Natural Born Killers

I enjoyed this movie quite a bit. Even though there are several moments that are "off" - the parts where it tries to be ironic, funny, or Warhol-esque, all these seem to indicate that the movie is overshooting itself, is striving for something that requires far more sophistication and/or subtlety than it has, and in short makes it appear pretentious - even then, I thought there was something very well articulated about the various themes of human emotion. The story telling is also gripping and fast-paced, while the narrative structure has a nice layered quality that complements the sensationalism with some depth. I was skeptical at first about the whole message about "too much tv" and a society seduced and desensitized by media fads, but I was eventually won over by the change in Robert Downey Jr.'s character, and especially Mickey's parting speech to him.

The parts that are "off" about the movie bothered me throughout the whole experience, like flies, small and annoying but persistent, but it wasn't until I saw a few of Oliver Stone's commentaries that I was able to put my finger on it. The problem with Natural Born Killers is that OLIVER STONE HAS NO SENSE OF HUMOR. No, it's worse than that: he has a BAD sense of humor. At least a guy who's totally humorless doesn't try to be funny. But Oliver Stone does. It's really irritating. He repeatedly would describe this or that scene as funny or comic, and inevitably it would just be stupid at best. Luckily for him, Natural Born Killers is not really a comedy. It's saved by the many violent scenes, which are much more this director's forte.