Free State of Jones

"For justice. For pride. For freedom."

2016 2h 20m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

🥫

48%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

6.9

IMDB

★6.8TMDB · 1,719🥫48%Rotten Tomatoes●53Metacritic★6.9IMDB · 68,867

ActionDramaHistoryWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 1863, Mississippi farmer Newt Knight serves as a medic for the Confederate Army. Opposed to slavery, Knight would rather help the wounded than fight the Union. After his nephew dies in battle, Newt returns home to Jones County to safeguard his family but is soon branded an outlaw deserter. Forced to flee, he finds refuge with a group of runaway slaves hiding out in the swamps. Forging an alliance with the slaves and other farmers, Knight leads a rebellion that would forever change history.

“For justice. For pride. For freedom.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Matthew McConaughey
Newton Knight
Gugu Mbatha-Raw
Rachel
Mahershala Ali
Moses Washington
Keri Russell
Serena Knight
Jacob Lofland
Daniel
Sean Bridgers
Sumrall
Brad Carter
Lieutenant Barbour
Jane McNeill
Miss Ellie

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Gary Ross
Writers: Gary Ross, Leonard Hartman
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $50M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 50% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 10 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Gary Ross, shot by Benoît Delhomme. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Nicholas Britell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Pamela Martin shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Matthew McConaughey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Mahershala Ali carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "For justice. For pride. For freedom.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Gary Ross directs. Benoît Delhomme behind the camera. Nicholas Britell scores. Pamela Martin cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $50M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Earned back only 50% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
3Released 10 years ago.
4Directed by Gary Ross, shot by Benoît Delhomme. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Nicholas Britell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Pamela Martin shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Matthew McConaughey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Mahershala Ali carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "For justice. For pride. For freedom.".
9IMDB entry: tt1124037 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 10 themes, including "ku klux klan", "slavery", "based on true story", "period drama".

The technical file

Cinematography: Benoît Delhomme
Original score: Nicholas Britell
Editing: Pamela Martin
Production design: Philip Messina
Costume design: Louise Frogley
Makeup / hair: Matthew O'Toole
VFX supervisor: Kelly Port
Sound: Paul Hsu
Stunt coordinator: Garrett Warren
Runtime: 140 min · 2h 20m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $50,000,000
Box office: $25,035,950
Return: 50% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Free State of Jones (2016)
Rotten Tomatoes: 48% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 53/100
IMDB rating: 6.9/10 · 68,867 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

3 wins & 4 nominations total

Also by

Gary Ross

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Reno2016-12-04
★ 8/10
A country that existed for a brief time in the history of American. Once again, it proves that the critics are so dumb. In this people to people and people to filmmakers contact era, no one listens to them. Let them do their own sideshow. This was partially based on the real events that takes place in the following years of 1862. When America was fighting a civil war, a man named Newton Knight returned home from the battlefield where he started to help the farmers who were robbed by the armymen. Its like they are fighting their own war, to protect the land and the crops. They knew the consequence and so they were prepared for it. This is over a two hour long film and I think they had covered everything nicely. At some stage it looked like the Daniel Craig's 'Defiance'. But it reveals many events like changing time and the atmosphere, how they adapted to it along to move on. In the opening scene only they had shown us the war, but very soon it moved away to tell what's happening off the battlefield. Like how it's affecting the people. So the resistance emerges and the days going by they gain large power in the region. Very interesting perspective, though everything in the film was not true despite overall plot was inspired by the history. Matthew McConaughey alone steered the ship. You will like his performance. The locations were good, but most of them were either farmland or swamp. There's a little event that follows the 80 years later, just to disclose some court law debate over interracial marriage. Not a must see film, maybe if you are an American, then it might be, but other than that its a good watch. I hope the people would realise that and watch it. 8/10
r96sk2020-11-25
★ 9/10
Quality film. <em>'Free State of Jones'</em> tells the true story of Newton Knight's role in the American Civil War. As you'd hope/expect, it leads to captivating viewing. Matthew McConaughey is superb, while he's supported excellently by Mahershala Ali. It's tough to watch in large portions given the obvious things from the Civil War era, from the war itself but also to slavery. I had never heard of Newton Knight, so it was very interesting for me to see it unfold and learning bits - even with some creative license, I'm sure. It also serves an important message that slavery didn't end with the Emancipation Proclamation. I personally found the film very well paced and extremely nicely shot, McConaughey and Ali are the stars but there are also notable performances from the likes of Gugu Mbatha-Raw. It's a great film, one that's worth a watch. Sadness and heart aplenty.