The bird of the title is said to bring good luck, and they’ll need it in a Kansas Territory where life is cheap and everyone is a potential enemy. His militia includes his own sons, a Native American, and a Jew, along with freed slaves who are up for the fight. Before important decisions Brown retreats with his Bible to commune with the holy spirit. Like another troubled American social justice vigilante, Batman, he speaks in a gruff rasp and is prone to getting carried away in the administration of physical encouragement. You would not easily mistake Brown for the Europe-loving softboy Hawke plays in Before Sunset. The latter stars, too, setting about the role of Brown with gusto. McBride co-produces, with Mark Richard and Ethan Hawke. Brown was a wild and holy man, who trained as a priest before having an unusual epiphany for a would-be man of the cloth, when he seemingly woke up one morning convinced that slavery would not be ended with speeches and prayers alone, and took up arms instead. It’s a seven-part adaptation of James McBride’s 2013 National Book Award-winning novel, which fictionalises the life of the abolitionist John Brown during the “Bleeding Kansas” era of unrest that would culminate in the American Civil War. The Good Lord Bird is an unusual thing: a smart, starry treatment of serious historical events that manages to retain a sense of humour without losing heart or gravitas.
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