Drama

Sling Blade

- A simple man. A difficult choice.

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.

Release Date : 1996-08-30

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : MiramaxThe Shooting Gallery

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Karl Childers

Original Name : Billy Bob Thornton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Doyle Hargraves

Original Name : Dwight Yoakam

Gender : Male

Character Name : Charles Bushman

Original Name : J. T. Walsh

Gender : Male

Character Name : Vaughan Cunningham

Original Name : John Ritter

Gender : Male

Character Name : Frank Wheatley

Original Name : Lucas Black

Gender : Male

Character Name : Linda Wheatley

Original Name : Natalie Canerday

Gender : Female

Character Name : Jerry Woolridge

Original Name : James Hampton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Karl's Father

Original Name : Robert Duvall

Gender : Male

Character Name : Bill Cox

Original Name : Rick Dial

Gender : Male

Character Name : Scooter Hodges

Original Name : Brent Briscoe

Gender : Male

Character Name : Melinda

Original Name : Christine Renee Ward

Gender : Female

Character Name : Marsha Dwiggins

Original Name : Sarah Boss

Gender : Male

Character Name : Theresa Evans

Original Name : Kathy Sue Brown

Gender : Male

Character Name : Melvin

Original Name : Wendell Rafferty

Gender : Male

Character Name : Morris

Original Name : Bruce Hampton

Gender : Male

Character Name : Terence

Original Name : Vic Chesnutt

Gender : Male

Character Name : Monty Johnson

Original Name : Mickey Jones

Gender : Male

Character Name : Randy Horsefeathers

Original Name : Ian Moore

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mrs. Woolridge

Original Name : Judy Pryor Trice

Gender : Female

Character Name : Bubba Woolridge

Original Name : Scott Stewart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woolridge Daughter

Original Name : Betty Lynn Hall

Gender : Female

Character Name : Frostee Cream Boy

Original Name : Jim Jarmusch

Gender : Male

Character Name : Preacher

Original Name : Gary Don Fletcher

Gender : Male

Character Name : Albert

Original Name : Tim Holder

Gender : Male

Character Name : Freddy

Original Name : Tom Kagy

Gender : Male

Character Name : Woodridge Secretary

Original Name : Stacy Thomason

Gender : Male

Character Name : Walter

Original Name : Jackie Stewart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Teenage Boy

Original Name : Jamie Stewart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Housekeeper

Original Name : D.J. Royston

Gender : Male

Character Name : Karen

Original Name : Lacy Bailey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Ticket Agent

Original Name : Raymond Lewallen

Gender : Male

Character Name : Old Man (voice)

Original Name : Bill Glasscock

Gender : Male

Reviews

Wuchak

@Wuchak

2021-06-23

***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-

Filipe Manuel Neto

@FilipeManuelNeto

2024-04-14

**A film full of challenges, to which Billy Bob Thornton, in his greatest work, responded categorically.** I didn't really know what I was going to find when I decided to watch this film, and I'm happy about that: it's a really good, convincing and moving story, which doesn't try to escape the harsh reality of things to create unbelievable heroes. And it is probably the most solid and significant work of Billy Bob Thornton's career. In fact, he not only plays the main role, but is also responsible for the script and direction. It is a labor of love, of total and absolute commitment, which makes this film a "Magnum Opus", even though Thornton has done other works that are equally notable and full of talent. In this story, we follow a seemingly kind and harmless man who has lived his entire life in a mental institution where he was imprisoned as a child, after killing his mother and her boyfriend. Now, he is a mature man, but he doesn't know anything about the outside world, he has no connections of any sort with anyone (he has a father, but there is no emotional bond between them) and he has a serious mental disability. However, doctors consider him well enough to return to a normal life. When he leaves, he returns to his homeland, where he meets a boy who is roughly the same age as he was when he was institutionalized. The friendship between the two leads him to meet his mother, a young woman who has a complicated relationship with a man with a violent nature. And despite her limitations, he quickly realizes that this man could be dangerous to his new friends. The whole story revolves around values that are very dear to us: friendship, kindness and altruism. It's not a completely unpredictable film, but it works very well and presents a deeply credible story. After all, you only need to open a newspaper to see dozens of situations of domestic violence and dating abuse that end badly. It is a subject that deserves deep social reflection: in a world where possessive relationships are increasingly observed, it is essential to understand that love only makes sense if it is based on trust, understanding and mutual acceptance. The film also challenges us to rethink our prejudices about mentally disabled people: they have feelings and emotional needs, just like us. After all, being mentally ill does not mean that you are a psychopath or sociopath. Technically, the film presents us with excellent cinematography, in addition to a wise choice of filming locations and a careful design of the costumes and sets in Rural America. If the film is not very clear as to the geographical location where the action takes place, filming took place mostly in Arkansas, and it seems appropriate to place the fictional story somewhere between this state and its neighbor, Missouri. The well-modeled rhythm does not cause drowsiness or wear out the audience. As I already said, it is Billy Bob Thornton who deserves the most praise for his work in the general work, and particularly as an actor. Playing dramatic roles as mentally disabled people is always challenging: there is a permanent risk of transforming the character into a caricature worthy of condemnation and offensive to people. Thornton manages to be authentic, credible in his interpretation, and reaps the fruits of this magnificent work. In addition to him, Dwight Yoakam also deserves an applause for a challenging and difficult job, in which he did wonderfully well.