Some would say that there are very few classic movies that came out of the 1990’s. Where was my generation’s “Casablanca” or “Gone With The Wind”? Different folks would also argue that 1994 was the year for the new classics with “Pulp Fiction”, “Forrest Gump” and “The Shawshank Redemption” all coming out and taking their places in the top tiers of filmdom, and they would be right. But, one ‘94 film is often overlooked, the one film that eerily now reflects what our society has become with the increased popularity of reality television, the one that shot its deranged cupid’s arrow into the hearts of some of our nation’s most violent criminals. And the one that, in my opinion, is the greatest satire of American popular culture ever put to celluloid, and one of the film world’s most revealing essays on the nature of violence in our country. I am, of course, talking about Oliver Stone’s masterpiece of fever dream cinema “Natural Born Killers”, which, thankfully, has finally been released on the glorious Hi Definition Blu Ray format in all its bloody glory.

It was amazing to re-watch this and see it as kind of a hyper-stylized crystal ball with today’s obsessive TMZ fueled celebrity obsessed culture. The most glaring current examples of this are, of course, those damn annoying, self centered cesspools, the Goesselins. It’s amazing to me that two people can acquire wealth and fame for having the most horrible marriage and being the most horrible parents that have ever existed in our universe. “NBK”, which focused more on our obsession with violence and serial killers, also stung its stingers with wit poisoned darts at the obsessions of Americans with self made celebrity, and showed how far most would go to acquire it. Granted, Jon and Kate aren’t even in the same area code as Mickey and Mallory, but how far away are we from getting there really? Shows like “The Moment Of Truth” and “13: Fear Is Real” fire at the lowest common denominator for those seeking “real” thrills. But how far away are we from the first televised execution? In a world where celebrity is king and socialites are television stars for making sex tapes, I don’t think we are as “advanced” as we like to think we are.

NBK follows insanely violent serial killers and star crossed lovers Mickey and Mallory Knox (Iconic performances by both Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis) as they become media sensations while killing across the landscapes of rural America. All the while dodging their inner demons, a soulless “celebrity” serial killer hunter (Tom Sizemore) and a sleazy tabloid TV reporter (Robert Downey Jr. at his best).