Karl Childers (Billy Bob Thornton) is a mentally handicapped man who has been newly released from an Arkansas mental hospital after several decades. He was sent there as a youth because he murdered a boy he had thought was raping his mother.
The Indie Filmmaker Reflection
Karl stops at a fast food restaraunt where the window person (Jim Jarmusch) gives him a rundown of what they have to eat there. Karl decides to order one of his favorite snacks: “french fried pertaters”.
On his travels spending time in his hometown after he leaves the hospital, Karl meets a young boy named Frank (Lucas Black) at the local laundromat who has a load of clothes he needs to bring home. Being a friendly soul, Karl helps him lug the stuff back. The two become fast friends as they walk together and chat. Frank decides to introduce Karl to his mother Linda (Natalie Canerday) and her boss/best friend Vaughan (John Ritter) at the supermarket where she works.
In need of a job so he can live on his own, Karl is helped by his kind hearted doctor from the mental hospital Jerry Woolridge (James Hampton) and given work repairing lawnmowers, (which he is very good at) and other equipment at a shop in town. The friendly owner Bill Cox (Rick Dial) also gives him a place to sleep in the back. The scenes of interaction between Karl, Bill and his co-worker Scooter are particularly authentic thanks to Thornton’s choice of using local, non-professional actors in the roles.
In a nice gesture, Frank and Linda decide to let Karl move into their garage. As Karl spends more time with Frank and his family he begins to create a normal life, something we learn he never really had growing up before being committed. The only thing that could potentially destroy it is Linda’s boyfriend Doyle (Dwight Yoakam) a construction worker who is very cruel to everyone around him and gets even worse when he drinks. He already dislikes Frank and when he meets Karl who he refers to as a “retard” he becomes even more repugnant.
Sling Blade might have been just another forgettable indie yarn but its inherant charm, simple, down home characters and unique Thornton-penned humor make it truly memorable and special. It is a touching tale about an oddball and how he manages to cope with his troubles in the best way he can while bringing a little bit of sunshine into people’s lives with his strange yet likeable personality. Thornton’s Karl has since become an iconic character in pop culture, an indie film version of Forrest Gump if you will, with his contorted face and strange speech pattern which sounds like a broken chainsaw.
One thought on “DEEP FOCUS: Sling Blade”
I love this movie. I still own the VHS original copy of it:)