Ralph Fiennes (who also directs) shines as the most famous writer of his day, novelist Charles Dickens, who had a secret affair with 18-year-old actress Nelly Ternan (Felicity Jones, Like Crazy). Dickens was 45 and at the top of his fame when he met the beautiful young actress, performing in a troupe with her sisters, and was immediately struck. Her pragmatic mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) encouraged Nelly to welcome the interest of such a famous man, even if she can never become his wife. At first Nelly resists, but Dickens makes her the focus of his passion and his muse, and they embark on an affair, lasting 13 years until his death, that must always remain secret, forcing Nelly to hide her deepest feelings in “invisibility.” The gorgeous period production catches the repression of the Victorian era and its fear of scandal. Fiennes gives an energetic, theatrical performance as Dickens, larger than life, often performing for his many admirers, but emotionally isolated, cruel to the wife he no longer cares for (Joanna Scanlon), yearning for close companionship and understanding that he finds with Nelly. The insightful screenplay is by Abi Morgan (Shame, The Iron Lady).
Rated R; 1 hour 51 minutes