Filmmaker reacts to Sling Blade (1996) for the FIRST TIME!
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- Опубліковано 30 вер 2024
- Hope you enjoy my filmmaker reaction to Sling Blade. :D
Full length reactions & Patreon only polls: / jamesvscinema
Original Movie: Sling Blade (1996)
Ending Song: / charleycoin
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This film can be both HEAVY & lovely to watch all at the same time.
Want to vote on what I should watch next? Click here! www.patreon.com/jamesvscinema
Have a great day!
Thank you, thank you, thank you for watching this amazing film. Billy Bob Thornton is so dang talented. I wish that more people would watch this solid piece of art.
Polanski's - ROSEMARY'S BABY . A MASTERPIECE !!!!!!!
No!!
Click bait. Don't get drawn in!!
Another unknown Billy Bob Thornton movie that is great is
One False Move
He couldn't protect his little brother, but he was able to protect his "adoptive" little brother and try and give him a chance in life his real little brother never got.
One of my all time favorite films. Billy Bob's masterpiece.
Blows me away this was right out the gate. Wish he’d direct more.
@@noneed4me2n7 he wrote this entire movie in 9 days
@@Ohenry6and did the whole thing in less than a full month. It’s bonkers how good it is his writing directing and acting is top tier
This movie was pretty big when it came out, all sorts of awards, but it seems to have been relatively forgotten. This is the first time I've seen anyone mention it in a couple decades
That is so odd. I have noticed that no one made a reaction to it but did not know the movie was generally regarded as forgotten or unknown. Maybe it is a regional thing, I don't know, but I have heard Karl Childers imitations and seen internet memes referring to him.
@@Tr0nzoid Ya, it's definitely not forgotten. Movie still very highly regarded.
The movie is not available in the US due to legal issues unless you can find a used copy of a DVD or vhs. That is why it's not widely available or watched anymore.
sometimes I'll say "let me get some of them french fried taters you got back there" and no one ever knows what I'm talking about lol
If ya follow up with a " mmhmm" it clicks more often lol.
@@FallenRingbearer I reckon you're right about that, mmhmm 😂
This movie is a gem in so many ways.
RIP John Ritter. 🧡
Jack Tripper! Three’s Company comic genius 😂❤
@@nanip2029he was also in the Walton’s
So many great performances and amazing casting choices. Country star Dwight Yoakam? John Ritter as Vaughan? Love it.
Yoakam doesn't get enough credit as an actor, but he's actually one of the better acting musicians out there. He played such a good villain in Panic Room, for example.
@@jculver1674& Such a unique odd anti-villain in 3 Burials of Melquiades Estrada
It is one of those rare perfect storm or lightning in a bottle movies for sure. Love it.
And the late, great Vic Chesnutt, also a fabulous musician, as Dwight’s friend.
@@jculver1674 And the hilarious doctor in Crank.
Great acting by everyone! Dwight Yoakam was so good in this
Dwight Yokum and John Ritter were both terrific in this as well
"How are you this unhinged without the internet?" This was a profoundly brilliant quote my dude!!! Great film and great reaction!
It was a great comment, but unfortunately there have always been people like that
I've known a lot of people like that and when they discover alcohol and drugs it gets worse just like Doyle and sometimes way worse
When Carl wrote "you Will be happy" in a note with the books he gave the boy....... Every time.
I literally gasped when I saw that you are reacting to this can't freaking wait
Same. Favorite movie.
Hahaha watchin all the gems!
There's a part in Billy Bob Thornton's interview with the inside the actors studio where he basically ad libs the opening monologue for this movie it's incredible to watch him get in character to portray Carl
Me too!!!
This is film is so underrated it's sickening. This is top 50 of all time easily, it may even be top 20. Billy used a lot of his real life experiences with trauma when writing this film. It's ludicrous that this film got one Oscar win and only one other nomination. It wasn't even nominated for best picture.
Oscar voters are trash.
@@USCFlash Yeah just sort of "unremembered"
A super underrated classic that is rarely seen reviewed or reacted to on UA-cam.
