Movie Breakdown: Mud

People are doing traditional-style reviews all over the web, so we decided to try something different.  In each “breakdown” we’ll take a look at what a film’s marketing lead us to believe, how the movie actually played, and then what we learned from it all.  Read on!

The Impression:

Matthew McConaughey is a possibly dangerous man who befriends two kids.  The film is directed by Jeff Nichols, who did the rather good Take Shelter.

The Reality:

Mud is one of the best “coming of age” movies that I’ve seen in a long time.  The formula for these sort of films is pretty standard – they follow a person and/or a similarly-aged group of people as they go through something that helps them figure out how to grow up/live happy/whatever.  Mud, however, is centered around a boy and a man who end up using their sudden friendship to right their lives.  It’s an interesting dynamic, and director/writer Jeff Nichols does a nice job of crafting their odd pairing into something that you feel an absolute need to root for.  Consider this one highly recommended.

The Lesson:

Jeff Nichols is close to being able to sell a movie just with his name.