Cinema Tuesdays Review

I Reckon You'll Like This DVD
By Nathan Cone

"I like the way you talk." -- Frank Wheatley (Lucas Black) to Karl Childers (Billy Bob Thornton) in "Sling Blade"

A lot of people liked the way Karl Childers talked when "Sling Blade" was released in 1996. The sleeper hit had folks talking about potted meat, grunting and saying "all right then" and "mm-hmm" for months. It's a testament to Billy Bob Thornton's writing and portrayal of Karl that the public latched on so to this film. After receiving a less-than-inspiring "bare bones" DVD release in 1998, Miramax has finally gone all out with this two-disc release of the film, including numerous interviews and, most tantalizing to fans of the film, an extended "Director's Cut" of the movie that restores about twelve minutes of footage.

Those extra minutes of footage are not essential to the film's story, but they do not distract from the film today, nine years after I first saw it. Mostly, the extra footage allows us to share a few extra moments with the movie's unique characters, and one scene, a tender conversation between Karl and Frank, is most welcome.

Thornton obviously touched a public nerve with his portrayal of Karl, a simple man who's "turned loose from the nervous hospital" twenty-five years after killing his mother and her lover. Even after all the baggage we associate with Billy Bob Thornton today -- rumors that he doesn't eat orange food (false), his wacky marriage to Angelina Jolie -- watching Thornton disappear into character is an incredible experience. And besides Thornton, both John Ritter and Dwight Yoakum also transcend their public images so as to be nearly unrecognizable in "Sling Blade." Their performances are a triumph, as is Lucas Black's, playing Karl's young friend.

For those who have not seen the film, "Sling Blade" is about Karl's return to his hometown, his friendship with young Frank and his mother, and an important decision he must make when Frank's mother's abusive boyfriend brings Karl's past into the present. It is a distinctly Southern film, unhurried and patient enough to allow someone to eat a few bites of food onscreen, or to simply place the camera in one spot and have it stay there. As Thornton notes on the DVD, this was probably the one feature film he got to make his own way. With fame comes greater budgets, and with studio involvement comes… well, involvement.

This new two-disc version of "Sling Blade" includes two long-form documentaries. One of them is lifted from the cable channel Bravo, and another, "Mr. Thornton Goes to Hollywood," tells Billy Bob Thornton's story from his days growing up in Malvern, Arkansas, to his days as a struggling actor and writer, to the success of "Sling Blade" at the Academy Awards. Interviewees include Thornton's mother, John Ritter, and some of Thornton's childhood friends, including Rick Dial, a furniture salesman who took the role of Karl's boss, Bill Cox, in the film. Dial notes that Thornton instructed him to speak in character in the same cadence that he used on the showroom floor, a revelation that immediately had resonance with me, as I remembered Dial's performance in the film. Dwight Yoakum is also interviewed, and besides details about his role in the film, Yoakum reveals his chest hair, wearing on camera a light blue V-neck sweater that's way too large for his frame. Strange.

There are extended roundtable discussions with the actors and filmmakers, and Thornton has plenty of good stories to tell in these special features about getting this film made on such a small budget. Thornton's audio commentary on the DVD is low-key; he mumbles a bit, and so you have to crank up the volume, but the commentary is informative.

Another nice extra feature is an extended conversation with Thornton and composer Daniel Lanois. Lanois also performs on camera a solo pedal steel guitar piece heard in the film while Thornton looks on. And for those who are hoping to see more of Karl, there is a short piece recorded on the set of Thornton's follow-up feature, "Daddy & Them," where Thornton dons the hiked-up pants and gray shirt again, and improvises a little for the cast and crew. It's not much to write home about, but it is fun to see.

"Sling Blade" is a haunting, beautiful film that will surely be remembered years from now as one of the high points of the 1990s independent film movement. Miramax has finally done it justice with their new "Collectors Series" edition of the film on DVD. I've studied on it quite a bit, and I reckon you'll like it, mm-hmm.

6/7/05

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