Oh wowww. I can’t express how this was such a thing when it came out. Everyone who saw it was talking about it, analyzing it and it really made an impact. Billy Bob Thornton!
Billy Bob was amazing. But I forgot John Ritter was even in this. And JT Walsh, who played the grapist inmate, was so disturbingly chilling. TV or movies, he always brings it. No small roles
Thornton won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for this as he first made a short film based on a one man show he did as the character of Karl. Great reaction man, have a great rest of your day and a great weekend!
If you want to watch more Billy Bob Thornton, I'd recommend A Simple Plan.
Recently finished college, btw :)
Noted! Also, congratulations!! Celebrate 🙏🏽
A Simple Plan is a really good movie
Gratz!!!!❤🎉
@@JamesVSCinemaBad Santa and the Man who Wasn't There.
I saw this in the theater when it came out. It completely opened my eyes up to the world of independent films, and to this day is one of my favorite films ever.
RIP John Ritter, he was wonderful in this film.
You should see him in the Walton’s
After I saw this movie in the theater, I had to purchase it the moment is was released on DVD so I could really analyze the characters. When I really envisioned Carl's early life from his dialogue, it is my opinion that he 100% sacrificed himself to see that Frank would not suffer from the abuse he had suffered as a child.
I don't think there was anything organically wrong with Carl, just a limited ability to communicate & interact with others. It seems as though he thought out his actions & knew the consequences when he killed Doyle. If not for his severe childhood trauma & dire living conditions, Carl may have been a fully functioning member of society. Just my opinion here, of course, but to me the dialogue was very simply expressed yet spoke volumes.
This was such a good movie and one of my favorites. Sad that they no longer make American movies with this easy, relaxed pacing that still does such a great job at moving the story along. Maybe an occasional low budget indie film? Viewers are so used to fast paced, quick dialog movies with very little story to them. This is a great film to actually watch actors act.
Little bit of trivia… The guy working the counter at the little restaurant was Jim Jarmusch. An independent film legend.
This movie was THE critical darling when it was released in 1996. It's the reason we even know who Billy Bob is. Idk why it's fallen off in popularity over the years but definitely underrated and an all around acting masterclass from the entire cast.
Such a great movie
Lucas Black, who plays Frank, was also in the 1995-96 show "American Gothic"... which is one of my all time favorite shows, incredibly underrated show.
I recognised him from Jarhead. He's good.
Watch out for Sherrif Buck!
And Crazy in Alabama. When I herd about a new American Gothic series, I thought it would be a remake. A bit disappointed when it wasn't. Well, someone's at the door.
@@kevinsisler9379 I'm right there with you, I was so disappointed that the new AG wasn't a remake, I couldn't even watch it once I realized it wasn't
YES omg with Sarah Paulson too!
So glad you tackled this gem of a movie. It was one of the most transformative movies for me when I was in my twenties. Never thought I'd see anyone reacting to it, because it seems it's been almost forgotten by history. Shout out to the Patreon supporters who recommended this: you guys ROCK!
As so often, your commentary is on point! Thanks!
There is such a specific good feeling that comes with seeing one of your favorite reaction channels reacting to one of your favorite movies. Especially those movies which encourage intense scrutiny and analysis. Stoked.
I put this on the short list of nearly perfect movies. Screenwriting is brilliant. acting, set design, music, everything, cinematography just fantastic.
Like many other commenters, this is in my top 10 if not my top 5 favorites of all time. I’m still watching, so not sure if you’ll address these bits of trivia about a couple of the awesome actors in this brilliant flick: 1) the gay friend is played by John Ritter. I feel old even having to say this, but go do a search for “Three’s Company,” and you’ll see how well known he was. 2) the arsehole boyfriend was played by Dwight Yokum, who has been extremely well known and revered for decades in the country music industry. He’s AMAZING at being an incorrigible jerk, isn’t he? Yeah, I hated him too lol. Cheers! And now back to your reaction…
So happy to get a reaction to this masterpiece. When I was in the Marines me and a buddy were going to watch a movie and Slingblade was one of the previews. I said, great movie, he said, never seen it. I hit stop on the player and we went back to the video store for Slingblade.
Two more vastly underrated Billy Bob films, one he also wrote, One False Move (1992), and the Coen brothers The Man Who Wasn't There.
Literally came here to recommend The Man Who Wasn’t There. So incredibly underrated and beautiful. One of the Coen brothers best and I feel no one ever mentions it.
and definitely A Simple Plan, Billy Bob is killing it in his TV shows too though, Fargo and Goliath are amazing
Just love watching you say “I don’t think he’s gonna kill Doyle” knowing exactly what was coming 😂.
I think that once you commit an act of sheer violence as Karl did in his youth, the capacity to do that again never truly leaves you, even someone as decent as Karl.
I agree. I guess I underestimated the fact his choice of weapon was a damn lawnmower blade 😂 that should’ve said enough what was about to happen
@@JamesVSCinema "Some calls it a Sling Blade, I call it a Kaiser Blade, eh -hem"
I still remember when this movie was a couple of weeks into release, I hadn’t seen it yet, But Billy Bob Thornton was doing press ahead of the Oscars, and I remember him doing an interview with a morning radio show, where after he did his job promoting the movie, he just hung out with the shock jocks for an hour. During that session, they got the idea to have Billy Bob call phone sex lines, while in character as Karl. It was one of the funniest things I had ever heard. That’s what I like about Billy Bob. While he can make heavy dramas, he can still not take himself too seriously.
I would recommend seeing Winter's Bone with Jennifer Lawrence. Great film and she gives a great performance. It kind of reminds me of Sling Blade, but only in an oblique way.
Winter’s Bone is an amazing movie! Would love to see James react to that one. 👍🏻
Yes definitely that's an amazing movie, would be great to see James react
You come for Jennifer Lawrence but stay for Dale Dickie.
I've been waiting so long for more people to see this movie and especially react to it. It's a genuine masterpiece. It's a pinnacle of the Southern Gothic genre. It's a small cast of characters but literally everyone plays their role perfectly.
Yeah a great movies, so well made, every performance is great, including Dwight Yoakham and John Ritter. But Billy just utterly transformed himself. Not sure the symbolism means, but as Karl sees everyone at the end, their last words are all...."Karl"
A great performance here by a young Lucas Black who would go on to work with Billy Bob again in ALL THE PRETTY HORSES and turn in and even MORE incredible performance...
Yep another excellent role from him, he's so underrated
One of my favorite movies of all time. I have seen lots of Billy Bob and the transformation to this movie should have made him best actor. Not enough people watched it. Your reaction was fantastic, by the way
Sling Blade is one of the VERY few films I'd consider to be a perfect film, it's absolutely incredible and often missed by most of the public.
Come on James, why make excuses for watching not popular movies, I thought you were all about the art of cinema....these are the movies that should be seen and studied and reviewed....or is it just click, comment subscribe to you now....slightly dissapointed but fan forever.....
J.T. Walsh's opening scene is incedible. What amazing actors he and John Ritter were. R.I.P.
Lucas Black was fucking great in this movie. One of the best child actor performances IMO.
Not bragging, just saying, I had this on VHS. I've heard of it...
Thanks for the reaction, your randoms like this and "Little Miss Sunshine" are the reason I'm subscribed. Have a good one...
FINALLY! Someone is finally reacting to this masterpiece!
YES!!!
When I saw this movie back in the day, I had never heard of Billy Bob Thornton. The awards earned by this piece of work are inadequate, it's a true masterpiece, thanks James.
This came out the year I graduated high school. I was 18 years old and went to see it in the theatre and was absolutely stunned. It was such an incredible movie. Even though it was a low budget movie it actually was talked about quite a bit when it came out. It got quite a bit of press. Unfortunately it seems to of been kinda forgotten about in recent years. I wish more people would react to this incredible movie!
You know Dole felt a jolt of fear when Carl told him he was aimin to kill em. Trying to pretend it was an empty threat. I always thought he was just being drunk and cocky.
Even if Doyle didn't kill the boy, he would have wrecked him mentally by abusing his mother and probably abusing the him. I do look at it as self-defense for the life the boy would live. Plus Doyle probably would have had too much to drink and accidentally killed the mother. He had to go. And Karl is just in a mental institution. I think he will have visitors now whereas before he didn't have any. I think he will live a better life knowing he changed the life of the boy.
