homes and disturbed childhoods, andrnthey begin a three-month murder spreernthat claims some 50 lives. So far, this isrnscarcely new, as a similar story was told inrnthe 1973 classic Badlands and in thernmore recent Kalifornia, in which Lewisrnalso starred. Very early in the film, however,rnthe daring originality of Stone’s visionrnbecomes apparent in the recountingrnof Mallory’s abuse through the mediumrnof a situation-corned)’ portraying RodneyrnDangerfield as the incestuous father, tornthe accompaniment of a peculiarly inanernlaugh track. This introduces the centralrntheme of the film, the extent to whichrnvulgar popular culture has saturated andrnpolluted American life, at once shapingrnthe deeds of the violent and pervertedrnand preventing the public from viewingrnthese acts as anything other than entertainingrnpabulum. It is highly desirable tornview this film in a crowded theater,rnwhere members of the audience join inrnthe utterly inappropriate laughter of thernimaginary sketch, presumably becausernthis response has been so thoroughlyrnconditioned and internalized.rnThe ensuing murder spree is recountedrnthrough the eyes of the mass media,rnwho lionize Micky and Mallory, therncharming “M&M killers,” making themrninto folk heroes for adoring fans acrossrnthe world. Stone’s central vision of mediarnirresponsibility produces some superbrnimages, like the crowd greeting therncaptured pair with placards readingrn”Murder me, Micky!” or the talkingheadsrnshots of young aficionados comparingrnthe current superstars with pastrndemigods. Only Manson, it seems, hadrnanything approaching the same charisma,rnbut Micky and Mallory are by commonrnconsent “way cooler.” The satire onrnpublic reactions to villainy is constructedrnwith the subtlety of a chain saw, butrneven here there are some touches from arnfiner-honed scalpel. After their panegyricsrnon the monster pair, the fans dornobserve in passing that of course massrnmurder is morally objectionable; but if itrnneed be done, let it be with the panachernand romanticism of “M&M.”rnThe media serving swill to thernweak-brained and morally degeneraternmultitude are personified by a reptilianrnAustralian expose merchant playedrnby Robert Downey, Jr., who hopes tornachieve the greatest true-crime coup inrntelevision history by presenting a live interviewrnwith Micky during the SuperrnBowl. He hopes that this will surpass hisrnearlier shows with Ted Bundy, JohnrnWayne Gacy, and even Charles Mansonrn(though as Micky concedes, it’s tough torngo against the king). But his plans arernderailed by the one small fact that actionsrnhave consequences, even, remarkablyrnenough, the actions of televisionrnjournalists who believe they exist in anrnempyrean far above the simplistic demandsrnof quotidian morality. Mickyrnsucceeds in stating the appeal of murderrnand his natural calling to be a killer wellrnenough to delight the journalist, butrnalso sufficiently to incite the inmates ofrnthe prison where the conversation isrnfilmed. They react by beginning a riotrnclosely modeled on the appalling carnagernthat claimed at least 40 lives in thernSanta Fe prison in 1980, an incident thatrnstarkly proved the horrendous, sadisticrnviolence of which human beings are capablernonce they free themselves of bothrnmoral restraints and legal sanctions.rnOnce the fictional riot begins, the surgingrnblood-lust claims the mind of evenrnthe journalist, who realizes and wallowsrnin the true aesthetic beauty of randomrnmurder. Like the police detective, thernostensible agent of public morality, herntoo is a budding serial killer.rnStone is suggesting, all too plausibly,rnthat recent media ventures in glorifyingrn”true crime” have come perilously closernto awakening the homicidal urges thatrnthey are affecting to condemn. A harrowingrnsequence consists of a rogues’rngallery of recent media superstars fromrnreal life: the Menendez brothers, O.J.rnSimpson, Tonya Harding, and LorenarnBobbitt. It’s all entertainment, isn’t it?rnWell no, it isn’t, and Stone is urging arnconsideration of the moral consequencesrnof treating real-life villainy and sufferingrnas ratings-fodder. We might recallrnthe insouciant remark of the Paris journalistrnof the I890’s who praised thernromantic bravado of a terrorist outragernby anarchists: “What do the victimsrnmatter if it is a fine gesture?” Withinrna year, the journalist himself had beenrnmutilated in another “gesture,” inrnwhich terrorists assaulted a cafe filledrnwith innocent civilians. It would berngrimly appropriate if some form ofrncondign punishment could befall certainrncontemporary writers, investigativernjournalists, and broadcasting executives,rnthough of course it won’t. All we canrnhope for is that a handful will see NaturalrnBorn Killers and recognize the forcesrnthey are unleashing before it is altogetherrntoo late.rnThe performances in the film rangernfrom thoroughly adequate to quite superb,rnbut the casting of Woody Harrelsonrnas a psychopathic killer and rapist deservesrnspecial note. Harrelson is bestrnknown as the lovable dolt “Woody” inrntelevision’s long-running Cheers, so ofrncourse there is a delicious element ofrnplaying against type. Can the “Woody”rnwe know really say that you should neverrnmurder anyone on your wedding day?rnHowever, the full complexity of the rolernmay escape those unfamiliar with thernhistory of the actor’s real-life fatherrnCharlie Harrelson, an imprisoned professionalrnassassin whose victims includedrna federal judge and who has spent arndecade fending off repeated allegationsrnof involvement in the Kennedy assassination.rnOne can only imagine the personalrncourage that permitted WoodyrnHarrelson to undertake a role that camernso close to his family’s tragedy; but itrnwould not be out of keeping with the rawrnnerve that permeates the whole work.rnNatural Born Killers is shocking,rngrotesquely violent, and brutally excessive.rnIt is also a definitive answer for anyonernwho dares to ask whether the modernrncinema can produce a work of artisticrngenius.rnPhilip Jenkins is a professor of religiousrnstudies and history at Pennsylvania StaternUniversity and author of Using Murder:rnThe Social Construction of SerialrnHomicide (Hawthorne, NY: Aldine dernGruyter, J 994).rn48/CHRONICLESrnrnrn