One of the more baffling realizations about this year’s Cannes Film Festival line-up is the fact Matthew McConaughey, an actor many associate with his tendency for walking around without a shirt on in rom-coms opposite Kate Hudson over high quality independent features, has two films in the fest. Last night I premiered a clip featuring McConaughey opposite John Cusack in his other Cannes entry, The Paperboy (watch that here), and today I have a pair of clips featuring Matty McC in Jeff Nichols‘s new film Mud.
Here McConaughey stars as the title character as it explores his friendship with a 14-year-old boy named Ellis (Tye Sheridan). The two first meet when Ellis and has best friend are exploring the nearby Mississippi river and discover a deserted island where they encounter Mud, a dirty, desperate yet oddly compelling stranger.
Mud is on the run for a crime of passion, and bounty hunters are closing in on him. Moved by the romantic notion of his story and intrigued by the promise of a great adventure, the boys conspire to aid Mud in his escape and reunite him with the love of his life, Juniper (Reese Witherspoon).
Additional members of the cast include Michael Shannon, Sam Shepard (who also has another film at Cannes with Killing Them Softly), Sarah Paulson, Ray McKinnon and Joe Don Baker. This is Jeff Nichols’s second year in a row at the fest where he won the Critics sidebar last year with Take Shelter.
I’ve added both of the new clips directly below and also added a pair of images to the gallery for the film, which you can check out right here.
