Before I say anything about Young Washington, I think it should be acknowledged just how much progress alternative (as in alternative to mainstream Hollywood) movies have made. Angel studios has been trending in the right direction for a while now. First, their movies are making serious money with Sound of Freedom bringing in over $250 million worldwide, followed by a combined $150 million for the animated movies David and the King of Kings. On top of that, Angel is beginning to attract actors with brand recognition, such as Jim Caviezel and Sean Astin (to name a couple) and with Alan Ritchson and Owen Wilson featured in an upcoming action flick. Finally, the production quality has leapt forward to be truly competitive with Hollywood.
Young Washington benefits from all of these factors. Ben Kingsley, Sarah Louise Parker, Andy Serkis, and Kelsey Grammar appear in various smaller roles, but they don’t phone in their performances. The titular role is played by William Franklyn-Miller, who tries with varying degrees of success to capture the arc of young Washington’s character. Generally speaking, he succeeds more than he fails, but it isn’t a flawless performance. But let’s get into the plot.
(Spoilers ahead)
We begin with George Washington grieving the loss of his father and being mentored as a child by his half-brother, Lawrence. Washington is ambitious and seeks to rise about his station in life, seeking opportunity to become a commissioned officer in the British army. This reckless ambition leads him to be manipulated into leading a group of Viriginia militia to declare an ultimatum to the French troops who had established a fort in the contested Ohio valley. Conflict ensues and Washington defeats the French, killing their captain, Jumonville. He hastily erects a fort (Fort Necessity) and then is soundly defeated by the French, losing his best friend in the process. Broken and ashamed, Washington realizes his pride betrayed him. Oh, and along the way there is a girl he loves who marries some rich English dude instead of him, because he is just a tenant farmer. But because of his actions, the French and Indian war officially kicks off and a humbled Washington presents himself as an aide to General Braddock, who leads a disastrous attempt to recapture Fort Duquesne and is subsequently killed, while Washington distinguishes himself with selfless bravery. The movie ends with Washington being named a Colonel in the colonial militia and its highest ranking officer.
Generally speaking, the plot holds together and follows the historical timeline. Nevertheless, this is probably best described as “based on a true story” instead of depicting a true story. It is fictionalized for entertainment purposes. And along with that, an accusation of propaganda might at times hit a little too close to home. But certainly no closer than the blockbuster “The Patriot”. I don’t think it descends to the depths of jingoism by a long shot. But it is unapologetically patriotic, so if you hate America you won’t like it.
The production itself is quite good, to the point I made a parental misjudgment in taking three of my kids to see it at the theatre (they were all glad they went when it was over, but there were some strategic trips to the lobby to get candy during particularly scenes). Death happens up close and personal, and while it isn’t necessarily gory, the PG-13 rating is earned. My assumption is that Young Washington has not only been aided by cinematographers who know how to film action sequences, but also by the abundance of re-enactors who know how to do this stuff at the mechanical level.
The climactic rescue of his Virginians is a bit over the top and I lost a bit of coherence in how it all unfolded, but it was no more incoherent than – say – how they screwed up the Battle of the Five Armies in the Hobbit trilogy. It was a big scene that spanned a lot of ground, and the goal was to make it obvious that this is the beginning of the legend that would become George Washington. Sure, they didn’t overdo the subtlety in making that point, but it wasn’t nearly as ridiculous as something like the “girl bosses” attacking Thanos in Endgame. Young Washington still has some moments of clunky messaging that aren’t surprising coming from a conservative, Christian studio like Angel. But compared to the self-righteous preaching of the Hollywood slop from the last decade it is as inscrutable as a Sphinx.
There really isn’t a large spiritual component to the film, although it is idealistic. Washington’s mom talks about providence. There is a repeated line about a pawn being able to take a king. There is a bit of complexity because Washington does get humbled and blames himself for the loss to the French at his first battle, seemingly leading him to abandon his pride. But at the same time, the film tries to reinforce the very American idea that anyone can rise from humble beginnings to greatness. Those two messages fight a bit for the heart of the film and never really resolve themselves into a mature understanding of ambition. I think that is why Franklyn-Miller’s performance also has varying degrees of success, and in the end this may have more to do with the script than his abilities.
As a whole, this is a movie worth watching with your family as America celebrates is 250th anniversary, and kudos to Angel Studios for turning out another solid production.
Nathan Writes 