Les chemins de la liberté

On his way home from selling his produce, farmer August King meets a black teenage girl escaping her cruel master. He doesn't help her but doesn't reveal her either and later she returns looking for help. He reluctantly hides her in his wagon and continues his journey. Along the way the two get to know one another better and gradually become friends.

I am a shallow, obvious man and I watched this film because I think Thandie Newton is not only a great actress but also really rather stunning! There. Cards on table! Anyway, I was interested in the title of the film and was not surprised to find that, as hinted by the title, that this is really more about a journey than the actual story. It is a little clichéd in the way that we more or less know where it is going, but it is still pretty engaging nonetheless. The story struggles a little bit to have as much meaning as it thinks it does, and too much of it is a little unsatisfactory, but it works well enough to do the job for 90 minutes. The journey is a little forced at times and doesn't always ring true but it is still worth seeing.

A big part of this working is due to the characters of August and Annalees and how they work together. I found both to be interesting and engaging even if nothing was really happening at several points. It was to be expected, but they become friends and it manages to be quite touching at several points. Most of the praise of this can be laid at the actors' feet as they make these characters and quite predictable narrative involving and enjoyable. Patric is great and gives his complex character room to grow as the film progresses - even though his character is not totally clear, he still engaged me. Newton is good even though she looks far too good to be an escaping slave. Her accent is good for the most of the film and only occasionally does she go silly with it! The support cast is not quite as good but Drake and Waterson both do OK.

The film looks good and has a gentle atmosphere to it that suits the landscape and also makes the tension easier to raise in the quicker moments (thanks to the contrast). It isn't a brilliant film, but manages to be an enjoyable one despite the lack of a strong narrative. The actors do very well to make engaging characters out of what could have easily been cliché and produce emotion out of what could have just been cloying sentiment.

The Journey of August King is certainly a worthy film and probably should be shown in classrooms when dealing with topics like slavery. However, entertainment value is limited thanks to sluggish pace and lack of conflict in the storyline. Thandie Newton is good as the escaped slave though her behavior and speech feels occasionally anachronistic. Jason Patric is all right. The growing relationship between these two feels real but lacks spark. The production values are fine but you may still feel that you are watching a made-for-TV production.

Overall 6/10

Wow, If you love history, this is as real as it gets. What a journey, I felt like I was right there with them. I first saw this movie on HBO. I watched several times. What sacrifices that had to be. I promise you will enjoy.

One of the best authors of North Carolina knew to come back home. Our mountains are filled with such wonderful stories of pioneers struggling to fit in with neighbors, families mingling beliefs and faith. Our forefathers have been in Buncombe county since Revolution days. With little access to this area, it has until recently been untouched with modernization. Our people were simple but lived as Kings. Jason Patric was wonderful in this movie. I am a fan.

Of the handful of comments for this extraordinary film, most of them have the story wrong. The tale is not about a man "falling in love with his dead wife's slave." August King becomes involved in helping a young negro girl escape from her cruel owner in the backwoods of South Carolina in the early eighteen hundreds. The love is more sacrificial than sexual, and the film teaches excellent lessons about duty, honor, compassion, responsibility, and making choices. August finds himself through helping Annalees.

It's beautifully filmed and very stirring, with the kind of conclusion that makes many other films seem incomplete and shallow. This is an excellent film. It's also very family-friendly aside from some thematic elements (a slave is cleaved in half, animals are slaughtered, and so forth). I purchased it on a whim and never regretted the twenty bucks I spent. Everyone should see this at least once.

I loved this movie, but I saw it on cable years ago. It has sat in the back of my mind and I had almost forgotten the title. I plan on finding this to add it to my DVD collection. The Conflict and journey August faces reminds me a bit of the conversion of Francis of Assisi. It poses a question, "how much would you give, and how far would you go?" If you want a movie that will boost your hope, this is a movie for that. I think it is hard to believe that this movie wasn't seen on the big screen, or really advertised. It has excellent immersion, and doesn't look or feel like a cheap movie. I think it is one of the best stories told in film.