Sling Blade 1996
8 / 10
Sling Blade
Karl Childers, a mentally disabled man, has been in the custody of the state mental hospital since the age of 12 for killing his mother and her lover. Although thoroughly institutionalized, he is deemed fit to be released into the outside world.
Karl Childers, a mentally disabled man, has been in the custody of the state mental hospital since the age of 12 for killing his mother and her lover. Although thoroughly institutionalized, he is deemed fit to be released into the outside world.
Videos & Photos
All 1 Videos & 15 Photos
cast
Full Cast & Crew
... Karl Childers
... Doyle Hargraves
... Charles Bushman
... Vaughan Cunningham
... Frank Wheatley
... Linda Wheatley
User reviews
See All 1 Reviews23 Jun 2021 by Wuchak
***When a murderer is the likable protagonist, mmm-hmm*** A simple, slow, seemingly pensive man (Billy Bob Thornton) is released from a mental hospital in central Arkansas after 30 years and gets a job fixing lawnmowers. He makes friends with a boy & his mother (Natalie Canerday) and they let him live in their garage, but the mother’s abusive boyfriend presents a problem (Dwight Yoakam). John Ritter is on hand as the mother’s gay best friend. "Sling Blade" (1996) is a small town drama with a memorable central character (if I didn’t know beforehand that Thornton played the role, I wouldn’t have recognized him). The characters and their situations smack of real life while the unhurried story is interesting enough. There are well-done moments of meditation and revelation, as well as touching ones. It’s a tad overlong, however, and the politically correct glorification of Vaughan (Ritter) is eye-rolling. Karl (Thornton) observes that “The Bible says two men ought not lay together. But I don't reckon the Good Lord would send anybody like you to Hades.” Yet his opining doesn’t mean much since he candidly acknowledges elsewhere that he doesn’t understand a lot of the Scriptures, not to mention his foolish predilection for murder to solve mundane problems. He should stick to fixing lawnmowers and eating them French fried potaters, mmm-hmm. The film runs 2 hours, 15 minutes, and was shot in Benton & nearby Haskell, Arkansas, which are about 20-30 minutes southwest of Little Rock. GRADE: B-
Genres:
Release Date:
Aug 30, 1996 (United States)
Run Time:
2hr 15`
MMPA Rating:
R
Original Language:
English
Production Countries:
United States
Status:
Released
Plot Keywords:
Related Movies To
Sling Blade
***When a murderer is the likable protagonist, mmm-hmm*** A simple, slow, seemingly pensive man (Billy Bob Thornton) is released from a mental hospital in central Arkansas after 30 years and gets a job fixing lawnmowers. He makes friends with a boy & his mother (Natalie Canerday) and they let him live in their garage, but the mother’s abusive boyfriend presents a problem (Dwight Yoakam). John Ritter is on hand as the mother’s gay best friend. "Sling Blade" (1996) is a small town drama with a memorable central character (if I didn’t know beforehand that Thornton played the role, I wouldn’t have recognized him). The characters and their situations smack of real life while the unhurried story is interesting enough. There are well-done moments of meditation and revelation, as well as touching ones. It’s a tad overlong, however, and the politically correct glorification of Vaughan (Ritter) is eye-rolling. Karl (Thornton) observes that “The Bible says two men ought not lay together. But I don't reckon the Good Lord would send anybody like you to Hades.” Yet his opining doesn’t mean much since he candidly acknowledges elsewhere that he doesn’t understand a lot of the Scriptures, not to mention his foolish predilection for murder to solve mundane problems. He should stick to fixing lawnmowers and eating them French fried potaters, mmm-hmm. The film runs 2 hours, 15 minutes, and was shot in Benton & nearby Haskell, Arkansas, which are about 20-30 minutes southwest of Little Rock. GRADE: B-
Cast & Crew of
Sling Blade
Directors & Credit Writers
Cast
... Karl Childers
... Doyle Hargraves
... Charles Bushman
... Vaughan Cunningham
... Frank Wheatley
... Linda Wheatley
... Jerry Woolridge
... Karl's Father
... Bill Cox
... Scooter Hodges
... Melinda
SB
Sarah Boss... Marsha Dwiggins
KSB
Kathy Sue Brown... Theresa Evans
... Melvin
... Morris
... Terence
... Monty Johnson
IM
Ian Moore... Randy Horsefeathers
JPT
Judy Pryor Trice... Mrs. Woolridge
... Bubba Woolridge
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