NEW YORK, Sept. 22 (UPI) — Oscar-winner and Marvel Cinematic Universe actor Ben Kingsley says he was drawn to the screenplay for the new historical epic, Young Washington, because of its elegant and meaningful use of language.

“What resonated with me is the writing… and how pure the storytelling is,” Kingsley, 82, told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.

“The dialogue is certainly not modern English. The dialogue is taken a great deal from how they spoke and communicated by letter and verbally with one another all those many — 250, to be precise — years ago.”

In an age when people trade information in short bursts by email, text or video clips, Kingsley relishes this more thoughtful demonstration of what he calls “the art of communication.”

“In my personal opinion, it might be in danger of shrinking and [I liked] the way that our screenwriter expands every word and expands every sentence and gives it enormous resonance and power and weight,” he said.

“I found it utterly natural for my character and my fellow actors to speak in this language, which is completely accessible to a modern audience and, at the same time, it’s elevating, and it invites curiosity,” Kingsley explained.

“It invites a ‘leaning in.’ This is a film one leans into, rather than sits back and basks under. It demands attention. The language demands attention and that’s really what appealed to me greatly when the offer came to me.”

Released on DVD and Blu-ray Tuesday, the film was written by Jon Erwin, Tom Provost and Diederik Hoogstraten and directed by Erwin.

The movie played in theaters around the July 4 holiday and follows young land surveyor and soldier George Washington (William Franklyn-Miller) on his path to becoming the first U.S. president.

Kingsley plays Robert Dinwiddie, British colonial administrator and lieutenant governor of Virginia, who is credited with helping Washington start his military career.

“He’s a man of great authority. He’s a man of great responsibility. He is the king’s representative in what was once a colony of Virginia,” Kingsley said of Dinwiddie.

“I don’t know whether I can describe him in any other way, other than his function and his function is to hold and defend the colonies,” he added. “I believe, also, perhaps, the audience might agree that he has a kindness in him and a patience in him.”

Mary-Louise Parker, Kelsey Grammer and Andy Serkis co-star in Young Washington. Erwin is already working on a sequel to the film.