YOUNG WASHINGTON
First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen. Thus George Washington, first President of the United States, was eulogized by his fellow Founding Father Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee. Long before he was held up as the Father of Our Country, George Washington was just a young man aiming to rise above his station. Young Washington is a well-acted and filmed biopic that while long is very much worth the effort.
July 9, 1755, the Pennsylvania wilderness. A sickly young man is astonished to find himself in the fog of war. He forgets about his health problems to find himself in the midst of fierce battle. How did this young man find himself here, and will he listen to commanders who tell him that the Virginia men are lost?
We then go twelve years earlier. Here, a young man named George Washington suffers the loss of his father. His older half-brother Lawrence (John Foss) takes young George under his wing. George Washington will not be among the elites. He is not British, has no land to his own name and does not have the background to enter into the upper echelons of society. He does not even have enough, thanks to his father's death, for a formal education. George, however, has Lawrence's extensive library.
Now, he grows into a tall and handsome man. Young George Washington (William Franklyn-Miller) essentially crashes the lavish dinner party of Lord Halifax (Kelsey Grammer). He also meets the feisty and outspoken Sally Cary (Mia Rodgers). They flirt in the way of the times, with quick repartee and subtle glances. Lord Halifax agrees to have Washington survey uncharted lands in the Ohio valley. George goes as a surveyor with his friend Chris Gist (Leo Hanna). They survive the harsh winter. They survive dealings with the Native Americans, especially Half-King Tanacharison (Ryan Begay).
The natives may have no love of the British, but they hate the French more. The French are now making incursions onto disputed and British territory. George informs Governor Robert Dinwittie (Ben Kingsley). George, technically already in the Virginia militia, is to inform the French that they are to leave. From that, George Washington finds himself leading men. He makes clear that no shots are to be fired, but someone, somewhere, does fire the shot that triggers the Seven Years' War (also known as the French and Indian War).
This is a terrible start for George. He loses the battle to hold his newly created Fort Necessity. He loses his closest friend. He also loses Sally to Lord Fairfax's son William (Joel Smallbone). Demoralized, depressed and with Lawrence dead, George retreats. His mother Mary (Mary-Louise Parker) once opposed his involvement in war. Now, she urges her son to rally and return. He does so, at a lower rank than when he started. Now as aide-de-camp to the haughty General Braddock (Andy Serkis), we return to the start of Young Washington. Will this young man in a hurry find himself protected by God? Will he turn the tide of battle, if not history?
He is someone who knows that he is not among the elites. Particularly early on, George Washington is reminded in action and words of his surprisingly low rank. He is a second-born son with no title, no rank, no real social position or standing in society. His half-brother Lawrence, Governor Dinwiddie informs him, can obtain a military commission owing to his formal education and property. Young George has neither, so such a position would be impossible. He is also a man in love with a woman who will not be available. Long before The Great Gatsby, young Washington learned that "rich girls don't marry poor boys".
Granted, that line came from the 1974 film version and not from F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel. The idea, however, still holds true.
What one sees in Young Washington is not a monument. They also do not see some sort of klutz, bumbling his way through whatever situation he is in. Instead, we see the future President as an intelligent, ambition figure, well-spoken and at times frustrated by the limitations he faces. He also is like us, crashing parties and mourning friends. He may not have cut down a cherry tree, but he does take out his frustrations by swinging axes at lumber. This young Washington is calm and steady. He is also surprisingly romantic.
As a side note, Young Washington has a visually beautiful scene when he buries and prays over the grave of his friend as Fort Necessity is burned to the ground. This scene is visually splendid. It is also, I think, symbolic of where George Washington was at the moment. I do not know if that was the intention of director Jon Erwin or those of Erwin's cowriters Diederik Hoogstraten and Tom Provost. That, however, for me was the end result.
Going back to William Franklyn-Miller, his performance allowed for George Washington to be romantic without being foolish. He has a soft manner exchanging witty lines with Mia Rodgers' Sally. They, however, were not in some kind of rom-com manner. Instead, they both showed George and Sally as being bright, articulate and aware of the other's feelings without slipping into farce.
I think all the performances in Young Washington were excellent. Ben Kingsley and Andy Serkis are probably the biggest names in the cast. Their roles were relatively small. However, both of them gave their characters a reality to them. Kingsley's Dinwiddie was sometimes sharp with young Washington. He did not play him as a mentor but as a figure making sure that his interests lined up with the Crown's interests. If that meant bending things to allow this colonial some military power, so be it. Serkis might have slipped a bit into some ham as General Braddock. However, I think that is how the role was meant to be seen as.
Kelsey Grammer and Joel Smallbone had smaller roles as the Fairfax father and son. They did make the most of their screentime. Grammer came across as well-meaning and favorable towards the bright young man. That did not mean that Lord Fairfax would think he would be a better suitor than his slightly bitchy son, however. It is interesting how well the music worked in the film. When George learns that Sally is betrothed to William Fairfax, the chamber music starts rising. That is a clever touch. It suggests George's disappointment blocking out the words that pain him to hear.
In her small role of Mary Washington, Mary-Louise Parker excels as the woman who frets for her son but ends up encouraging him to seek out God's will for his life. The same goes for John Foss as the wise and caring Lawrence Washington, his half-brother and father figure. We also get, not exactly comic relief, but a nice double-act of David and Henry Frisk (Angus Castle-Doughty and Fearghal Geraghty). They are average men, slightly sarcastic and salty, who are not afraid to call things as they are. They also are proud Virginians who will stand with one of their own. Leo Hanna's Christopher Gist is also well-acted. He is a loyal friend to George who will stay with him to the bitter end.
Young Washington moves well to where one barely notices the two-hour plus runtime. The battle sequences are exciting and well-filmed. It might have spent perhaps a bit more time in the Sally/George romance than needed. It might have thrown in perhaps a bit too much foreshadowing. "We are pawns, George, but even pawns can take a king", Lawrence tells young George when teaching him chess. It might have taken a bit long to get back to where Young Washington began.
Overall, though, Young Washington is a well-crafted biopic of the Father of Our Country. On just about every level, Young Washington will entertain and bring life to a figure too often seen as walking marble.
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| 1732-1799 |
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