Following up the pitch-black comedy of The Death Of Stalin with some Dickens might be an unusual step for a writer/director, but it's what Armando Iannucci is doing thanks to The Personal History Of David Copperfield. See the new trailer for the film, and find the poster lower down the page.
Writing alongside regular collaborator Simon Blackwell, avowed Dickens fan Iannucci here casts Dev Patel as the title character. From birth to infancy, from adolescence to adulthood, the good-hearted David Copperfield is surrounded by kindness, wickedness, poverty and wealth, as he meets an array of remarkable characters in Victorian England. As David sets out to be a writer, in his quest for family, friendship, romance and status, the story of his life is the most seductive tale of all.
Iannucci has loaded his cast with a top-notch ensemble around the lead, with the likes of Peter Capaldi (just a little less sweary than his usual form), Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Ben Whishaw, Paul Whitehouse and Gwendoline Christie.
With acclaim already surrounding it, The Personal History Of David Copperfield will open the London Film Festival and hits regular UK screens next year.