A lovely young woman (Felicity Jones) finds herself in a controversial affair with Charles Dickens (Ralph Fiennes, who also directed). Actually, the whole thing is her flashback, but it doesn’t really matter…it’s pretty insipid either way. This period piece is beautifully-made, but its roots in a time of repressed emotion leaks into the film itself. It’s so genteel, quiet and subdued, which translates into slow and dull. The performances are fine and the cinematography is pretty, but it’s just too tamped down to ever rouse much emotional fervor.