Why Mud is Perfect

Do you remember how or when you lost your innocence? I am not talking about first sexual experience. I am talking about the "death" of that sincere and honest child within which no matter what, will always stick to his true feelings and emotions. Do you remember the first time when you first thought that actually lying is not that bad just because everybody lies? 

I don't. But thanks to Mud I came close to re-experiencing that forgotten feeling of loss. I am not much of a philosopher. Never have been and probably never will be, but there is something about this movie making it a perfect coming of age story that has ever been produced in Hollywood. Why? Because it is about those very principles, which we usually lose while growing up. It is about those very emotions which change with time. We become calculating, deceptive and pragmatic. We gain this traits not because we are genuinely bad people but because to some extent we realize they will make our life easy. Life is too damn hard so we have to be more flexible with our own principles as well as feelings...

Now going back to Mud I want to draw, what seems to me, an extremely relevant parallel (make an analogy) with 90s classic movie Scent of a Woman (If you havent seen it, go see it right now). Here is a small excerpt from Al Pacino's famous speech, where after insulting everyone he could insult, Colonel Frank Slade sums up his opinion about young and naive Charlie Simms: "Now I have come to the crossroads in my life. I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it. You know why? It was too damn hard. Now here's Charlie. He's come to the crossroads. He has chosen a path. It's the right path. It's a path made of principle that leads to character. Let him continue on his journey. You hold this boy's future in your hands, committee. It's a valuable future. Believe me. Don't destroy it. Protect it. Embrace it. It's gonna make you proud one day, I promise you."

Why did Mud remind me of this particular part of Slade's speech ? There are two reasons. First of all, I am assured that last several sentences of the speech could be repeated with the exact same wording to the character (His name is Mud) of Matthew McConaughey. Mud, as well as the committee deciding whether to expel Charlie, held the future of Ellis in his hands. Future development of personality of Ellis depends on his actions. Even Mud himself, who can be counted as one of those people able to fully dedicate themselves to the purpose they deem worthy, came close to the mediocrity of soul. He came close to giving up on what he really loved just because, not giving up was irrational. Hence, considering the attitude of Ellis towards Mud, mediocre actions of the latter could have ultimately disappoint the former and, in Frank Slade's words, execute his soul. Is it an extremely radical assumption? It is as radical as Ellis's devotion to Mud and his purpose. Ellis is kind of a boy who will not tolerate betrayal of true self in any way but he is young and prone to be affected by those for whom he deeply cares. This means that seeing the full capitulation of his role model might force him to end up with mediocrity as well. He will not die in physical terms, he will live on, but he will grow into a man who stopped believing. Second reason why I remembered Scent of a Woman is the similarity between Charlie Simms and Ellis. While Charlie is older and Ellis is more aggressive, their ability for choosing the path and following it ignoring the costs is stunning. If for Charlie the path is represented in not snitching on his (assholish) so-called friends, for Ellis the path is to help Mud, a man he believes is madly in love.  

I am going to be a little harsh here and say that the cornerstone of this movie is not Mud. It's the little boy Ellis. He and Mud need each other. Ellis needs Mud to be his role model, to give him emotional stimulus, encouraging him to stay true to himself, while Mud needs Ellis to not be lost in mediocrity. To have someone who will acknowledge his dedication and who will believe he is capable of deeds he never even considered he was capable of. They are the two musketeers, but Ellis is still the driving force, when he reaches Mud's age he will be more than Mud ever dreamt of.

Even though this movie is called Mud, it is not about him. It's about the boy.

The boy who is far from being an ideal son, he is aggressive, restless, brave, risky, curios and judging. He might have some flaws even as a kid, but he has one important trait outweighing his shortcomings. He is never fake. He's as real as it gets. His intentions are childishly genuine and his actions are worthy of an adult (Noble!) Man. Cause that is the way he perceives himself, not even once he doubts himself or his actions thinking "I am just a kid. What do I know?". He knows what he believes in and refuses to deny his beliefs even when being under pressure from adults - who you would think know much more about life than this little brat. He is no ordinary boy. His convictions are so intense and indestructible that it pushes other people to be better and try to live up to his expectations and that is the true spirit. The spirit which is absent in many of us and which deserves admiration whenever witnessed.