Director: Jeff Nichols Starring: Michael Shannon, Adam Driver, Joel Edgerton, Kirsten Dunst ReleaseDate: April 15th, 2016 To my mind, Jeff Nichols is one of the best American directors alive. His thirst three features (Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, and Mud) explored kinship and family in a rural America not always depicted on screen, and in Michael Shannon, who has featured in all of Nichols films and will do so again here, the director has his perfect leading man. The Nichols/Shannon one-two is one of the great current partnerships in American cinema, and its surely not long before Nichols breaks through into the mainstream proper (something he partly did with Mud, which featured a Matthew McConaughey McConaissance performance which greatly helped the films exposure). Midnight Special, co-starring the incredible Adam Driver and the always effective Joel Edgerton, will see the director tackle something a little different: a sci-fi chase film that Nichols has compared to John Carpenters Jeff Bridges-starring, Starman. This subject matter will hopefully gain Nichols and Midnight Special a larger audience, rightfully elevating the director to a higher level of acclaim in the process. With a great cast (inc. Kirsten Dunst and Sam Shepard), Midnight Special is Nichols first studio feature, but dont let that fool you; hes a quintessential indie auteur.
