Mud *** ( R) Welcome back to the bayous, y’all. After last year’s sleeper sensation, Beasts of the Southern Wild, we get another soggy setting for a lesser, but still worthy, coming-of-age drama that’s more about specific characters than a subculture. Here, a couple of teen boys, Ellis and "Neckbone" (one of the coolest nicknames in movie history) find a guy (Matthew McConaughey) hiding on an island in the sleepy backwaters near their small southern town. He spins a romantic yarn about trying to save a damsel in distress (Reese Witherspoon) that leads the lads to want to help him.
Ellis (Tye Sheridan) is especially drawn into the adventure, as a matter of timing. He pines for an out-of-his-league, slightly older lass, and also fears having his entire world fall apart with the looming divorce of his parents that will mean moving away from the river that has anchored a strong bond with his father. He really needs to see love as something powerful and enduring to stabilize the only life he’s known. Their new friend is hoping to wrest his lady from the clutches of her late husband’s rich, vindictive and violent family. Everyone may be in danger.
Writer/director Jeff Nichols does a fine job of creating characters who present a satisfying mix of empathy and ambiguity to maintain suspense on several fronts. The ensemble acting is fine, including nice contributions from Sam Shepard and veteran villain Joe Don Baker. The script builds to a spirited climax that leaves a few questions realistically unclear, but still covers the bases. When an actress with Witherspoon’s industry clout takes such a small, though intriguing, role, it’s fair to assume she was drawn by a compelling screenplay. Like this one.(4/26/13)