Rating: R
Genre:
Drama
Release Date: 08/04/2009
SubTitles: English/Espanol
Dubbed: English/Espanol
Sound: DHMA/DD2
Run Time: 135 Minutes
Flags: Violence, Adult Situations, Questionable for Children, Adult Language
Distributor/Studio: Miramax
Sling Blade marked the directorial debut of
country singer turned actor
Billy Bob Thornton, who also authored the script (expanding
George Hickenlooper's acclaimed short
Some Folks Call it a Sling Blade) and stars in the picture.
Thornton plays Karl Childers, a mildly retarded man who spent most of his life in a mental institution. When Karl was a boy, he was severely mistreated by his abusive father (
Robert Duvall). At age 12,
Karl found his mother having intercourse with a man who tormented him endlessly; he snapped, flew into a homicidal rage, and killed both individuals by decapitating them. Years later, as a middle-aged man,
Karl is deemed harmless to society and released from the mental institution where he resides. Karl says he has learned his lesson and adds, "I reckon I got no reason to kill no one." He returns to the town of his boyhood, where he's befriended by Frank (
Lucas Black), the son of a widowed mother who sees the eccentric but open-hearted Karl as a kindred spirit.
Karl also gets a job at a fix-it shop and resides in the backroom, until Frank's mother, Linda (
Natalie Canerday), takes a liking to Karl and lets him stay with them. However, Karl also meets Doyle (
Dwight Yoakam), Linda's boyfriend, a sadistically cruel, narrow-minded drunk who tosses casual abuse at Frank, treats Linda like dirt, and mocks
Karl endlessly. The late
John Ritter co-stars as Linda's friend Vaughan, a mild-mannered homosexual who works at the neighborhood dollar store. Musicians
Col. Bruce Hampton and
Vic Chesnutt are among Doyle's party guests.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
;)
