Natural Born Killers is the black sheep of the Oliver Stone filmography. Though it has received some critical acclaim, it has never received the same treatment as Stone’s more prestigious films like Platoon, Born on The Fourth of July and JFK. This comes from a host of factors. First, at the time of its release, the movie ironically became the primary target for a movement against violence in television and film. Second, and more importantly, it doesn’t really feel like an Oliver Stone film. Stone’s films are typically epic and historic, larger than life in their content and the lessons they teach. NBK is larger than life too, but in a very different way. It attacks our sensibility about culture and the way we sense things. It tests our understanding of good and evil by proposing that no one is good.
The film follows Micky (Woody Harrelson) and Mallory Knox (Juliette Lewis), a sociopathic couple in the middle of a killing spree. Micky and Mallory rise to prominence as a modern day Bonnie and Clyde, except instead of being romanticized bank robbers, they’re hyperviolent killing machines. The film explores how the media glorifies criminals by making them the focus of our attention and how television desensitizes the world to violence. The couple is chased by an FBI detective, Jack Scagnetti (Tom Sizemore), who is every bit as evil as them. They are also pursued by Wayne Gayle, (Robert Downey Jr.) the producer of an America’s Most Wanted-style program that focuses on serial killers.
I can’t stress enough how shocking this movie is. 15 years later, it is still incredibly violent. It’s not gratuitous, horror movie violence, just lots of mindless killing. The fact that it's still shocking is a testament to the acting in this film. There aren’t any weak performances. Some stick out more than others: Tommy Lee Jones as the crazed Warden, particularly when paired with Sizemore, is especially frightening because it’s the exact opposite of the gruff, stoic character we’ve come to expect from him. Even more shocking is the very small performance from Rodney Dangerfield as Mallory’s sexually abusive father. He is simultaneously the caricature we know from his goofy comedies and a truly reprehensible persona, worthy of the violence his behavior garners him. Harrelson and Lewis both do a great job, particularly Harrelson, whose insanity is every bit as palpable Lewis’, but far more under control.
The way the film is shot is every bit as crazy as the way the characters act. The interspersing of animated sequences, changing the filter from black and white to color and perspective changes keep the viewer edgy, but without making them lose track. Many of the scenes are framed thorough some kind of pseudo-realistic lens. The best of these is the family-TV framing of Mallory’s home life. The pairing of the I Love Lucy-esque music and setting with the dirty, tawdry family adds to the shock value and reminds the viewer that perception can easily be masked by paint and canned laughter. Putting the film on Blu-ray only increases the contrast caused by these effects. There has never been a brighter green than the color of that key lime pie in the opening scene. Natural Born Killers is even more significant today than it was in 1994, especially now that people are even more consumed by the media with proliferation of the internet and 24-hour instant news.
DVD Bonus Features
Natural Born Killers: The Director's Cut is very much meant to be a collector’s item. In addition to Stone’s commentary, there is the taping of him talking about the film on Charlie Rose. The disc boasts two interesting featurettes: one on controversy surrounding the film and a second about how media has changed and what would happen if the events of film took place today. The best part, though, are the deleted scenes, which include scenes with Ashley Judd and Dennis Leary which were cut out of the film. Even the film booklet is stuffed with info, despite not being updated from the DVD version of the director’s cut. It’s not necessarily the definitive collection, but it’s about as thorough as I’ve ever seen.
"Natural Born Killers: The Director’s Cut" is on sale October 13, 2009 and is rated NR. Crime-Thriller, Drama. Directed by Oliver Stone. Written by Quentin Tarantino and David Veloz & Richard Rutowski & Oliver Stone. Starring Ashley Judd, Denis Leary, Jared Harris, Robert Downey Jr, Tom Sizemore, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Rodney Dangerfield.
