Review by Senator_Corleone

Few films ever made have been as controversial as 1994's "Natural Born Killer." Some critics felt it was an atrocity-an assault on good taste, movie-making craft, and humanity in general. Others felt that it was a masterpiece, a cinematic statement that went where no movie had gone before. I believe, personally, that the film is a must-see. Not because I think it is one of the best movies ever made (there are flaws, like an over-abundance of themes that muddy the film's message), not because I think it's one of director Oliver Stone's best ("Platoon" and "JFK" are both superior films), but because I think that it represents a unique cinematic experience. You will never see any film that affects you in the same way that "Natural Born Killers" does. In that way it shares the same place in filmdom with such diverse titles as "Eraserhead," "Being John Malkovich," and "Plan 9 from Outer Space": there's just nothing out there like it. Its attitude towards its lurid, frightening, and oftentimes repulsive subject matter alone distinguishes it from many other movies. It has fun with death and violence in a way that makes you contemplate on the nature of what is being shown to you on screen. The fact that it simultaneously decries and glorifies violence would seem hypocritical if the movie seemed to be unaware of the conflict of interest inherent in it. However, Stone is all to cognizant of the problem, and is indicting himself as well as the glory-chasing media with the final product. The fact that the two serial killers are watching "Scarface," a movie Stone wrote, is as important for its commentary on the filmmaker as its film buff in-jokeness. Another aspect of this movie that received a lot of attention was its singular editing style. Characterized by multiple cuts, lighting patterns, filming techniques, and even some animated interludes, the movie acts as a technical geek show. It is a full-frontal assault on your eyes and ears. And I, for one, think Stone's jack-hammer style fits his subject perfectly. A wild, disorienting plot deserves a wild, disorienting storytelling style. You will also be hard-pressed to find realistic characters in this movie. Stone has filled "NBK" with a gallery of grotesque monsters, from Tommy Lee Jones' screeching redneck-from-hell prison warden, to Robert Downey Jr.'s parasitic Robin Leach-like talk show host, to Tom Sizemore's virulent psychopathic bad cop. All these characters add to the vision of the film, because an insane film with an insane filming style deserves insane characters. But, when it comes down to it, "Natural Born Killers" is an important modern film not just because of its style, tone, and characters, but because it causes discussion about America's modern obsession with serial killers and the media's infatuation with violence. Pop culture itself is on trial with this movie, and Oliver Stone delivers it a visceral knockout punch. Great soundtrack, too.