The 1968 musical film adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel that won Best Picture is Oliver! Oliver! adapts Dickens's 1838 novel Oliver Twist, following an orphan who escapes a workhouse and becomes entangled with a gang of child thieves in Victorian London.
Directed by Carol Reed, the film stars Mark Lester as Oliver, Ron Moody as Fagin, Oliver Reed as Bill Sikes, and Shani Wallis as Nancy. Its songs include “Food, Glorious Food,” “Consider Yourself,” and “As Long as He Needs Me,” with music and lyrics by Lionel Bart.
Oliver! won six Academy Awards from 11 nominations at the 41st ceremony, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Score. It was the first British film to win Best Picture since Hamlet and remained the most recent musical Best Picture winner until Chicago in 2003.
The other choices are also celebrated musicals, but they won in different years: My Fair Lady won for 1964, The Sound of Music for 1965, and The King and I did not win Best Picture.