Our happily added writer Paul Gratton gives us a reaction to the new Angel Studios release YOUNG WASHINGTON, now playing in cinemas across North America.
About: Young Washington is a historical war drama detailing the early life and coming-of-age of George Washington (William Franklyn-Miller). Driven to climb the social ladder and join the British military, a young and ambitious Washington takes on a surveying job for Lord Fairfax (Kelsey Grammer) in the contested Ohio territory. There, his encounters with French forces inadvertently ignite the French and Indian War. Thrust into command of the Virginia militia, he suffers early military disasters like the Battle of Fort Necessity before learning crucial lessons in humility, leadership, and survival.
Reaction: This well-timed (for the Fourth of July) patriotic release is an unconvincing low-budget affair, featuring a square-jawed, heroically courageous young George Washington leading a bunch of ragtag Virginian soldiers into battle against French troupes who fared to establish a fort and a beachhead in Ohio in the early days of the Republic. It is about as convincing as US hobbyists’ recreations of famous Civil War battles in local parks, where they get to dress up in old uniforms and fire rusty muskets at each other. What is more interesting is that the film is the latest release from Angel Studios, a company out of Provo, Utah, that was started by members of the Latter Day Saints for the sole purpose of expunging Hollywood video releases of objectionable language, nudity and some extreme violence. They were successfully sued by Lucasfilms and three other Hollywood Studios for copyright infringement, but they continue to operate that service to this day, but now focused on cleaning up streaming services, where a copyright loophole of some sort allows them to operate.
Meanwhile, they started their own theatrical distribution operation and hit the jackpot with their first release, the Q-ANON-inspired Sound of Freedom about a hero who goes to South America to break up a child sex slave ring. It made over $350M. They also have cashed in by packaging episodes of the Christian TV series The Chosen for theatrical release. The unique feature they bring to the marketplace is that every movie ends with a “Pay It Forward” message and an on-screen bar code, so you can spread the “message” and presumably buy tickets for those who can’t afford to. A grift by any other name? At the end of Young Washington, right-winger Kelsey Grammer comes on screen and tells us to help make this movie the #1 boxoffice champ this weekend (fat chance with Minions opening), because after all “freedom is worth fighting for”. American exceptionalism is what Young Washington is all about, the sort of fantasy view of the role of America in the world that leads some to think Canada should become the 51st state. When it comes to Angel studios releases in Canada, shall we just say “elbows up”?
Rating: 3 out of 10
