History Film / SlingBlade

* MentalHandicapMoralDeficiency: mostly but not fully averted. Karl is a mentally handicapped man who spent most of his life in a mental institution. While Karl is kind and caring towards people who reciprocate his friendship and has a traditional concept of morality and justice, his only solution to major moral problems in his life (whether it's his adulterous mother or his friend's abusive stepfather) seems to involve murdering the offending individuals

* Dirty Coward: Doyle only physically bullies those who can't or won't retaliate. When he throws out his band members in a drunken rage, the only one he dares to be physically violent towards is a man in a wheelchair. Similarly, in spite of all of his bravado about not being afraid of Karl, it's clear in the scene where Karl grabs his arm to protect Frank (and when he wanders into the bedroom at night with a hammer), Doyle treads pretty carefully around him.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: Karl, who passively listens to Charles Bushman's disgusting accounts of his sex offenses and tolerates threats, insults, and ridicule from Doyle, until Doyle threatens to physically harm Frank and until Charles makes perverted remarks about Karl's friendship with Frank.

* BewaretheNiceOnes: Karl, who passively listens to Charles Bushman's disgusting accounts of his sex offenses and tolerates threats, insults, and ridicule from Doyle, until Doyle threatens to physically harm Frank and until Charles makes perverted remarks about Karl's friendship with Frank.

* BerserkButton: Don't push around Frankie's mama in front of him, if you don't want everything within his reach thrown at you. Even Linda seemed shocked by the sudden ferocity in her son.
** Don't lay a hand on Frankie in front of Karl either. The second Doyle raised his hand, Karl caught it like it was nothing, politely telling him not to do that again.

** Jesse Dixon, the man that Karl's mother slept with when he killed them is said be Karl to have been a cruel person. Scooter, Karl's co-worker at Bill Cox's shop, admits that he always wanted to kill Jesse himself.

* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:That Doyle, mm-hmm.]]

* HeroicSacrifice: Although Karl Childers didn't die, he sacrificed his freedom, by doing Doyle in to help Linda and Frank to live a better life without being pushed around. In the end he's back where he started in the mental institution.

* AbusiveParents: One, being Frank's adoptive father, Doyle. Also, [[spoiler: Karl's own father, also (unfortunately) named Frank, who made Karl sleep in the barn because he didn't want him with the rest of the family and [[MoralEventHorizon made Karl throw out his premature younger brother like he was trash]].]]

* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Poor Frank; Karen Cross (only shown in the extended version) just shot him right down. Gender-flipped and somewhat averted with Karl and his would-be girlfriend, Melinda: Karl: "Flowers is purty." [[spoiler: Of course it doesn't go anywhere because shortly afterwards, the rest of the story happens...]]

* HellIsThatNoise: The wailing guitars on Lanois' score at the point of Karl's final decision, symbolizing the peak of his rage just before his enters Doyle's house for the final scene.

* MeaningfulEcho: "Karl?" All four times spoken by [[spoiler: characters seeing him for the last time. The [[FourIsDeath fourth]], [[KarmicDeath chillingly so]]]].

* DeathGlare: Frankie gives Doyle an angry, disbelieving stare all through his speech about [BlatantLies how he's sorry, that he's going to change, and how it would be better if he was over with Frankie and Linda more often]].

* WhatTheHellHero: [[spoiler: Frankie's criticism of Karl for burying his barely-alive premature brother takes on this tone, despite Karl's being much too young (and mentally challenged to boot) to understand about caring for a child.]]

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Averted with Frank. [[TheWoobie You wish it weren't that way,]] but Doyle has made it so.

* FriendToAllChildren: Karl, natch. Of course Frank comes to love him, and the [[PapaWolf feeling is mutual]]. Frank's friends also don't really seem to mind him when they [[spoiler: finally play football together]].

** Bill Cox runs a small power equipment repair shop; this is perfect for Karl with his skill set. After somewhat of a gaffe in which he locks Karl in for a night after work is done, he quickly realizes that this is "not Christian" of him and gives him a key so Karl can go as he pleases. He continuously praises his talented employee and regularly buys him and his assistant lunch, as well as gives him advice on how to spend his time when not working. He also serves as a ShipperOnDeck for Karl and Melinda when she comes to visit him at work.

** Bill Cox runs a small power equipment repair shop; this is perfect for Karl with his skill set. After somewhat of a gaffe in which he locks Karl in for a night after work is done, he quickly realizes that this is "not Christian" of him and gives him a key so Karl can go as he pleases. He continuously praises his talented employee and regularly buys him and his assistant lunch, as well as gives him advice on how to spend his time when not working.

* CallingTheOldManOut: Subverted two ways, as first, [[spoiler: because of Frank Childers' senility, he's regressed into a childlike state and unable to respond in a way befitting this trope;]] and second, [[spoiler: Karl doesn't have a vehement bone in his body, at least by the standards of other people; he still summons a good deal of anger, also seen elsewhere, and we do see the rage he could have if he were not retarded, but it's not blatant.]]