Film Review: "Free State of Jones" (2016).

"For justice. For pride. For freedom." This is Free States of Jones. This historical period war film written and directed by Gary Ross, and based on the books The Free State of Jones by Victoria E. Bynum and The State of Jones by Sally Jenkins and John Stauffer. Set during the Civil War, the film tells the story of defiant Southern farmer, Newt Knight, and his extraordinary armed rebellion against the Confederacy. Banding together with 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.

During a meeting with Universal Studios to discussing future projects, Ross was handed a page about Knight and his free state, and he was instantly intrigued. Ross then spent ten years developing the project. Ross was initially drawn to make the movie out of a desire to examine the Reconstruction era south, an era that, according to him, is poorly represented in film, with him giving Gone with the Wind (1939) and The Birth of a Nation (1915) as examples of "the last movies that did it". Ross then spent over two years conducting a "tremendous amount of research", studying not only the Civil War but also the historiography of the war, the latter because he wanted "to debunk a lot of the myths" surrounding the events. Ross finished writing the film prior to working on The Hunger Games (2012), although he struggled to find much in way of financing: he felt that working on that film would help him, and thusly declined to work on the sequels. Afterwards he still had trouble getting the movie made, which he attributes to the fact that "we're in a different kind of a popcorn universe now". In November 2014, it was announced that Matthew McConaughey was cast as Knight. By late February 2015, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mahershala Ali, Keri Russell, Christopher Berry, Sean Bridgers, Jacob Lofland, Thomas Francis Murphy, and Joe Chrest rounded out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced, and wrapped in late May. Filming took place throughout Louisiana. Angelo Piazza III, Marksville, La. and Jack's Powder Keg Company participated in the production with their cannon and black powder. The film was initially set for a March 11, 2016 release date. However, the film was pushed back to May 13, and finally to June 24.

The film stars McConaughey, Mbatha-Raw, Ali, Russell, Berry, Bridgers, Lofland, Francis Murphy, and Chrest. McConaughey gives his most mature and controlled performance to date. Ali is an actor clearly on his way to major super stardom. As the film unfolds in a succession of often brilliantly realized vignettes tracing the rebellion's organization, training and first experiences. The characters' idiosyncrasies emerge.

Free State of Jones is a stirring and long overdue tribute to Knight, and his extraordinary armed rebellion against the Confederacy during the American Civil War.

Simon says Free State of Jones receives:

Also, see my review for The Hunger Games.