Click to read the article
Sling Blade (1996)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted: 43
Fresh: 41
Rotten:2
Average Rating: 8.4/10
Consensus: You will see what's coming, but the masterful performances, especially Thornton's, will leave you riveted.
Runtime: 2 hrs 37 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: 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... 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. [More]
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Lucas Black, Dwight Yoakam, John Ritter
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Lucas Black, Dwight Yoakam, John Ritter, Natalie Canerday, Robert Duvall, Jim Jarmusch
Director: Billy Bob Thornton
Director: Billy Bob Thornton
Screenwriter: Billy Bob Thornton
Composer: Daniel Lanois
Producer: David L. Bushell, Brandon Rosser
Get This Movie
Rent DVD
Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.
Buy DVD
Release:
Jan 6, 1998
Reviews for Sling Blade
There will never be another film like Sling Blade. And I reckon we’ll have to live with that... Mmm-mmm.
These days Thornton is seen primarily as an actor, but with “Sling Blade” he proved a true auteur.
...a moving, poignant, humorous, chilling, and melancholic motion picture, with a bravura turn from its writer/director/star.
Sling Blade derives its power from Thornton's affecting characterization of Karl Childers.
There is almost nothing slipshod about the film and I suspect that it will only seem more impressive the further we get from the flurry of hype ...
This riveting character-driven drama is a cautionary tale about the ways in which violence desecrates all life.
Related Forums for Sling Blade
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
79% 79% |
Gran Torino |
30% 30% |
12 Rounds |
23% 23% |
Confessions of a Shopa… |
|
The Code |
39% 39% |
Inkheart |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
22% 22% |
Push |
12% 12% |
The Unborn |
RT On Current TV
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- Sling Blade at Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh Links
Featured

MSN's David Fear and Frank Paiva go head to head discussing the pros and cons of Bruno star Sacha Baron Cohen.

The AV Club's Scott Tobias takes a second look at David Lynch's cult classic, Lost Highway.

TIME takes us on a 25-year long journey into the superstar's career, giving us a look at his 10 best roles.

BuzzSugar reports on Paramount's plans to rebirth the iconic TV show as a comedy film.



Top Critic


