To think Fagin isn’t a bad man really.

[Duffmcstockings]

He is just a product of his environment, and considerably better than the people who run the workhouse.

the bit at the end of the film where he's taking his silver and running away there's some lyrics about sending men to the hangman's noose. IT is in there, if you listen to the words rather than humming along to the jaunty tune.

Basically, the musical does make it all more lighthearted than the book. Even Mr Bumble, in the musical he seems more like a bumbling fool than someone bad (particularly when he says, 'The law is an ass.' They're all more like comedy characters.