tutt) is also on his trail. Of course, as this is a well-loved and well-read piece of English literature, there's not much mystery as to the outcome. But the pace keeps up nicely and there is still some tension as poor, ill-used little Oliver (William Miller) is bundled from one set of grubby hands to another, while his benefactor Mr Brownlow (Edward Fox) tries to rescue him from a life of crime and penury. There are some unpleasant bits that might alarm younger children, but they can rest assured that all will turn out for the best.