NATURAL BORN KILLERS
A film review by dnf@nauvax.ucc.nau.edu
Copyright 1994 dnf@nauvax.ucc.nau.edu
I just came back from seeing this film, and must say that I hated it, then I loved it and found it absolutely brilliant! But I think most people will not like it since it's not at all main-stream.
The story, of course, is of Micky and Mallorie, the M & M Killers (as the media dubs them), and their capture and rise to celebrity status.
After the first fifteen or so minutes, I decided I hated the film. It represented perfectly *everything* about Oliver Stone that I hate. Stone is an excellent script-writer, as his previous works prove, and as a straight-forward director he is pretty good. But I could never tolerate his avant-garde, surreal touches that he gave his movies, because they were never well-executed. After the first fifteen minutes of this movie, I thought that this would be a perfect film for anybody who likes randomly-placed diagonal, crooked shots that seem to be placed for no apparent reason. But then, after introducing the characters, I saw something I never would have ever thought I would see: a stroke of genius in an Oliver Stone film.
The original script for the film was by Quentin Tarentino, who wrote RESERVOIR DOGS (which he also directed and appeared in) and TRUE ROMANCE (et al), a couple of very straight-forward films. I imagine that when he wrote the script for NBK, he intended for it to be done straight-forward as well. I don't know how much re-working the script went through, but either way, the script is still brilliant. It is the rest of the film that is no longer straight-forward. When we learn about Mallorie's abusive father (played by Rodney Dangerfield) and her generally messed up life, Oliver Stone had the nerve to supply an actual *laugh track* to the movie! The scene looks like a Sit-Com!! But of course we know that there is nothing funny about a father who sexually abuses his daughter, yet we hear laughter! Here's where the stroke of genius came in. I realized that while Oliver Stone was being pretty non-straight-forward, it had an eerie effect, rather than giving a feeling of miscellany (that the strangeness has no part in the film). For myself, when I heard the laugh track in the film, I was disgusted. Even more so when I realized I was hearing laughter from some people in the audience as well. It's one of those "Gee, I hear laughter, so it must be funny, so I'll laugh along. Wait a minute. What the hell am I laughing at that's so funny?" kind of moments.
Oliver Stone's way-out directing style is sometimes hard for me to forgive, but not this time. Part of the reason I am willing to forgive is because Mickey and Mallorie were the only real characters in the whole film. By "real" I mean that everyone else seemed more like a parody or caricature of a person. For instance, Tommy Lee Jones played a prison warden. But this guy was not like any normal person. Jones exaggerated the character to an extent where for some it may be considered bad acting, but in this movie, it was obviously caricature. It made Mickey and Mallorie's characters easier to relate to, even though they were so cruel, simply because they were the only people who were anything like real people!
And speaking of Mickey and Mallorie, I have never liked Woody Harrelson in a movie before. But in this, he executed his character flawlessly (or at least pretty damn close). And what can I say about Juliette Lewis?! Superb as usual.
One of the prominent characters was a character named Jack Scagnetti. Now is it my imagination, or was Jack Scagnetti the name of a talked-about-but-never-seen-on-screen character in RESERVOIR DOGS? Mister Blonde's parole officer, by any chance? Well in this, Jack Scagnetti was the officer investigating the M & M murders, a kind of flat character, so not too much to talk about....
Robert Downey, Jr.--he finally took acting lessons and learned to do a pretty good accent for CHAPLIN. Once again, he delivers a fine performance as the host (with another accent) of a program similar to "America's Most Wanted." Not much to say about this, other than to note that Downey has really come a long way since his early films.
The movie of course did have its downfalls. Oftentimes Oliver Stone had quite a bit of overkill with his strangeness. Too many times scenes were randomly inserted for nothing longer than a few frames, just long enough for you to say, "Did I really just see a couple of dogs tearing apart some dead animal? Or did I just imagine that?" It got kind of annoying sometimes. Either that, or I just imagined it.... ;)
Anyway, that's my review for now. On a scale of one to ten, I give this film a 7.5. Maybe an 8. Perhaps a bit higher. Maybe a bit lower. Just see it for yourself and make up your mind, and let us all know what *you* think.
-David
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