The first scene at the burger stand that was cutout featured the great director Jim Jarmusch as the goofy guy running the place. Doyle is played by Dwight Yokam, a famous alt-country star, and Carl's father is the legend, Robert Duvall-- such an amazing cast.
That score playing throughout -- not one drop of hokey, southern-fried cliche guitar signatures -- nothing but modern, ethereal synths.
Thornton's work here feels fresh and devoid of Southern gothic and other tropes; He manages to forge his own story based on strong characters and a "hovering vibe" of delayed violence.
The step father is doing the best he can in a bad life and-- I'm just kidding he's a fn d bag and I was happy when got the sling blade. Billy Bob Thornton created a piece of art here that everyone should see.
Excellent review of this extraordinary (beautiful and disturbing) film, @James VS Cinema. I was in a rock band with Billy Bob's brother back in the late 80s, and we were working on the soundtrack for this movie when it was still an idea in Billy Bob's head (and he was still relatively unknown). Unfortunately his brother (Jimmy) died in '88, and we never finished the soundtrack. I forgot about the film project, too, and then was surprised 8 years later to see it appearing at theaters. Carl was based on a character Billy Bob and Jimmy knew growing up. He used to do a gesture of tapping his thumb to his fingertips, but in the film they changed it to hand rubbing.
Dwight Yoakam plays a nicer, gentler version of my stepfather in this film.
oooooooooooooooooh shit. I never thought I'd see a reaction to this on UA-cam. So excited you're taking it on.
My father used to do impressions of the "MHHMmmm" and "I reckon I killed some people. Hacked 'em up with a lawnmower blade. Mhm" when I was a kid to crack himself up and none of us got it. Then eventually I got old enough to watch the movie and it was weird hearing the origins of these really dark-humor references my father kept in the back of his mind. Definitely an excellent movie.
My father passed within this last year so you randomly popping up with this and reminding of that is pretty special. It's weird to think hearing my father grumble "I reckon I killed some people" at the dinner table while chuckling to himself about it would be such a wonderful memory to cherish but it is. This movie means a lot to me in that random way. I'm so glad you found it ✊
Note: no real closeups. You are a fly on the wall, watching this all happen
I think part of what made some people uneasy about this film is that they do feel like he was justified in killing Doyle and that they realize that despite how even the viwer might judge Karl he actually has a set moral compass and that awareness that you talked about. On top of that the other good, decent people of the town as they would be traditionally viewed lnow what doyle is and do nothing as well as demonstrate such a lack of awareness with cruel jokes and questionable ethics. Its like an uncomfortable mirror into who and what we consider good and bad.
One of the best movies ever made
We used to imitate Karl all the time back in the 90's, good times. This film is damn near perfection.
You unlocked a 90s indie classic. MmmmHhhmm
Great soundtrack by Daniel Lanois.
13:06 I did the exact same thing when I saw my mom get hit. I was maybe a little younger than him. She was in the kitchen doing dishes, trying her best to keep it together from a barrage of verbal assault. The next thing I know, she gets hit in the back of the head. I absolutely lost my shit. I don't remember much of what I was screaming at him other than "get out or I'll kill you".
Say, you know what you NEED to react to? The strangest, weirdest David Lynch film of all - "The Straight Story". It's a fine and wholesome film. You. Will. LOVE it.
I 100% agree with your suggestion. The Straight Story was another one of my all time fave movies. I had it on VHS (of course, haha). Beautiful film!
Might be my favorite film of all time. Can't wait for you to get to One False Move (1992) - another INCREDIBLE screenplay by Billy Bob, and probably Bill Paxton's best performance IMO. Hope you're doing well James!
Yes! That is such a fantastic movie. I don’t know why it’s not more well-known. The actor who plays Pluto is so convincing as a psychopathic killer.
I think is my favorite film of all time. No exaggeration. Of all the many films I've seen, this one stays with me, and always warms my heart. Some of the best acting, and most meaningful characters. This is Southern Goth at its best, like Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner and Carson McCullers wrote the screenplay with Billy Bob Thorton. Unforgettable.
