Free State of Jones Movie Review - Hollywood's Most Expensive Powerpoint Presentation

Free State of Jones is a film that held a lot of potential to be one of the great historical dramas. It's based on the story of Newton Knight, directed by Gary Ross, director of The Hunger Games and Seabiscuit, and starring Matthew McConaughey, a powerhouse actor that, even when the films he stars in aren't good, still shines through as one of the better aspects. It's easily one of the best combinations that any film could have, to a point where it makes you wonder what could possibly go wrong..... Then you look at what else this studio is producing this year, and you realize....

.... THAT'S what could go wrong.

For those who don't know, Newton Knight was a confederate soldier during the American Civil War that, through various circumstances, deserted his company and went back to live with his family. He, like many others, grew tired of the Confederates seizing property, including corn, animals, and even slaves, and chose to establish a rebellion against them, consisting of other deserters as well as runaway slaves. This rebellion fought in many battles and established a lot of political movements that led to many changes in our system, including a black man's right to vote and their right to grow their own crops.

And now that I've given those cliffnotes, you pretty much have no reason to see Free State of Jones.

The movie plays out less like a powerhouse drama and more like a dull, conventional history lesson, right down to text describing events for you rather than illustrating the events through visuals and scattering historical portraits throughout the middle of the movie. Every time text appeared on screen, I kept looking down to see if I missed anything on my high school video quiz.... Except I didn't have one, because I was at the theater. Gary Ross is a master at visual storytelling, as illustrated by his adaptation of The Hunger Games, where he takes a book told entirely through the first-person perspective and visually tells his story. Here, however, any opportunity to express emotions is shortened to a few seconds to make room for dozens of five-minute scenes of people talking... and talking... and talking... and talking... I don't know if it was a cheap attempt to save on money or a pretentious attempt to make the film sound "important," but it gets boring and preachy real quick.

The whole production is very dull to look at and lacks the vibrant visuals of historical drama counterparts like 12 Years a Slave or, again, Seabiscuit. The clothes look like the leftovers from History Channel documentaries, the cinematography is very flat and not very moving, and every scene basically has one solid color, which, unlike Schindler's List where the black-and-white scheme represents the bleakness of its era, just comes off as a lazy excuse not to hit the white balance button on the camera.

The performances are forgettable to say the least. Even Matthew, as fun as it is to occasionally see him get cocky as he always does (though nothing you couldn't see in Lincoln Lawyer), holds the exact same expression, facially and vocally, throughout the flick. Every actor is reduced to spewing out exposition and sermon-esque lines, though part of that is because, again, the script doesn't give them any opportunities to express themselves.

Overall? At a budget of $50 million and a talented director with a powerhouse lead, Newton Knight deserved a better portrayal. The film might be okay to flip to on the History Channel, but as a theatrical release, it's dull, lifeless, and forgettable. Save your money.

My rating: