Sling Blade

Sling Blade (1996) starring Billy Bob Thornton, John Ritter, Dwight Yoakam, Lucas Black. Written and directed by Billy Bob Thornton. Karl Childers (Thornton) is released from a mental hospital after serving a long sentence for killing his mother and her lover when he was 12. He returns to his small rural home town, and quickly meets and makes friends with a boy named Frank (Black). Soon Karl is enmeshed in Frank's life and events lead to an inevitable (and foreseeable) climax. Thornton won two Oscars, one for acting and one for screenplay. The film has a fairly simple trajectory, with not much surprising taking place. It's been described as a good example of Southern storytelling, and I'd agree with that. The DVD offers good subtitles, as well as closed captions. Grade: B+