Great Expectations

Finn Bell, a young fisherman's son from a small Florida town, meets Estella, the niece of the wealthy and eccentric Ms. Dinsmoor, and becomes devoted to her from childhood onward. She treats him with a coldness that never shakes his obsession. Years later, thanks to money from an unnamed benefactor, Finn moves to New York to work as a painter, and Estella re-enters his life there just as he is gaining recognition and she is preparing to marry. Their renewed involvement revives both his long-held hopes and his deepest fears. The film is a contemporary retelling of Charles Dickens's novel Great Expectations, set in the American South and New York, with the protagonist reimagined as an artist.

Alfonso Cuarón directed the film, his second English-language feature, following A Little Princess in 1995 and preceding Y Tu Mamá También in 2001. Mitch Glazer wrote the screenplay, and Art Linson produced for 20th Century Fox and The Linson Company. Ethan Hawke plays Finn and Gwyneth Paltrow plays Estella, with Anne Bancroft as Ms. Dinsmoor, Robert De Niro as the escaped prisoner Lustig, Chris Cooper as Joe, and Hank Azaria as Walter Plane, among a credited cast of 56. The production had a budget of 25 million dollars and returned 55 million dollars worldwide.

On IMDb the film holds a rating of 6.8 from around 60,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.7 from 717 votes, indicating a modest but durable level of interest. A film critics' rating of 5.7 from 37 reviews places it below both audience scores.