Review of Free State of Jones (2016) by Donovan M — 29 Jun 2016

I would have loved this movie if it was just about; a deserter from the Confederate army who fights to free his family and neighbors from an over powering military; OR, a movie about freed slaves who fought for their rights during post-civil war reconstruction; OR, a movie about a white man in the 1960s who is force to divorce his wife because he is one eighth black. Since director Gary Ross put all three in the same movie, 'Free State of Jones' is an epic cinematic WTF. I really wanted to love this movie. The acting is great as well as the stories (singular). As far as the stories (plural), the two main stories combined made the movie feel too long and dragged the whole ordeal beyond its natural conclusion. THEN, there is the occasional scenes of a 1960s trail which feels as out-of-place as a Catholic Priest in a strip club. Sure, there may be a reason for it, but seriously, WTF.

Mathew McConaughey performs as expected and his co-star, Gugu Mbatha-Raw can hold her own with the best that Hollywood has to throw at her. I encourage you to see her movies 'Belle' and "Concussion'.

'Free State of Jones' does not live up to the goodness of its parts. It's like ice cream and shrimp mixed into a small bucket of popcorn. Three thing I enjoy, just not together, WTF.