`SWING BLADE' A SLICE OF STRONG BUT SLOW INDIE FARE.

Byline: Amy Dawes Daily News Film Critic

A bold, unusual movie that brings the resonance of Southern literature and the charge of biblical allusions to the low-budget independent scene, ``Sling Blade'' is adventurous filmmaking that deserves an audience. But its uneven tone and needlessly drawn-out storytelling style are likely to limit its prospects.

Arkansas-born Billy Bob Thornton makes his directing debut with ``Sling Blade,'' from his original screenplay. He also plays the central role of Karl Childers, a slow-witted man, abused and neglected as a child, who has been institutionalized ever since he killed his mother and her lover, the local bully, with a sling blade as a youth.

Upon his rather haphazard release back into the community, Karl finds work at a small-engine repair shop and is befriended by a fatherless local boy (Lucas Black) who is trying to survive a turbulent home life.

Invited to live in the garage of the boy's house by his mother, Linda (Natalie Canerday), Karl is exposed to the overbearing, bullying behavior of Linda's mean-spirited lover, a schizophrenic, heavy-drinking construction worker (played by country music star Dwight Yoakam).

Meanwhile he develops a deep bond with the talkative and needy boy (beautifully played by Black, an Alabama native who debuted opposite Kevin Costner in ``The War'').

The story unfolds with an air of inevitability, and its dramatic climax is predictable but effective.

It's a strong story with a satisfying poetic resonance, and it's buoyed by the remarkable central performances of the boy and of Thornton, who plays the handicapped man with great stillness and conviction as an odd but pragmatic creature driven by his own inexorable sense of right and wrong.

With his deeply interior growl of a voice and his unassuming, sunk-down posture, Karl is presented as the gentle giant who comes to the boy's rescue, and his climactic deed is effectively set up as an act of love and self-sacrifice.

But the film is hobbled by uneven, family-style casting that includes many of the filmmaker's friends and associates, and the movie's needlessly prolonged running time (two hours, 14 minutes) accommodates scenes that are maddeningly drawn out for no discernible reason.

The story of a slow man making his way in a slow town, ``Sling Blade'' has an understandably deliberate pace, but many of the protracted scenes merely repeat ideas and information that we have long since grasped.

Yoakam, playing a character who can best be described as a dirt sandwich, has far less charisma as an actor than he does behind an electric guitar, and Canerday is occasionally effective, but is saddled with a weakly written role as a mother who lamely subjects her young son to her boyfriend's abusive tactics, even as she displays an independent will in other areas.

John Ritter is interesting in an unfettered role as the middle-age homosexual store manager who is Linda's best friend, and offbeat talents like filmmaker Jim Jarmusch and musician Vic Chesnutt have cameo roles that add insider interest but seem superfluous.

Thornton films in long takes and wide shots that tend to emphasize the movie's moody, stately pace, and the uneven cinematography amplifies its low-budget independent origins. The movie was featured in this year's Telluride and New York film festivals and has received much critical acclaim.

THE FACTS

The film: ``Sling Blade'' (R; language, implied sex and violence).

The stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Dwight Yoakam, J.T. Walsh, John Ritter, Lucas Black, Natalie Canerday, Robert Duvall, Vic Chesnutt.

Behind the scenes: Directed and written by Billy Bob Thornton. Produced by Brandon Rosser and David L. Bushell. Released by Miramax.

Running time: Two hours, 14 minutes.

Playing: Laemmle Sunset 5.

Our rating: Three Stars.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: Dwight Yoakam, left, Billy Bob Thornton and John Ritter in ``Sling Blade,'' which was also written and directed by Thornton.