So glad you watched Sling Blade. It's a singular film that doesn't get enough attention anymore. Great work by everyone but Billy Bob Thornton is next level in his performance and for willing this film into being.
Dwight Yoakam was such a good villain in this
This came out when I was in high school and everyone walked around talking about Kaiser blades and french fried potaters mmm hmmm. There was a lot of hype about it. BBT seemed to come out of nowhere while John Ritter was killing it in a more serious role and Dwight Yokum could act! It brought back some fun memories to watch along with you.
This outstanding film has been unfortunately stuck in streaming service purgatory. I finally broke down and bought a dvd recently. Everyone involved, please make this masterpiece available again.
This movie is SO underrated, I grew up in AL and watched it, it's a strangely accurate portrayal of life in the South. It's unpleasant if you're not the right kind of person, whether it be your sexuality, your religion, being disabled, not being white, basically anything that's 'other' isn't entirely welcome. You have to search for places and people who will accept you and it's often among the other underdogs
Finally someone reacts to this film
This movie is a classic, and there's so many amazing performances. But what surprised me the most was the country music singer Dwight Yoakam was cast as the abusive boyfriend. I'm not a country music fan and not familiar with him, but I know he wasn't an actor. And to take that role as an antagonist and completely NAIL IT, was something I wasn't expecting. Everything and everyone just clicked in this movie. A classic.
*Also, I gotta say that I was surprised how much credit you gave him when you mentioned the possibility of sacrificing himself to have the boyfriend arrested and locked up to protect him and his mother. When 90% of your thoughts are mostly about french fried potatoes, it's really hard scheming and being a mastermind. 😂
The band scenes always crack me up as I was doing a lot of gigs when this movie came out.
The character Morris is played by a member of one of my favorite bands. He is played by Col. Bruce Hampton Ret. from Col. Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit!
This part:
Morris : "Yeah, I got a new tune in composition entitled "The Thrill." And it goes somethin' like this: "I stand on the hill, not for a thrill, but for the breath of a fresh kill. Never mind the man who contemplates doin' away with license plates. He stands alone, anyhow, bakin' the cookies of discontent by the heat of the laundromat vent. Leavin' his soul!" Then like in poetry I go dot-dot-dot, you know, kinda off center, then I drop down and then I go: "Leavin' his soul! And partin' the waters of the medulla oblongata of - -brrrrrr! - -mankind!" That was a damn good song, wasn't it Doyle?"
Bruce uses those lines in his song "The Dots Go Where I Say They Go" from his album "Pharoah's Kitchen". The sense of quirkiness and humor in his music is so good. It's definitely Southerner humor.
Sadly, the Col. has passed on from this world to the great gig in the sky. R.I.P.
Hell yes! I've been wanting to see you react to this ever since Fargo season 1. You could put a side by side of Billy's character from this and Fargo and almost not recognize them as the same actor. He's such a good actor.
I didn’t even realise it was Billy until I saw the cast he was great as Lorne Malvo in Fargo
@@SatansAnus I think it's his best role since Slingblade. He was menacing and dangerous as Malvo. Awesome role.
I love how my homie is like "What the fuck is wrong with you, dude?" I'm like "Right, homie? What's wrong with Doyle, right?"
For a bit of redemption on Robert Duvall (who played the dad in his chair), Tender Mercies - 1983. You will not regret the watch...for the "Human Elemental" collection.
9 months late to the party but my two cents are I love love LOVE how the story tells of a man who seemed built specifically just to save this boy. His past and horrifying experiences as a boy grew him up to be a caring, loving, empathetic man who grew up in a system that he didn't want to leave because of the complexities of the world he was living in. The sacrifice you and I would have had to make were not so bad for him as he found the black and white life living under constant supervision and structure suited him best as opposed to the freedom outside. Murdering Doyle was something he knew had to be done to save the boy and his past molded him to be capable of it. Brilliant story, amazing cinematography, and superb acting all around.
