Nicholas Nickleby (2002 Film) - Plot

Plot

In a prologue we are introduced to the Nicklebys, who enjoy a comfortable life in the Devon countryside until the father dies and leaves his family with no source of income. Nineteen-year-old Nicholas, his mother, and his younger sister Kate venture to London to seek help from their wealthy, cold-hearted uncle Ralph, an investor who arranges for Nicholas to be hired as a tutor at Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire and finds Kate work as a seamstress.

Nicholas is horrified to discover his employers, the sadistic Mr and Mrs Squeers, run their boarding school like a prison and physically, verbally, and emotionally abuse their young charges on a regular basis. He eventually rebels and escapes, taking with him young crippled Smike. As they journey to London, they stumble upon a theatrical troupe owned and operated by Mr. and Mrs. Crummles. They cast them in a production of Romeo and Juliet, but despite a successful first night and the couple's invitation to stay, Nicholas is determined to continue their journey to London to learn how his mother and sister are faring.

Nicholas is reunited with his family, who welcome Smike as one of their own, and finds clerical employment with the friendly Cheeryble brothers. While thus employed, Nicholas makes the acquaintance of Madeline Bray, an artist who is the sole support of herself and her tyrannical father, him having gambled away his fortune and that of his late wife. Nicholas meanwhile discovers his sister Kate has been subjected to humiliating sexual attention from lecherous Sir Mulberry Hawk, a client of their uncle, who has encouraged the man to seduce his niece in the hope she will succumb and thus cement Hawk's business relationship with him. Nicholas' determination to defend his sister's honor leads his uncle to vow he will destroy the young man. What ensues is a series of adventures in which the upstanding Nicholas manages to survive the schemes of his evil uncle, including an attempt to return Smike to Squeers and an effort to abort Nicholas' growing relationship with Madeline by promising her father he will excuse his debts if the girl weds Hawk. Ralph's designs on Madeline are thwarted when her father dies unexpectedly. Unfortunately, Smike falls ill and soon dies. Soon after, a sinister secret Ralph has harbored for years surfaces, and it is revealed Smike was Ralph's son, whom he had thought dead. Realizing that his son had died the best friend of his most hated enemy, Ralph hangs himself. Nicholas marries Madeline and settles with her in Devon at his father's house and grounds, where Smike is buried.