REVIEW - Written and directed by Jeff Nichols who has been designated as the Obi-Wan Kenobi of indie cinema, Mud has received rave reviews in France. Present in the last year selection of the Cannes festival, it did not win any prize which had startled the press, won over by this Twainesque oeuvre. This begs the question : “is Mud really perfect?”.

Praised for its simple mise en scène and storytelling, Mud has been even held as the antithesis of Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life. Although I welcome Jeff Nichols’ “classicism” too - which is a refreshing change from the overbidding use of artifices (the photography looks as natural as the Mississippi and its riverbanks) - I regret Mud ’s pace.