Mud (2012)

Romance is best left to those that go in with an open heart and an open mind. Close either one and you have a relationship, but one with no passion or no devotion. No trust in the thing you share with another. I'm rambling, but Mud's characters hold love as an absolute that can be dwindled until they realize it is something that can be grown.

     Ellis lives on The River in Arkansas. Him and his friend Neckbone live hard navigating the water and the slight social scene around the turbulent currents. They find a boat in a tree on an island and a man living in it, Mud. Mud has a hell of a past full of romance and crime and punishment as well as a lyrical mysticism of bullshit. As everything in Ellis's life begins to crumble, he clings to Mud's words and his own expectations of love until he has to grow up.

     Child actors are hard. On one end you want to give them the benefit of the doubt, not all kids are going to be perfect for every role. Tye Sheridan as Ellis is one of those that just pops, however. From his quiet desperation to the explosive end tantrum, Sheridan felt real as Ellis struggled with harsh truths. Couple that with Sarah Paulson and Ray McKinnon struggling together as his separating parents, and the whole damn thing just rolls on Sheridan's back.

     Everyone seems to be dealing with those truths. As the titular character, McConaughey's Mud starts the plot and keeps it going, but also functions as an antagonist feeding Ellis bad information with the good. He has various voodoo implements to protect himself yet knows first aid of snake bites pretty well. He's a devotee to his love Juniper (Witherspoon), yet by the end Ellis and the audience come to understand that it is more of an obsession. Mud and Juniper may love each other, but that is not always a good thing.

     Did I mention that Joe Don Baker, Sam Shepherd, and Michael Shannon are in this? They fucking are and the are damn solid. King (Baker) gets a hell of an entrance where he prays for Mud's death, while Shepherd and Shannon both get highlights of the quiet desperate resignation that the folk on the river seem to live on. Also, Neckbone. Damn good job, Jacob Lofland.

     A damn good little story. Check it out.