We just watched the movie Free State of Jones on Netflix. My initial draw to it was from the standpoint of some other things I'm interested in but suddenly, about three fourths of the way through the movie, polygyny becomes a major sub-plot. If you're going to watch it then there are some spoilers ahead. And full disclosure, the poly is not a main focus of the movie and they try to gloss over it but they really can't.
The movie is based on a true story and based on the limited research I've done is very true to what is actually known about these events.
The relevant story is that during the Civil War a man named Newton Knight led a small revolt against the Confederacy in Mississippi. His wife left with their son and he took up with a freed slave woman. After the war his first wife came back and the three of them lived together. Generations later his descendants would use the uncertainty of which woman they descended from as a legal defense. The movie does depict the two women in one scene cooperating and interacting around the children and domestic chores.
Overall it was a good movie if not a little too ambitious and undisciplined. I would recommend it on its own merits without the poly subtext but that does spice it up a little bit. The main character is a fascinating man and I look forward to learning more about him.
The movie is based on a true story and based on the limited research I've done is very true to what is actually known about these events.
The relevant story is that during the Civil War a man named Newton Knight led a small revolt against the Confederacy in Mississippi. His wife left with their son and he took up with a freed slave woman. After the war his first wife came back and the three of them lived together. Generations later his descendants would use the uncertainty of which woman they descended from as a legal defense. The movie does depict the two women in one scene cooperating and interacting around the children and domestic chores.
Overall it was a good movie if not a little too ambitious and undisciplined. I would recommend it on its own merits without the poly subtext but that does spice it up a little bit. The main character is a fascinating man and I look forward to learning more about him.
