The new trailer for Mud starts out as a good-time tale of two boys exploring, then it gets dark (and not just because Matthew Mcconaughey shows up). In fairness to McConaughey, when this film made its film festival debut at the prestigious Cannes event last year, the hit and miss actor was widely praised for his performance. McConaughey plays the title character of the film, a fugitive who the boys bump into on their explorations, the three of them ending up on a tense emotional journey together. But does the trailer give us any clues as to what that might be?

Watch the Mud trailer

Yes, quite a few actually. You see, the boys bump into Mud after finding a boat stuck up a tree by a lake. Resolving to get it down and do it up, they find a like-minded Mud also planning on using the boat. The difference is, the lads are only looking to have a bit of fun with it, Mud wants it to escape bounty hunters who are after him for an as-yet unknown reason.

As you’d expect, that’s not all there is to it: there’s also a love interest at stake, played by Reese Witherspoon. An ex-boyfriend of Mud’s, it would appear that the title character wants to get free so that he can prove his innocence her; presumably whatever it was he’s being hunted down for is the reason they split up in the first place. For the boys part, they never seem fully sure of who their new friend is, although judging by one particular clip in the trailer, they sure find out. Mud is released in US cinemas on April 26.

Matthew McConaughey at the Critic's Choice Awards

Matthew McConaughey plays the title character Mud