No hiding the Wintour chill

First Monday In May Cert 12A

MATTHEW McConaughey is brooding yet impassioned in this high-minded drama about an armed uprising.

He plays Newton Knight, who leads a rebellion against the Confederacy in the American Civil War.

McConaughey hides his looks behind long hair and a ragged beard, saving his charm for slave Rachel, played by Gugu Mbatha- Raw, who joins the outlaws hiding in a swamp.

Free State has plenty of battles, burnings, hangings plus evil deeds by the Ku Klux Klan. But it develops into a sincere and sombre look at how the wealthy white elite control the lives of freed slaves after the fighting.

The two leads ensure it’s always watchable but Knight shows a lack of self-awareness and seems impervious to horrific experiences as he changes from medical orderly to merciless killer to political activist. EVER since Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour was satirised by Glenn Close in 2006’s The Devil Wears Prada, she has been aggressively addressing her public image.

Following the Vogue documentary The September Issue, and her cameo in Zoolander 2, comes this flawlessly attired documentary about her charity fund-raising.

It’s an inside look at the build-up to the Met Gala held on the first Monday in May at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, curated by Andrew Bolton. The event is a multi-million dollar fund-raiser for its fashion wing, the Costume Institute.

Fashionistas will adore the fabulous outfits, and the film successfully argues haute couture deserves to join high art in the most prestigious galleries. Despite her best efforts, Wintour’s carefully crafted public persona fails to disguise her disdain for the general public.