esrosedotblog

This is one of those all in one films that you can't really put down at all.

Mud (2012)

Parts kid picture, buddy film, coming of age saga, bad boy with a heart of gold, culture clash and revenge picture. At least.

Matthew McConaughey switches gears, well not entirely, to be the congenital liar wise guy on the run from the family of a man he killed because he had messed with Reese Witherspoon and put her in a bad way.

The two boys who are the stars, actually, Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland encounter the scalawag at their "secret" island.

He cons them into helping get together the resources to escape.

The story gets rather involved and we enjoy the ensemble acting of a great cast. Sarah Paulson is one of the moms, Ray McKinnon is a Dad, Michael Shannon a guardian uncle for one of the boys, Paul Sparks and as a senior scallawag himself, the craggy remains of Sam Shepard, never to be underestimated. He is still the charisma king.

This is a great movie and very much worth seeing again.

A NYTimes Critics' Pick it is a definite 5.

And, yes, just once, it is a tradition, Matthew takes of his shirt and waves his aging still beautiful upper body to the breeze. Also, I know this is not important but I am impressed to report that McConaughey has not had his teeth fixed. The front two are a little craggy, charming, and he has not opted for the stupid looking pearly white thing that most male stars now exhibit in roles where they look totally incongruous.

Just to register a mild complaint.

Labels: films