Matthew McConaughey’s upward ascent into prestige filmmaking seems to have reached its natural zenith with Free State of Jones, a Civil War film written and directed by Gary Ross (The Hunger Games). As all prestige Civil War films must inevitably do, Free State of Jones follows a white Southerner (Newt Knight) who realizes his wrongs (after witnessing horrors on the battlefield), and then decides to fight against the South (in a rebellion against the Confederacy in Mississippi that actually happened). The first five minutes of the gritty, mumble-talkin,’ cap-adjustin’ movie have been released, and, if you can even believe it, old time-y war does not look fun. Free State of Jones hits theaters May 13. There will be fife music. There will be blood and mud. There will be supporting turns from Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Keri Russell. And after witnessing one good white guy’s stand against the system, our country, once divided by racial hatred, will be made whole once again. Check out the preview above, and watch the film’s full trailer below.
Also, your dad is going to see this five times in theaters.
