A beleaguered young orphan named Oliver (Alex Trench) is cast into a life of bondage, until he escapes to London in the 1830s where he meets a dubious boy named Jack (Elijah Wood) who is called the Artful Dodger. Jack works with a group of pickpocket urchins under the control of Fagin (Richard Dreyfuss). Oliver does not really fit in and has a locket that proves he is of somewhat important birth, lost to his family. When he becomes the ward of Mr. Brownlow (Anthony Finnegan), Fagin’s accomplice named Sikes (David O’Hara) plots to kidnap Oliver and use him against his new rich friends. Mr. Brownlow, however coincidental, may be Oliver’s real grandfather and becomes obsessed with finding him.