“Free State Of Jones” (*** out of four) was a fine historical drama about Newton Knight (Matthew McConaughey) who was a disillusioned Confederate army deserter who led an uprising against the corrupt local Confederate government in Mississippi in the 1860’s which put him and his family in a political and personal crossfire. Richly told drama is anchored by a strong performance from McConaughey, a terrific supporting performance by Mahershala Ali as one of the slaves involved in the uprising, and a vibrant music score by Nicholas Britell. Starts to drag in the middle but recovers for a solid and very interesting final third. Not the great film it could have been but much better than the critics have been saying.