Writer(s): David Veloski, Richard Rutowski, and Stone. From a story by Quentin Tarantino.
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, and Rodney Dangerfield
Woody Harrelson and Juliette
Lewis play Mickey and Mallory Knox, respectively, a couple who spend the better
part of two hours (of screen time) killing anyone that gets in their way. Naturally, the media jumps all over their
story. But the problem is, their murders
don’t disgust the nation; they seem to inspire
it. Before you know it, everyone is in
on Mickey and Mallory Mania, not the least of whom is Wayne Gale, a sleazy tabloid
reporter for the sleazy television series “American Maniacs”. He knows the story could pull in huge
ratings, so he arranges a sit-down interview with Mickey that will air right
after the Super Bowl.
We’re just getting that out
of the way, because the plot is largely secondary in Oliver Stone’s Natural
Born Killers; it’s all about the ultra-stylish visuals: Video clips play in
windows behind characters; some sequences are animated like comic books; shots
are in black and white; lighting changes drastically in mid-scene to convey
harsh changes in tone; disturbing moments involving child abuse are played out
in a sitcom-style, complete with a laugh track.
It’s a hyper-kinetic grab bag of visual brilliance that manages to help
carry the film, even after the one-note social commentary aspect starts to wear
thin.
As relevant as the
camaraderie between the media and murderers has always seemed to be (after all,
the media craves ratings, and sensationalized stories of brutal murders have
always succeeded in bringing them), the relationship has gotten even more out
of hand since Natural Born Killers was released; this movie itself was the
focus of copycats, who glorified (and misinterpreted) the film and used it as a
launching point for their own sadistic crimes.
However, to put it into perspective, this was released five years before
the tragic events of Columbine, perhaps the most “famous” of all shootings, and
arguably the moment the media crossed the “point of no return”, where the constant
exposure of the killers crossed the line into blatant glorification. Outside of those closely impacted by the
terrible events, very few can name even a single victim, but the killers
themselves have become household names.
In other words, this is a
movie that sadly only gets more and more relevant as the years go on, and one
that threatens to stay that way for many decades to come.
Much of the film’s success
lies in the hands of its stars: Harrelson and Lewis are perfect in the main
roles. Their chemistry is solid, and
they can pull off low-class white trash like few others in Hollywood
Quentin Tarantino wrote the
original screenplay (before it was heavily revised by David Veloz, Richard
Rutowski, and director Oliver Stone), and rumor has it that much of his
original dialogue stayed intact through the final version. This is partially the film’s biggest fault,
with an elongated middle section that features long-winded monologues, in
Tarantino’s style, that break up the film’s otherwise exciting assault on the
senses (Interestingly, Tarantino has disowned the film, claiming: "I hate that fucking movie. If you like my stuff, don't watch that movie.")
Tarantino and his massive ego don't deserve to
shoulder all of the blame, though: the whole “mainstream media is evil” angle,
while entirely true, is a rather thin hook to hang a two-hour hat on. As I’ve stated earlier, Mr. Stone does an
admirable job of keeping things interesting, but there are just so many ways
you can present the media’s influence on the outcomes of its subjects (which
was the singular idea that turned the project from an Arnold
Schwarzenegger-style action vehicle, to the satirical take on media that it became)
over the span of 120 minutes, while still managing to keep it fresh. In certain passages, it becomes clear that
the filmmakers, lead by Mr. Stone himself, are simply content to beat a dead horse.
But rarely has beating a
lifeless equine been so damn liberating—at its best, which it is for roughly
three-fourths of its run-time, Natural Born Killers is an adrenaline-pumping
bloodbath of epic proportions. And like
many of my favorite films, it has a natural obsession with pulling out all the
stops; Stone throws everything in his repertoire at the viewer, and the effect
is truly exhausting. A fitting companion
to the incredible visuals, the soundtrack (produced by Trent Reznor) is also
phenomenal (supposedly, Reznor watched the movie 50 times to understand every scene
and subtle nuance before committing music to the film), and really helps to
accent the brilliance of the individual scenes.
It’s far from perfect, but
Natural Born Killers is a daring film, and certainly one of the gutsiest
mainstream releases of all time. Even
though it was released twenty years ago, it still feels like a film ahead of
its time, and will continue to be as long as the media acts as enablers to
violent acts, instead of using its considerable power to help curb them.
RECAP: The film’s potent, but
one-note, social commentary wears thin, but Natural Born Killers is an
unrelenting attack on the senses.
Featuring an outstanding soundtrack (by none other than NIN’s Trent
Reznor) and a visual style that utilizes animation, black and white sequences, over-the-top lighting, and background projection (just to name but a few),
this manages to be a kinetic thrill ride that sadly only becomes more and more
relevant as the years go on.
RATING: 8.5/10
REALLY LAME OFFICIAL TRAILER
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