The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019) - The Most Modern Dickens' Adaptation
I thought Dev Patel's best movie and performance to date was Lion (2016). Although, he was Oscar-nominated for the former, he deserved not only a nod but a win here for The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019) based on the eponymous character created by Charles Dickens. But this is not just another Victorian Era film based on a classic novel - this is the most modern Dickens' adaptation ever directed by Armando Iannucci with a screenplay co-written by him and Simon Blackwell.
This movie has perfect pacing for a flick of this genre. Every minute seems to be an adventure and Iannucci proves you can breathe life into legendary works by adapting them in a modern way. The character design, the dialogues, the cinematography create an unparalleled mise-en-scene. I particularly love how colorful the movie is - not only looks wise - but character wise as well.
Although, we have some stereotypical characters whose intentions you can guess early on before they make a move, they are so well constructed that it is hard to find one major or minor individual who doesn't affect the viewer in some way.
The black comedy element is the finest aspect. Half satire, half sociological criticism, the movie never gets too serious or too jolly to escape its major goal - and that is exposing classicism which still exists in current society regardless of which country you are based in.
Dev Patel steals the show but the entire ensemble gave noteworthy performances and I cannot single out any of the major or minor performers as they were equally glorious, and kudos to filmmaker Iannucci for handling such a diverse line-up of performers and characters.
The set design is also wonderful and you feel like you are in Victorian England. No prop seems fake or no costume seems artificial. Without the vibrant cinematography by Zak Nicholson, this movie would not have such a positive effect on me, because it is one of those rare fictional-historical dramas which book look good and make you feel good.
All in all, The Personal History of David Copperfield does suffer from Victorian Era tropes - with a screenplay seeming to be based more on a story by Horatio Alger than Charles Dickens - yet these flaws are minuscule in comparison to how well everything was constructed. I don't remember the last flick I awarded a perfect score to, but I will be remember this 2019 rendition of David Copperfield for all of time.
The Rating: 4 out of 4.
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