Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade

Billy Bob Thornton proves himself to be great in this short independent picture about a killer who is released after 25 years in a mental home. This later was transformed into a longer version called Sling Blade which was released in 1993 to world-wide acclaim, but this is much better. Why, because technically, this is the beginning of the feature Sling Blade, and the beginning is the best part. Kudos to Thornton and director George Hickenlooper for creating a original short film that is as good as the hype. A+

Pretty much everything has been said by previous reviewers here. It is probably pertinent to add that but for the success of this little independent number, the full length SLING BLADE most probably would never have gotten made three years later.

Obviously a labor of love for creator Billy Bob Thornton. He presents a markedly different Karl Childers here. As retardedly backward but infinitely more menacing. It was probably on reflection that the character was made more "marketable" and sympathetic the second time around. Both films are such an absorbing focus on what is essentially a simple man turned (by dint of social expectation) feral by circumstances totally outside his control. The villain of the piece of course was Karl's father, played in a marvellous one-off cameo by Robert Duvall in the feature-length film.

In SOME FOLKS CALL IT A SLING BLADE, the reporter is played by Molly Ringwald. Many seem not to have approved of her interpretation of the part, preferring the cutesy high-school reporter in the 1996 release. I thought she handled it well, after all she was dealing with a quite different "Karl Childers.'

Either way, this makes for a fascinating back-up to SLING BLADE. If anything, it adds to one's understanding of the man himself.

Having always loved the full feature film 'Sling Blade' and Billy Bob' transformation and convincing portrayal of this character, this short was a must!

All else aside I found her more credible as a journalist (the actress in the feature was more the "schoolgirl", which may have been intentional); Ringwald's performance did more to make me wonder at the end of the film just what she would write for her paper. Would that have been a distraction as we watched Carl's re-entry? I don't recall any followup to that in the feature.

Altogether this was fascinating, not to be compared head-to-head with the full-length film which has justly become an American classic. Films like "Sling Blade" can stand with the best of what is often considered superior European cinema.

I have mixed feelings about this short. Sling Blade is my all time favorite movie. I absolutely fell in love with it the first time I saw it and I still never tire of watching it. This, on the other hand, is an entirely different take on the Karl Childers character. While he is likeable and friendly in Sling Blade, he is intimidating and scary in "Some Folks Call it a Sling Blade". Also, I could not stand Molly Ringwold's version of the reporter. She was bitter, hateful, and downright cold while the reporter in Sling Blade has a timid, sweet manner and is kind to Karl. The ending left you with an odd feeling (yes, I know all of this was intentional) and made you wonder just WHY they were letting this menacing person out of the "nervous hospital".

This is a very well done short. The mood is dark, the setting is perfect, and Hickenlooper really seems to know what he is doing. I just wasn't too crazy about his interpretation of the story. Had I seen this before I saw the full-length version, I'm sure I would have enjoyed it a lot more.

The video has a really cool "behind the scenes" featurette that is a must for fans of Sling Blade.

Oh, and thank you Billy Bob, for giving us YOUR interpretation of the story and telling it the way it was meant to be told.