Matthew
McConaughey is a fine actor. He pulls off these understated, brooding
characters really effortlessly. However, is he engaging enough for the
audiences? Not quite!
In
the film, ‘Mud’, the actor plays a lost-in-thought, lonely, distressed man,
Mud. The story revolves around his equation with two unsuspecting 14-year-olds,
who come to his rescue.
Everybody
has acted well in this film. The actors, who play the two kids, deliver
delightful performances. McConaughey too, is fine. However, what really brings
the film down is its awful pace, lack of a proper conflict and the terrible
climactic sequences. There are several sparkling moments in the second half,
but overall, the film is below-par.
Two
adventurous 14-year-old kids, Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob
Lofland), set out to an island on the Mississippi River, where the latter has
found a boat, suspended atop a tree. Here, they meet Mud (Matthew McConaughey),
who is on the run after having committed a murder.
Matthew
wants to reconnect with his ladylove, Juniper (Reese Witherspoon) and so, he
approached the two kids to help him elope with her!
The
story is quite simple, right? NO!
There
are needless characters that enter the plot – the track involving Ellis’
parents, Neckbone’s uncle, Ellis’ crush, Mud’s nemeses, Mud’s father-figure
etc.
Not
that, it’s not alright to have so many characters in one film, but their
presence should be justified.
The
film scores in two departments – the kids – their characters, dialogues and
performances are absolutely brilliant, and so is the music. The actor, who
plays Ellis’ friend, Jacob, is amazing as Neckbone. Watch out for this
character, if you do end up watching the film.
‘Mud’,
on the outset, comprises one element – the concept of love. There’s hardly
anything happening in the awfully slow first-half. It’s in the latter part,
when the film actually picks up. Ellis’ character strives hard to find the true
definition of ‘love’. While it’s not clear if he eventually manages to figure
it out, we, the viewers, do end up getting our own interpretations dented.
Totally
muddled up! Pun intended!
Shivom Oza