Great all around work in this movie. And yoakam did such a good job back in the day that I almost hated him. lol
But yes, BBT, Ritter,and everyone else were absolutely fantastic in this one. And that soundtrack haunts me to this day..
Billy Bob was great. I didn’t notice that the kid is the QB in Friday night lights where Billy Bob is the coach. He was like 20 by then. John did great and the country singer played a great villain.
A reaction by anyone to this movie is long overdue.
I remember renting the short film "Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade" from Hollywood Video by accident before seeing this. It basically just has the beginning interview and Karl's release, with Molly Ringwald playing the interviewing student.
Easy to find on UA-cam: "Some Folks Call it a Sling Blade" is the short film that ultimately became this - and it has, oddly?, Molly Ringwald!
If you ever watch "The Ice Harvest" with Billy Bob and John Cusack, Carl makes an appearance in the outtakes.
You're one of my favorite reactors. I love how you watch the esoteric and artsy movies that I don't see elsewhere. I'd love to see your take on Ozu, Lynch, Kiarostami, Reichardt, Keaton, and even Wes Anderson.
That's not the kid from Fast and furious. That's the kid from Sling Blade to go on to be from Fast and Furious. 😆😃😘
And it's Peter Bilker (Mickey Jones) from Home Improvement and the great Tin Cup!
The kid actor was also a star of an underrated and forgotten TV show: American Gothic.
Someone's at the door....
This movie is so optimistic in terms of its assessment of human nature, that by and large most people are good-natured, and want to help those around them, even strangers, if they have ability to do so, give people benefit of doubt. I kept being surprised at these "small town hicks" being so broad-minded about Carl. But I think maybe this is actually more true. I think the bad apples get more press, more news coverage, and since they create more drama and conflict people are portrayed as bad, intolerant jerks in movies & TV more than is actually true, so all of us whose window to the world and to other people is mostly what we see on TV and in movies, we come away with a skewed negative perception of human nature. There is a phenomenon called something like "disaster altruism" (might be a bit different) which has been documented, and is real, that in a mass disaster like a tsunami that floods miles of populated areas, the people there suddenly start acting unselfishly and altruistically, sharing limited resources with strangers, helping strangers, etc. Fiction stories generally portray people in these situations as everyone being out for number one (e.g., the Walking Dead) with the good, altruistic people being a small minority, but that's actually backwards based on all studies that have looked at how people actually act when the shit really goes down. So basically I think people are generally much better than we think in terms of being good & helpful & generous, but when you put a square peg in a round hole, it can get crushed into a round shape, and a lot of our society shoves inherently good people into a system that crushes them into a shape that hides, masks or even destroys their innate goodness.
You should also watch the short film this is based on called "Some Folks Call it a Sling Blade"
ua-cam.com/video/k1Z8TqJ0yOg/v-deo.html
Billy Bob is actually distorting his own face ( No Prosthetics) ,he shows this for James Lipton interview on youtube
Watch the movie "Friday Night Lights" (not the series). Continue to have mind blown.
Robert Duvall was almost unrecognizable as Karl's father.
I've mentioned this movie a few times, but the Cohen bros film The Man Who Wasnt There, with Billy Bon Thornton is one of my favorites. I recommend next you get to another Cohen bros film. 24:27
FINALLY!!! Someone who reacts to this masterpiece that NOONE gives any credit
You shouldn't have done that he's just a boy poor little fellar mhmm
Mhmmm LMFAO
I could hear him saying this as I read it. 😅
*Carl heads toward the house with a mower blade in his hand*
James: Oh, he's going to take one for the team and get Doyle arrested.
Me:. IIIIIII don't think so.
Jam,es, you are m,y favorite film reactor. The joy, shock, and/or admiration on your face says as much as your words.
in the end Carl sacrificed himself for the safety of his "family". he knew he would be sent back to the asylum and was willing to do that to protect the boy and his mom.
From this to bad Santa
The writing for this movie rivals to kill a mockingbird in my opinion. It feels just as important as that book is. brilliant movie, one of my favorites.
I thought there was a bow at the end. The outside world felt too big for Carl and he wanted to go back to the hospital like he wanted. And, of course, he helped out his friends.
Such a great film. More people need to discover this film.