Welcome, folks, to Dev Patel Day! After this morning’s unveiling of the first look teaser for David Lowery’s “The Green Knight” (which looks pretty great), Searchlight Pictures is getting in on the festivities by showing a new trailer for the upcoming Patel-starring film, “The Personal History of David Copperfield.”
From filmmaker Armando Iannucci, ‘David Copperfield’ puts a unique spin on the classic Charles Dickens tale. The film follows the story of the title character (Patel), as he rises from impoverished orphan to up-and-coming writer in Victorian England. However, as you might expect from a film directed by Iannucci, who is probably best known for his work on series such as “Veep” and the films “In the Loop” and “The Death of Stalin,” this version of Dickens’ story is far from ordinary.
In our review of the film, after screening it at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, we weren’t completely sold and said, “Iannucci’s ‘The Personal History of David Copperfield’ —outside of several laughs and a few charming moments—is never risky enough to sufficiently explore the deeper and modern issue of class division and those who can’t even climb up the ladder to fall.”
Searchlight Pictures is releasing “The Personal History of David Copperfield” in theaters on May 8 in the US. The film has already begun its run in the UK and other select territories.
Here’s the synopsis:
THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD re-imagines Charles Dickens’ classic ode to grit and perseverance through the comedic lens of its award-winning filmmakers— giving the Dickensian tale new life for a cosmopolitan age with a diverse ensemble cast of stage and screen actors from across the world. Emmy® winners and Oscar® nominees Armando Iannucci (IN THE LOOP, THE DEATH OF STALIN, HBO’S Veep) and Simon Blackwell (IN THE LOOP, HBO’S Succession) lend their wry, yet heart-filled storytelling style to revisiting Dickens’ iconic hero on his quirky journey from impoverished orphan to burgeoning writer in Victorian England.
