"Sling Blade" is a Billy Bob Thornton fest. He wrote, directed and starred in the film and succeeded in all aspects. Thornton plays Karl, a mentally-challenged man who spent 20 years in a mental institution for killing his mother. Karl finds friends through his new job as a small engine mechanic and a teenage boy dealing with his mother's abusive boyfriend named Doyle. Without telling the story outright, Karl defends the boy and his mother from Doyle in his own tried and tested fashion.

It's heart-wrenching to see the slow-witted Karl come to his conclusion about what to do about Doyle. Karl doesn't view his act as a sacrifice but as a necessary act to ensure the safety of his newly found friends.

Karl is a gentle monster of a man who sees things as black and white, right and wrong. Doyle is a more complex beast, selfish and insecure, needy and nasty. Karl is the polar opposite of Doyle.

Too many people use Thornton's Karl as a source of humor. Quotes like "french-fried taters" and the guttural "Uh-hmm" that Karl uses in his conversations are funny at times, but seem necessary to lighten the heavy subject matter explored here. "Sling Blade" moves slowly. It's more accurate to say it moves slooooooowly. There is no action to be found. There are long conversations with even longer gaps when no one says a word. The leisurely pace of the film matches its southern setting perfectly (or at least the impression that people on the East and West coasts have of "fly-over country"). Overall, "Sling Blade" is an engrossing film with a star-studded lineup of actors telling a simple yet thoughtful story.