Mud (2013)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

An Amazon reviewer commented that this film has an essence of "Stand By Me" about it, and that was all it took to convince me to give it a try - without even reading any more of their review.They weren't wrong. Almost the first shot of the film features a boy who closely resembles River Phoenix in "Stand By Me", including the same haircut and similar white t-shirt. And the mood and flavour of the film continues to be similar throughout, with additional overtones of "The Client", "The Cure", and even elements of Stephen King's "IT" (the original, not the remake). Because, of course, this is just one in a long and distinguished line of coming-of-age dramas, mostly featuring boys aged between 11 and 14, mostly in bucolic rural settings, and mostly unsupervised, that can trace their origins back to Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. It is a genre that is nearly always richly evocative, and speaks to a nostalgic place, particularly to be found in the male soul, that yearns for the freedom and adventure of ones' youth - either fondly remembered, or wishfully imagined.These specific stories, which are quintessentially American, have their cousins in every other culture around the world - wherever young boys live and play and explore the world around them in search of adventure and independence. As a Brit, my version of "Huckleberry Finn" was "Swallows and Amazons" which reflected my own culture's youthful adventures of a bygone age, and remains powerfully resonant and evocative to me even in middle age. I was lucky enough to actually have a childhood like that, so I can enjoy real memories as well as imagination.But I also grew up with the American mythology too, and when "Stand By Me" first hit the screens, it touched that special place in the centre of my soul that will forever be a 12 year-old boy. I'm particularly susceptible to such stories.Mud is one such story, and it is beautifully realised. The screenplay is honest, raw, and unflinching. It is also pleasingly male-centric, with not a single trace of post-feminist political correctness. Every featured female character is a representation of the various ways that women can hurt and abuse men, and every featured male character has been hurt or abused by a female in one way or another. Now, although this may not seem realistic or fair, it is purely because the film is entirely presented from a male perspective - which is both refreshing and deeply satisfying if, like me, you are a male who has grown up in a world where anyone who owns a penis is automatically fair game.Personally, I've had enough of watching "empowered" women "heroically" kicking men's asses in movies. And I've had enough of watching men always being the abuser. In this film, the women are all abusive in one way or another, but they are also depicted realistically and with more even-handedness than male characters would have been if their roles had been reversed. The dialogue is also intelligently written, and the two central characters - boys in their early teens - are written and depicted honestly and with great respect. There is no dumbing-down here.The cinematography is attractive and straightforward, perfectly capturing the beauty of the great outdoors without falling into any of the usual clichés. There are no smoke-filled woods with sun rays piercing through. There are no arty close-ups of barbed wire with out-of-focus red barns in the background. There are no shots of people silhouetted against the sunset. (At least, if there were, I wasn't distracted by them).Similarly, the music doesn't draw attention to itself, the editing is equally unobtrusive, and the director wisely keeps his actors from chewing-up any scenery. In short, it is good straightforward storytelling, rather than "art". And much as I enjoy "art", with a movie of this nature the story must come first.And finally, with regard to the cast, I can only say that they all did a great job. The supporting cast, most of whom bring a lot of Hollywood "baggage" with them, are sensibly kept in the background, with the exception of McConaughey who turns in a solid (and possibly quite smelly) performance.But the absolute stars of this film are the two boys, both of whom would be equally good in any of the coming-of-age movies that have ever been made. Their acting is natural, confident, nuanced, and filled with - my favourite word - verisimilitude. And the central performance from Tye Sheridan is nothing short of breath-taking. As I was watching, I was thinking "this kid is going to be a huge star". I had never heard of him before. But having since looked him up, I can see that he's already well on the way to my prediction, with an impressive body of work under his belt. I was reminded of both River Phoenix in "Stand By Me" and Brad Renfro in "The Client". And that is a little bit unsettling, based on how both of their young lives were tragically ended. So I hope that Tye Sheridan achieves the success that he so totally deserves, but without falling into the same traps.Overall, "Mud" is a strong addition to a favourite genre of mine. Not the best (hence not 10 stars) but a thoroughly well-made film.

Two young boys encounter a fugitive and form a pact to help him evade the vigilantes that are on his trail and to reunite him with his true love. Mud is a film that really surprised Matthew McConaughey and Tye Sheridan gave 2 really great performances and the drama really worked a lot it also had a pretty cool 3rd act it kinda changed since the first and 2nd act were more slower and dramatic and as a whole the cast did a pretty good job some maybe they needed a bit more backstory and the pacing to be a little bit faster but still really good movie with great performances and it really worked well in the end for me i'll give Mud an 8/10.

This is an old school, character driven story.It is Dark and gritty and if you enjoy this kind of stories I guarantee you, you will not be disappointed.The performances are solid and strong from the kids to the seasoned actors (loved Sam Shepard.) Matthew McConaughey really brings it as an outcast recluse and makes you feel quite a bit uncomfortable on several occasions.It is nicely shot. Well edited. A fitting score.I highly recommend it.

The plot is not amazingly original but the actors' portrayal of the characters made the story captivating. Especially thorough were Mud (Matthew McConaughey) and Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and their relationship.Admittedly the beginning of the movie is somewhat slow and there isn't much thinking to do than watch the plot present itself gradually. The storyline starts off for the most part with a laid-back attitude and unwavering beautiful landscape.However there is a radical shift towards the end that will make you grip your seat. At this point you fully realize how well the chemistry between Mud and the kids has been developed.There is one word that describes the overall feeling once the movie has finished and that would be "satisfying".