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Movies / On DVD / Sling Blade
Sling Blade

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Sling Blade (1996)

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Reviews Counted:47

Fresh:45

Rotten:2

Average Rating:8.3/10

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

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Sling Blade

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic

It will make you laugh and cry. And it will make you think long and hard about the last time you saw a movie this good.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Neil Jeffries
Neil Jeffries
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix
N/R

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Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
06/05/02
Boxoffice Magazine
N/R

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Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
05/09/02
Washington Post
N/R

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Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
11/06/02
Jeff Strickler
Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
N/R

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Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
N/R

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Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
N/R

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Full Review Source: Cincinnati Enquirer | comment Comment
10/15/02
Margaret A. McGurk
Margaret A. McGurk
Cincinnati Enquirer
N/R

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Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark R. Leeper
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews
N/R

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Full Review Source: Flick Filosopher | comment Comment
01/01/00
MaryAnn Johanson
MaryAnn Johanson
Flick Filosopher
N/R

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Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews
N/R

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Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
07/23/08
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/01/00
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

By its midpoint, however, Thornton has begun forcing both the film's poetry and the preternatural goodness of its simple-minded protagonist, and Sling Blade's sweet charms begin to curdle.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dwight Garner
Dwight Garner
Salon.com

An abundance of long, flat medium shots that rob the film of intimacy and give it a sleepy pace.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/08/02
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

American films rarely depict the lower-class milieu as respectfully as this unsentimental drama.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online

Ambivalence reigns in Sling Blade. For every funny moment there is a shocking revelation. For every cute bit of dialogue interplay there is a disturbing recollection.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Thompson
Bob Thompson
Jam! Movies

Sling Blade gives you plenty to think about, and neither the story nor the quality of the film can easily be forgotten.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
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