“Young Washington” follows George Washington’s life as a soldier prior to becoming the Father of a Nation, where he is thrust into the center of a global conflict that tests his honor, loyalty and courage.
Releasing on the Fourth of July weekend, “Young Washington” knows its audience. General viewers will already be aware of the protagonist, but probably only from what they have learned in school. Co-writer and director Jon Erwin immediately capitalizes on this fact, attempting to generate investment in Washington as a person on multiple fronts. First, he executes a large-scale battle sequence that showcases the historical figure’s grit and determination. Erwin then shifts back in time to examine his tragic backstory. In a short period, the film generates several reasons to root for the character, outside of the obvious fact that he is the first president of the United States.
From here, it ventures in a variety of directions — some of which are interesting, others aren’t. With a 122-minute runtime, “Young Washington” asks for a lot of patience, especially since it follows a classic redemption story that is prevalent in almost every genre. As the movie explores the intricacies of his early life, much of it feels like “filler.” When shifting into patriotic heroism, its identity shines through.
The film openly uses artificial intelligence, with AI producer, AI artist and AI utility crew members all included in the end credits. This is a growing trend in 2026, with recent releases like “Chum” and “Stop! That! Train!” having been criticized for utilizing AI. With the list continuing to expand, there’s less room to simply label a film as “bad” just for implementing the technology. Here, it’s slightly less noticeable. It contains some of the usual AI traits (unnatural water movements, distorted background visuals), but it’s clearly not overrelied on. This makes it one of the least intrusive offenders, with standard computer-generated imagery still being the primary source of visual effects.
Director of photography Kris Kimlin heightens the visuals with engaging camerawork. Whether tension comes from battle or emotion, he emphasizes the impact through handheld footage. This includes moments of shakiness and quick pans during widespread chaos alongside constant close-ups in intimate conversations.
Costume designer Nadine Powell aids in establishing realism. Going all the way back to the French and Indian War, “Young Washington” is largely accurate to the time period. The striking red uniforms stand out, with realistic weaponry and wigs also being featured. Still, it’s not “perfect.” Much like Rod Lurie’s “Lucky Strike,” the immersiveness escapes in the execution. The outfits characters wear don’t typically feel lived in and, as a whole, everything appears free of blemishes. This makes it seem inherently modern despite supposedly taking place more than 250 years ago.
This flawless effect carries into Erwin, Diederik Hoogstraten and Tom Provost’s screenplay as well. While Washington’s improper battlefield ambitions and stubbornness are touched on, the enslavement of hundreds of people is not. It’s obvious why this wasn’t included, but it’s a core part of Washington’s real story nonetheless. We don’t see that here. This leaves “Young Washington” with a big asterisk. While it aims to present itself as fact — and a lot of viewers will likely take it as such — there is certainly sanitization happening.
William Franklyn-Miller (George Washington) plays the titular character well. With the name “Young Washington,” you would expect this to be a commanding performance; it’s really not. Franklyn-Miller has enough presence to live up to Washington’s status, but he never overstates his delivery. Also appearing in smaller roles are Andy Serkis (Edward Braddock), Ben Kingsley (Robert Dinwiddie) and Kelsey Grammer (Lord Fairfax).
“Young Washington” delivers a patriotic story about one of the Founding Fathers of the U.S. Is it historically accurate? Not entirely. But it successfully adds to the mythos surrounding George Washington.
Rating: 3 out of 5
