Actors Of Distinct Character — His Name Is Mud

I was not a fan of Matthew McConaughey. Weighing whether or not I was going to see a film he was in his presence would tip me against it. I’ve since changed my mind. As I think back on it, it might have been the character (sleazy, unctuous) he played regularly, combined with the fact that he played those characters so well that it made me squirm.  I began to change my ways when they made a movie out of my favorite of Michael Connelly’s books, The Lincoln Lawyer. I wasn’t thrilled they picked McConaughey to play the title role.  On the other hand, I knew instantly it was the right choice.  Here was a charming but slimy, opportunist with sliding scale principles.  In that sense Connelly captured and McConaughey delivered a spot-on stand-in of the country’s legal system. There’s a major leap from the law to justice. The character and the actor walked the razor’s edge between despicable and redeemable.

McConaughey in Mud

In the film, Mud, McConaughey has confirmed, now, through a significant body of work, that he has carved out a permanent place among the great male character actors, each creating a singular mark in the profession, character actors so strong they can carry a film, much as McConaughey did with Mud. We saw the seeds of this character in A Time To Kill (an adaption of John Grisham’s best, now on Broadway) and the result of that loss of Innocence in The Lincoln Lawyer.  Now we see it gain and again, most recently in Killer Joe and The Paperboy, and before that in Magic Mike.  It’s obvious we’re not witnessing an actor pursuing the same goals as Daniel Day-Lewis or Robert De Niro, becoming someone entirely different for each role, but creating an original “type’ in much the same way as Christopher Walken, Vincent Price, Charles Laughton, Clifton Webb successfully created original types.

Mud, incidentally, is a worthwhile film. Whatever you may think of Reese Witherspoon – and I like her – she does a great job here as does Sam Shepard.  Talented Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland play the two teens, one of them investing his entire view of the world on a drifter’s honor.

Film Pairing — Famous, Contemporary Fictional Lawyers, From Books To Screen

I never saw what the deal was with Matthew McConaughey. Perhaps it was because he played unintentionally unsympathetic characters in the kind of movies I wasn’t inclined to see anyway. However, twice that I know of, McConaughey gave performances so clearly on the mark, I can’t imagine another actor pulling them off as well. Both times — in roles years apart — he played an attorney. Both films were based on characters and stories created by deservedly best-selling novelists, who — surprise — liked the movies made from their books. And both times the actor, most famous for taking his shirt off in films, didn’t need to carry the films on his bare shoulders, but could rely on a highly talented supporting cast.

The first is A Time to Kill, based on John Grisham’s novel by the same name. We go back to 1996. A black man kills the two white men who raped and killed his daughter. The movie controversially sets up the conflict of letter of the law against righteous revenge. Are we a nation of laws? We’d like to think so. But what if the law won’t exact justice? Is vigilantism ever justified? The film was panned by some critics because the film appeared to take a side in the argument.

On the other hand there is no argument about the cast. It is stellar. Samuel L. Jackson played the pivotal role of father. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for “Best Supporting Actor.” One could make a case that it should have been for “Best Actor.” Among the others who contributed to this solid drama were: Kevin Spacey, Donald Sutherland, Kiefer Sutherland, Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd and Chris Cooper. The background, as you might have guessed, is the Deep South. The KKK is featured. The problem is that while the white sheets rarely make appearance these days, the attitudes haven’t disappeared. The film remains timely.

The second feature is The Lincoln Lawyer (2011). An older, somewhat weathered as well as appropriately wizened McConaughey plays Mickey Haller who plays all sides to get what he needs. One has the sense that the only people he won’t game are his daughter and his private investigator, played by William Macy. On the other hand, Haller lives and works in a world where trust is dangerous and playing it straight is unprofitable. Again McConaughey is backed up with a talented cast. In addition to the always incredible Macey, we see Marisa Tomei, John Leguizamo. Bryan Cranston does a great job of playing a tough, veteran, cynical cop. And Ryan Phillippe creates perfect pretty boy sociopath.

Haller is the lawyer whose office is in the back of Lincoln Town Car. He is the creation of best-selling crime writer Michael Connelly (see last week’s post) and this is the first of what promises to be a major series of books and if the news last updated in August holds true, will follow Grisham’s The Firm onto the small screen in a series proposed for ABC-TV.

Finding an appropriate drink to accompany the movies is made difficult by the small-town Mississippi setting for A Time To Kill and the L.A. fast lane for The Lincoln Lawyer. I’m thinking that we look at something good in hot weather. Never mind that many are still enduring March, that cruel month. How about a gin and tonic? If you’re feeling particularly Southern, put in a mint leaf.