Take Shelter (2011)
Mud (2014)
Midnight Special (2016)
With the glut of new releases that Hollywood churns out seemingly nonstop, it is hard to find the few independent gems that come and go from year to year. One such indie director I would like to recommend is JEFF NICHOLS, who has produced three original, thought-provoking movies in a row.
His first feature was the well-received "Shotgun Stories" (2007), set in his native Arkansas. I didn't see it. The first movie of his I did see also had a real sense of place and respect for its characters: the 2011 release "Take Shelter," starring his frequent collaborator Michael Shannon and the lovely Jessica Chastain. An unsettling look at one man who may or may not be going crazy, it is well-paced in slowly revealing its secrets.
The same can be said of his latest feature: the little noticed "Midnight Special." I suspect it garnered little attention because of its lame and misleading title! The story concerns an Everyman Dad (once again playing by an always on-the-edge Mr. Shannon) who kidnaps his own son to protect him and his special powers from "the authorities." The nature of those powers is kept secret for much of the movie (like the question of "Is he or isn't he crazy?" question in Take Shelter). Because the movie is not about the supernatural, but about faith and family, as is Nichols' themes throughout his movies.
The best of those movies is still "Mud" starring the great Matthew McConnaughey (No. 10 on FFG's Top Ten List for 2014!). A classic Southern coming-of-age story, it also centers on young adults and the choices they have to make. It will be interesting to see how Nichols treats a story involving adults only: this Fall's much-anticipated look at the Supreme Court miscegenation case titled "Loving."
