David Copperfield

Bumping the thread as I caught this yesterday and sorry it came & went in the cinema without much fuss. An absolute treat. A joyous, effortless romp of a film; almost breathlessly paced, mining a distinctly comedic approach to Copperfield's life than the more tragic tone of Dickens' original work. Given Ianucci's CV, the very existence of this project deserves respect, as comedy artists rarely step out of their comfort zone. The near polar opposite to "Death of Stalin". While little of Ianucci's trademark barbed humour was present, it was replaced instead with high spirits and an abundance of empathy or decency, his natural wit and instincts intact.

Maybe the Dickens purists would crib at the rejigging of those themes and tone, but the feature was like a beautifully balanced dessert: sweet but not saccharine; beautifully plated (with almost Gilliam'esque compositions and surrealist touches); easy to enjoy, while leaving a pleasant afterglow in its wake. The entire cast were magnetic, but Dev Patel carried the whole thing with infectious charisma. If there was one quibble in the whole production, it was that the pace was nearly too breakneck, resulting in a slightly rushed last act. 

ShineOn7 wrote: »

I'm a big fan of Ianucci's so will definitely check

You write reviews with great aplomb by the way, I'm guessing you blog for a film website or similar?

Ha, flattered but no; I write as a hobby, that's it. No designs on film criticism, but do think it's important that I at least try to articulate the sensations I got from a film - especially the ones I genuinely enjoyed (or sometimes, really hated 'cos rants are cathartic lol).

Maybe it's just the mood of the times, but this quickly shot up my list of Films of the Year.

I've heard Iannucci's "Avenue 5" isn't the best, and has struggled to capture the same comedic heights he previously set so been slow to pick that one up.