The Weinstein Company has released the US theatrical trailer for director Stephen Frears’ (The Queen) upcoming comedic drama Philomena.  Based on a true story, the film centers on Philomena Lee (Judi Dench), an Irish woman seeking the illegitimate son she was forced to put up for adoption.  Steve Coogan plays former BBC journalist Martin Sixsmith, who aided Lee in the search for her son.  I caught the film at TIFF and it’s much less “gooey” than this trailer would suggest, but the trailer does do a nice job of showcasing Dench’s wonderful performance as the titular Philomena, even if it does verge on giving away too much of the story.  Dench and Coogan make a truly great comedic duo, and the film is surprisingly thoughtful despite its Lifetime Movie-esque premise.  Honestly, it’s one of the more pleasantly surprising films I’ve seen this year and will like put Dench in the Best Actress race.  Read my full review here.

Hit the jump to watch the theatrical trailer.  The film also stars Michelle Fairley, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Mare Winningham, and Charles EdwardsPhilomena opens in the US in limited release on Christmas Day and expands nationwide on January 10th.

Via Yahoo! Movies.

Here’s the official synopsis for Philomena:

Based on the 2009 investigative book by BBC correspondent Martin Sixsmith, The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, this film focuses on the efforts of Philomena Lee (Judi Dench), mother to a boy conceived out of wedlock — something Philomena’s Irish-Catholic community didn’t have the highest opinion of — and given away for adoption in the United States. Following church doctrine, she was forced to sign a contract that wouldn’t allow for any sort of inquiry into her son’s whereabouts. After starting a family years later in England and, for the most part, moving on with her life, Philomena meets Sixsmith (Steve Coogan), a BBC reporter with whom she decides to track down her long-lost son.

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