Idris Elba commands Child Soldiers in First Trailer for Cary Fukunaga's 'Beasts of No Nation'

As the summer begins to wind to a close and the fall awards season approaches, one film that has emerged as one of the most clear favorites to walk away with some gold is Cary Fukunaga's Beasts of No Nation. Fukunaga is the auteur behind Sin Nombre, a stunning adaptation of Jane Eyre, and of course the first season of HBO's True Detective, but 'Beasts' sat on the shelf for awhile as many of these projects took priority. And now as the film is set to debut in Venice before being rolled out by Netflix, the powerful first trailer has arrived.

Based on the book by Nigerian author  Uzodinma Iweala, the film centers on a young African boy named Agu (Abraham Attah) whose parents are killed in a raid, leaving him vulnerable to a brutal army commander (Idris Elba) who recruits him as a child soldier in the rebel army. Idris Elba stars as that rebel leader, and in this footage we see the terrible demands he places on those soldiers.

Fukunaga adapted the screenplay and hired composer Dan Romer (Beasts of the Southern Wild) to craft the film's score. After Venice, Beasts of No Nation will screen at TIFF and possibly Telluride. Then Netflix will stream the film beginning November 6th, while also offering a simultaneous theatrical release.