Sling Blade - Director's Cut (Miramax Collector's Series)

MPAA Rating

Theatrical Release Date

Nov 26, 1996

Genre(s)

Melodrama
Psychological Drama
Domestic Violence
Haunted by the Past
Redemption

Rating (Stars)

Description

Billy Bob Thornton wrote, directed, and starred in this mesmerizing drama with haunting overtones of To Kill a Mockingbird. Thornton plays a mentally retarded man who has spent 20 years in a psychiatric hospital for killing his mother and her lover. Released into the community from which he came, he befriends and protects a lonely boy regularly harassed and abused by his mom's boyfriend (a terrific performance by Dwight Yoakam). The story is ultimately about sacrifice, but Thornton certainly doesn't get twinkly about it. Some of the best material concerns the hero's no-big-deal efforts to integrate into a "normal" life: working, eating fast food, earning admiration for his handyman skills, and attaining a semblance of community among other damaged souls. John Ritter has a great part as a gay shopkeeper who tries to assuage his own loneliness by spilling his guts out to Thornton's uncomprehending character. --Tom Keogh

Director

NULL

Stars

Lucas Black (II)
Sarah Boss
Brent Briscoe
Kathy Sue Brown
Natalie Canerday

Running Time

148 minutes

Original Price

$14.99

Current Value

$5.98

DVD Features

Closed-captioned
Color
DVD-Video
NTSC
1.85:1