In a movie that resembles the story of William Wallace in Mel Gibson’s Braveheart, Free State of Jones sees Matthew McConaughey fight for freedom against an oppressive regime and unite a group of people to stand up and fight the army and government that they don’t believe in. And also much like Braveheart, this film has also been tipped as an early Oscar-contender for the year. It releases on June 24 in the US and so we will be hearing soon about whether it is any good or not and whether the early buzz is justified for award season.
It has to be said that the new civil-war drama seemingly sees McConaughey continue his recent top form and certainly appears to have all the right ingredients for success – war, drama, an epic story and a strong cast. When the first trailer dropped it appeared as if the film may also be a little too action packed to be taken seriously, but this subsequent trailer shows a different side to the film that may confirm that Oscar buzz the film has been getting.
Written and directed by four-time Oscar nominee Gary Ross (The Hunger Games, Seabiscuit, Pleasantville), the Free State of Jones tells the story of defiant Southern farmer, Newt Knight, and his extraordinary armed rebellion against the Confederacy, during the American Civil War (no – the real one, not the Avengers one – geeks get excited about any small thing these days). Rallying around a group of other small farmers and local slaves, Knight launched an uprising that led Jones County, Mississippi to secede from the Confederacy, creating a Free State of Jones. Knight continued his struggle into Reconstruction, distinguishing him as a compelling, if controversial, figure of defiance long beyond the War.
The Free State of Jones also stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Keri Russell and Mahershala Ali. The film is being produced by Scott Stuber (Ted, Safe House) with Jon Kilik (Foxcatcher, The Hunger Games) producing.
Some more screen stills are below:
Last Updated: May 26, 2016
