Details
Movie Description
After catching his mother and her boyfriend "in flagrante delicto" and dispatching both of them with a farm implement known as a sling blade, a simpleminded 11-year-old boy is sent to a mental hospital where he spends the next 25 years. Upon his release, the emotionally and mentally stunted man-child returns to his Arkansas hometown and takes a job in a local garage, only to have the past inexorably repeat itself. An indie-film triumph, adapted by star-writer-director Thornton from his 1993 short, "Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade." Academy Award Nominations: 2, including Best Actor--Billy Bob Thornton. Academy Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay.
Synopsis
Small-town simpleton Karl Childers has spent most of his life in a mental institution, after he killed his mother and her lover with the eponymous weapon at age 12. Now middle-aged, Karl is deemed healthy -- and released into a world he hasn't inhabited since he was a pre-teen. Although many of Karl's experiences in the "real world" are very troubling, they give him valuable insight into human nature... and himself. But can he completely escape his tragic past?
Academy Award Nominations: 2, including Best Actor--Billy Bob Thornton. Academy Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay.
Film Notes
Released theatrically in New York and Los Angeles November 22, 1996.
Directorial debut for actor/writer Billy Bob Thornton.
Produced by Shooting Gallery. Associate produced by Kingshill Group.
Color by CFI.
Shown at the Telluride Film Festival, August 30, 1996.
Shown at the New York Film Festival September 28 & 29, 1996.
Additional cast: Rick Dial (Bill Cox) and Christy Ward (Melinda).
Billy Bob Thornton and John Ritter co-starred on the sitcom "Hearts Afire."
The source of this movie is George Hickenlooper's short, "Some Call it a Sling Blade," which was essentially re-shot to become the opening scenes of this film.
Industry Reviews
"...A beautiful contraption of a movie....[SLING BLADE] haunts us..." -- Rating: A-
Gleiberman
"...Marked by some powerful scenes, fine performances and colorful dialogue....Yoakam is excellent..."
Variety - Todd McCarthy (09/09/1996)
"...A mesmerizing parable of good and evil and a splendid example of Southern storytelling at its most poetic and imaginative..."
Los Angeles Times - Kevin Thomas (11/27/1996)
"...The movie is a work of great originality and fascination....[The] characters are brought to life with a vivid strength..."
Chicago Sun-Times - Roger Ebert (11/27/1996)
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