Sling Blade
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| Sling Blade | |
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 Sling Blade VHS cover |
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| Directed by | Billy Bob Thornton |
| Produced by | David L. Bushell Brandon Rosser |
| Written by | Billy Bob Thornton |
| Starring | Billy Bob Thornton |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
| Release date(s) | November 27, 1996 (USA) |
| Running time | 135 min. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Sling Blade is a 1996 film drama set in rural Arkansas. It tells the fictional story of a simple man named Karl Childers who is released from a psychiatric hospital where he has lived since committing murder at age 12. He befriends a young boy, begins a friendship with the boy's mother and must confront the mother's abusive boyfriend, as well as his own dark past. It stars and was written and directed by actor/writer Billy Bob Thornton, and also stars singer Dwight Yoakam, J.T. Walsh, John Ritter, Lucas Black, Natalie Canerday, Bruce Hampton, Vic Chesnutt, Stacia Thomason and Robert Duvall.
The movie was adapted by Thornton from his short film and previous screenplay titled Some Folks Call it a Sling Blade. The film seemed to come out of nowhere, and was a sleeper hit, launching Thornton into mega-stardom. It won the Academy Award for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium, and was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Billy Bob Thornton).
Thornton masterfully portrays the simpleton Karl, who has a good heart and a knack for small engine repair, but a disturbed mind. One scene takes place in a diner, where John Ritter's character, Vaughan, bares his innermost feelings about being a gay man in a small town. Carl listens intently while munching french fries but does not respond. When Vaughan asks what he is thinking about, Karl pauses and replies "I was thinkin' I'm gonna take some of these 'taters home with me!"
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[edit] Parodies
- Mad TV aired a comedy sketch entitled Sling Blade 2: Judgment Day (alternately, The Reckoning, as sources vary on the subtitle) during their third season, a Terminator 2 parody. A second sketch entitled Blades (aka Blade/Sling Blade) aired during their fifth season, which featured Karl teamed up with vampire-hunter/dhampir Blade to hunt down vampires. The most memorable part was Karl's dubious line, "I bit me a vampire once... tasted like corn."
- In the South Park episode "Towelie", Cartman says a few lines from the movie ("You shouldn't a done that, he's just a boy," and "poor little feller") with an accent and all, when referring to Stan's mom's tampon he found in the trash.
- In a recent interview with co-star Jon Heder for their film, "School for Scoundrels", Thornton performed an impromptu impersonation of Karl chatting about french fries and llamas with Heder, who performed as his Napoleon Dynamite Character.
[edit] Reference
Thornton's character refers to using a "kaiser blade," which he says some folks call a "sling blade."
A "kaiser" or "ditch bank" blade features a hardwood pole with a wide, heavy steel blade with a half-hook point attached firmly to the end. It is usually kept sharp on both sides and is used for cutting earth and roots as well as heavier vegetation. It would make a very lethal weapon.
"Sling blade" can also mean a pole with a thin, replaceable cutting blade attached horizontally to the end, used to cut light grasses. However, it would not be a terribly effective weapon. A sugar cane blade is also referred to sometimes as a "sling blade".
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Academy Awards
- Won for Best Adapted Screenplay (Thornton)
- Nominated for Best Actor (Thornton)
- Edgar Awards
- Won for Best Motion Picture Screenplay (Thornton)
- Independent Spirit Awards
- Won for Best First Feature
- National Board of Review Awards
- Won for Special Achievement in Filmmaking (Thornton)
- Screen Actors Guild Awards
- Nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Cast
- Nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role (Thornton)
- Writers Guild of America Awards
- Won for Best Adapted Screenplay (Thornton)
[edit] Trivia
On the promotion tour for the movie, Dwight Yoakam was asked on Late Night with Conan O'Brien how he knew that he had done a good acting job. Yoakam responded that after the premiere, his mother "looked me dead in the eye[s] and said 'I'm glad he killed you!'."
The film also features cameo appearances by musicians Bruce Hampton, Vic Chesnutt, and Ian Moore as well as a brief appearance by indie movie writer and director Jim Jarmusch as the frostee cream guy.
