Movies centering around the time of World War II are plentiful,mainly because there's such a vast array of stories worth exploring within that time period. The story ofWelsh journalist Gareth Jones, in particular, and hisdiscovery of the Holodomor, a man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine,isan incredibly important one, with his discovery even inspiring George Orwell's novella "Animal Farm". Polish director Agnieszka Holland tells this story with adrive and passion that reflects theunwavering determination of Jones to pull back the curtain on what wasreallygoing on within the Soviet Union.Not only that,but it also draws very unfortunate comparisons to what's currentlygoing on in politics today. Led by a captivating performance from James Norton, Mr. Jones is a compelling and gripping drama with many important points of relevancy to today.
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Mr. Jonesis framed around Orwell (played by Joseph Mawle) writing "Animal Farm", stating that he "wanted to tell a story that could easily be understood by anyone," and so he decides to use talking farm animals in the hopes that people will read between the lines. From here, viewers are then introduced to Gareth Jones (played by Norton), a plucky journalist and foreign affairs advisor to then Prime Minister David Lloyd George, who has become well-known forhis interview with Adolf Hitler on the fastest plane in Germany, the Richthofen. However, after conducting this interview, Joneshas come to the realizationthat Hitler is a rising threat to the world that people should be keeping their eye on, and raises this concern to his fellow advisors. Unfortunately,they don'tbelieve him, saying that Hitler doesn't even know the difference between "holding a rally and running a country," and he's promptly laughed out of the room.
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On top of this, Jones learns that he's being let go from his foreign advisor position due to pay cuts. And, at the same time, hefinds a newstoryworth uncoveringinvolving the Soviet Union and its apparently booming economy. So, he decides to carry on this investigation without Lloyd George's knowledge by pretending he's still a foreign affairs advisor.In his attempt to learn more about the Soviet Union's oddly impressive five-year economic plan, hewinds up stumblingupon a troubling truth - one that's happening right in front of the government's own eyes. Despite being restricted to Moscow, Jones finds a sneaky way into Ukraine and discovers a horrific famine, which was called theHolodomor, happening throughout the country. He traverses several different villages, with each proving more hopeless than the next, and documents everything he finds. It's a truly unbelievable story, which the Soviets try to use to their advantage when Jones attempts to break it, showing that these governments would go to whatever lengths necessary to maintain the image that their propaganda proclaims.
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One of the biggest takeaways from this film is how terribly relevant some aspects of it are, especially in regard to the relationship between many politicians and journalists. The current push of the "Fake News" media is not far off from howWalter Duranty (played by Peter Sarsgaard) so easily twists Jones' story to make it look like an over-dramatic farce to people all over the world. Even Holland and first-time screenwriter Andrea Chalupa have exclaimed thatthey never set out to make these comparisons,but it makes the movie all the more important to share with audiences today.Not to mention,Chalupa's script is written with an immense passion for the source material as well, especially for Jones' work.
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Despite a very bland color palette with little actual color or vibrancy, Holland is still able to capture the urgency of the story while keeping it very emotionally grounded. Thisurgency is also felt a great deal through Norton's exceptional performance.In particular, when he first steps off the train in Ukraine and witnesses the horrors happening around him, he experiences a range of emotions that can be heavily felt as a viewer as well. Close-ups on his face, when necessary, capture his heartache, anger, frustration, and determination to make sure this famine is made public and exposes the Soviet Union's false promises. Even when he continues to be brushed aside by politicians, that spark in him never dies, and Norton makes sure to always keep that small glimmer of hope in him alive.
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However, there are moments that drag out in the film and occasionally the pacing feels off. In particular, Jones' journey to Ukraine takes far longer than expected, and once he's there, the venture throughout these villages feels short-lived, which takes away from the gutwrenching power of these scenes and the massive impact it has on Jones once he returns home. Regardless, Norton's riveting performance makes this film well worth the watch, and its story is an even more important one worth sharing with the world right now.
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Mr. Jonesreleases digitally on June 19 and On Demand on July 3. It's 119 minutes long and Not Rated.
7/10