"That's a nice-a donut."
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Sling Blade (1996)
Karl Childers is quite possibly the gentlest, nicest, and most pleasant killer in screen history. In Billy Bob Thorntons opus Sling Blade - as the writer, director, and lead actor - a slow, simple man comes to terms with his past in a moving, thought-provoking drama checkered with a wry (and sometimes twisted) sense of humor, and a deep personal look at the impact one man can have on so many people.
All right, then. Karl was just 12 years old when he killed his mother and her lover with a sling blade (or a kaiser blade, as he called it). He was incarcerated in a "nervous hospital" for many years and is finally released as a middle-aged man, having served his time and been pronounced as well. He is able to get a job in his hometown at a little fix-it shop, since he is a hard worker and is somehow a genius at fixing small machine engines. Almost right away he befriends Frank, a young boy who is just about the same age that Karl was when get got in trouble. Karl's simple, well-meaning mannerisms also win over Frank's mother Linda and soon he has moved into their garage. He also makes friends with Linda's boss and gay friend, Vaughn (the late John Ritter). Unfortunately, Linda has an abusive, drunken, redneck boyfriend Doyle. Things begin to boil over, leading to an unforgettable finale.
It is an unfortunate, but necessary ending to Karl's tale and has the rare feat of being an ending that is both sad and uplifting at the same time - and accomplishing both equally well. I had managed to easily predict where things were leading, but it didn't matter because it was how we got to that point that made it worthwhile. This is a movie with very little action, so dialogue (and sometimes silence) is very important, especially when it involves the main characters. Karl is the glue that helps carry several of the relationships in the movie: the tenderness and compassion between Karl and Linda; the shared stigma and common ground between Karl and Vaughn; the not-too-subtle derision and scorn between Karl and Doyle; and of course the everlasting friendship between Karl and Frank.
Thornton does a tremendous job at becoming the slow, mentally handicapped man. From his awkward walk, to his funny speech patterns (Frank says that it's like he's revving his engine with some of the sounds he makes), to his facial expression with the pronounced underbite and distanced look, he has no doubt become Karl. A new standard was set with this performance, which puts other mentally disabled characters from the movies (Forrest Gump comes first to mind) to shame.
The film goes off track momentarily near the end in a brief scene in which Karl visits someone (Robert Duvall) from his past. The scene could have easily been cut and no flow would have been lost, but I suspect it wasn't because of the sly nod toward To Kill a Mockingbird via Boo Radley. In all, I reckon that Sling Blade is a truly wonderful accomplishment, a classic fable of innocence and redemption.
The Verdict: A-.
Michael Bentley 1:32 PM
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