![\"mud](\"https:\/\/365moviesbyday.bryanbuser.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/mud-202x300.jpg\")
Back in 1996, adaptations from John Grisham novels were the big thing. Tom Cruise starred in\u00a0The Firm<\/em>. Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts starred in\u00a0The Pelican Brief<\/em>. Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones starred in\u00a0The Client<\/em>. All were critically acclaimed and performed exceptionally well at the box office.\u00a0A Time To Kill<\/em>\u00a0was Grisham’s first novel and the next the fourth to be adapted for film. Arguably, it is Grisham’s best novel, and the buzz surrounding the film was tremendous. A host of Hollywood A-listers wanted the lead role of Jack Brigance. The question was who would get the lead in the movie that also starred Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd, Samuel L. Jackson, and Kevin Spacey. There was a lot of\u00a0head-shaking when the lead part went to a little-known actor named Matthew McConaughey (Frailty, Amistad<\/em>).\u00a0McConaughey nailed the role, and the movie was critically acclaimed and earned over\u00a0$100 million\u00a0domestically. The film put\u00a0McConaughey on the map, and many considered the part of Jack Brigance the role he was born to play.\n<\/p>\n
It’s a coming-of-age story centered around Ellis (Up and comer Tye Sheridan –\u00a0The Tree of Life, Joe<\/em>), a young teenage boy who effortlessly discovers the beauty and the ugliness of the world around him. Over two hours, we watch as Ellis falls in love, has his efforts towards love slapped in his face, meets a man who at first terrifies him but soon becomes his best friend, and sees everything he thought real from his childhood torn up in front of him. Ellis wears the emotions on his sleeve. We feel so close to this character that we want to be a shoulder for him to cry on when he is sad and be his biggest supporter when in his life is going well.<\/p>\n While Ellis is fantastic, he’s matched scene for scene by McConaughey’s Mud. Mud is a drifter. He has a past to him that is slowly pieced together as the movie develops. Who is this dirty man living on this boat suspended up in a tree on an uninhabited island visited only by Ellis and his best friend Neckbone (Jacob Lofland)? Is Mud a good guy or a bad guy? Is he neither? Is he both? McConaughey plays his role with the precision of a surgeon, careful not to give too much away. There are reasons behind each of his past decisions and each of his future ones. Has his life gone exactly as planned? Certainly not. But has anybody’s life gone exactly as planned? So what is Mud’s character flaw? For a man who is so calculated, what is the one thing that riles him up? Does he only care about himself, or does he care so much more for those around him?<\/p>\n The story’s setting is the banks of the Mississippi River. The scenery and backdrop are breathtaking and worth the price of admission alone. The storytelling is good as it gets, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find better acting in any movie this year. I encourage everybody to go out and see this movie.<\/p>\n Plot 10\/10 Movies You Might Like If You Liked This Movie<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Back in 1996, adaptations from John Grisham novels were the big thing. Tom Cruise starred in\u00a0The Firm. Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts starred in\u00a0The Pelican Brief. Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones starred in\u00a0The Client. All were critically acclaimed and performed exceptionally well at the box office.\u00a0A Time To Kill\u00a0was Grisham’s first novel and the … Continue reading Mud (2013)<\/span>
\nCharacter Development 9\/10
\nCharacter Chemistry 10\/10
\nActing 9.5\/10 (would have been a 10…Witherspoon disappointed some)
\nScreenplay 9.5\/10
\nDirecting \u00a09.5\/10
\nCinematography 10\/10 (stunning)
\nSound 9\/10
\nHook and Reel 9.5\/10
\nUniversal Relevance 9\/10
\n95%<\/p>\n\n