A trailer for the Terrence Malick-produced “The Better Angels” has premiered, giving us a new look at newcomer Braydon Denney as a young Abraham Lincoln in the feature directorial and screenwriting debut from Malick’s longtime collaborator A.J. Edwards.
Derived from an interview (“Lincoln’s Boyhood: Reminiscences of His Cousin and Play-mate, Dennis Hanks” in American Magazine 65, Feb 1908) with Lincoln’s last surviving cousin, Dennis Hanks (played by Cameron Mitchell Williams), “The Better Angels” is a black-and-white cinematic picture depicting the formative years — specifically 1817-1819 — in which Lincoln grew up in the Indiana wilderness with his family, led by his strict father, Tom, (Jason Clarke) and his stepmother, Sarah (Diane Kruger), following the death of his ailing mother, Nancy (Brit Marling) — the last two of whom are credited in numerous reviews of the film as being strong influences in shaping Lincoln.
“He was found by our casting team led by Stefni Colle and Jake DeVito,” Edwards told The Film Stage about casting Denney, who marks the film as his acting debut. “They spent a year searching out schools, churches, athletic teams, all in Kentucky, so we wanted to find that real authentic Voice, that accent that’s so specific, being Appalachian. It’s not just a southern accent, it’s a beautiful accent that they have and people often write about how Lincoln spoke, how he had such an unusual accent.” He added that Denney was a “blessing to the film” and “a very good boy.”
“The Better Angels” is set to be distributed by Amplify in theaters this fall, followed by a VOD release in early 2015. Until then, Watch the film’s first trailer below.
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