The Triumph Of ‘Mud’

We’ve never taken Matthew McConaughey all that seriously. He’s incredibly good looking, to be sure, but with the exception of goofy, formulaic romantic comedies (usually co-starring Kate Hudson) – the Texas native has never really seemed all that comfortable or adept in his roles.

Accordingly, we were highly skeptical of the movie Mud – even after it was certified very fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a whopping 98 percent score from critics (and an 86 percent score from fans). Well guess what: The critics (and fans) were right. Mud is every bit as good as it is cracked up to be – a modern day Mark Twain yarn told with a poignance (and patience) that’s been sorely lacking from Hollywood lately.

Directed by Jeff Nichols, Mud‘s title character (McConaughey) is a man running from the law – and from a crew of bounty hunters. “Mud’s” sanctuary? An uninhabited island in the middle of the Mississippi River between Arkansas and the Magnolia State. His problem (well, aside from the posse trying to kill him) is his unrequited love for the beautiful – yet notoriously unreliable – Juniper (played by Reese Witherspoon).

In fact Mud’s love for Juniper is what placed him in his perilous position in the first place …

McConaughey’s depth in the title role was surprising. Seriously … who knew this guy had so many layers? And while Juniper was little more than a bit part in this drama, Witherspoon was scorching hot in the role of Mud’s white trash love interest.

Stealing the show, though, were 16-year-old Tye Sheridan and 16-year-old Jacob Lofland – who played the roles of Ellis and Neckbone, respectively, two river running kids who befriend Mud after encountering him on his island hideaway.

Sheridan’s performance in particular is what makes Mud more than just enthralling storytelling and cinematography – elevating the movie to “instant classic” status in our estimation.

Anyway, here’s the trailer …

Mud was released on BluRay and DVD last week. We highly recommend it …