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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 date; UK critics are listed first)
Bubble View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
Reviews
Tomatometer Critic Review Category
N/R

Derek Adams

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 24 2006 03:41 AM

Time Out

tomato
8/10

Ian Waldron-Mantgani

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 01 2000 12:00 AM

UK Critic

tomato
5/5

Neil Jeffries

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: | comment Comment | Jan., 01 2000 12:00 AM

Empire Magazine

tomato

Ryan Cracknell

Well acted, a multi-leveled story and a pure honesty make Sling Blade one of my favourite films of the 1990s.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 28 2009 11:56 PM

Movie Views

tomato
3.5/4

Peter Canavese

Thornton brings three key ingredients to the table: distinctive, rich, authentic Southern locations, patient and painterly atmosphere, and a precise and fresh character to study. [Blu-ray]

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 12 2009 05:40 PM

Groucho Reviews

tomato
8/10

James Plath

Thornton offers a subtle, thoughtful script, generally sensitive direction, and an understated performance, uh-huh.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 01 2009 10:15 AM

DVDTown.com

tomato
B+

Dennis Schwartz

Excellent character study of a mentally challenged person.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 23 2009 01:01 AM

Ozus' World Movie Reviews

N/R

Todd McCarthy

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 23 2008 03:15 AM

Variety

N/R

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 26 2006 03:16 AM

Combustible Celluloid

tomato
3.5/4

Michael Dequina

The film's many rewards cannot be described in conventional terms.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 17 2005 04:09 PM

TheMovieReport.com

tomato
5/5

Kevin Carr

There will never be another film like Sling Blade. And I reckon we’ll have to live with that... Mmm-mmm.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 07 2005 11:25 AM

7M Pictures

tomato
A+

Forrest Hartman

These days Thornton is seen primarily as an actor, but with “Sling Blade” he proved a true auteur.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 15 2005 04:28 PM

Reno Gazette-Journal

tomato
4/4

Emily Blunt

A deep and thoughtful masterpiece - now on director's cut dvd!

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 16 2005 11:47 AM

Blunt Review

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8/10

John J. Puccio

...a moving, poignant, humorous, chilling, and melancholic motion picture, with a bravura turn from its writer/director/star.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 03 2005 10:02 AM

DVDTown.com

N/R

Robin Clifford

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 09 2005 03:50 AM

Reeling Reviews

tomato
3.5/4

Judith Egerton

Sling Blade derives its power from Thornton's affecting characterization of Karl Childers.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 01 2004 08:26 AM

Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

tomato
4/4

Jeanne Aufmuth

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 14 2003 05:19 PM

Palo Alto Weekly

tomato
4/5

John A. Nesbit

Thornton makes his breakthrough

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Feb., 28 2003 11:43 AM

ToxicUniverse.com

N/R

Jeff Strickler

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 06 2002 03:21 PM

Minneapolis Star Tribune

tomato
A

Philip Martin

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 ...

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 01 2002 11:11 AM

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

 
 
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