cinema
Mud
With the trappings of a Mark Twain novel and bearing a thematic resemblance to last year’s Beasts of the Southern Wild, Mud is a consummate Southern tale and an absorbing old-fashioned adventure. The film follows two pubescent boys, Ellis and Neckbone, as they befriend a fugitive, the titular Mud. Brown as a berry with a cigarette perennially perched on his lip, Mud weaves a romantic tale that resonates with the boys and enlists them to help him reunite with his longtime love, Juniper. Leisurely paced, the film unravels through the wide eyes of its young protagonists as they lose their innocence and realise the foibles of the adults around them. Square in the middle of his so-called McConaissance, Matthew McConaughey delivers a career-best performance, but this lyrical film belongs to the two junior leads. / Amy O’Connor
