Honestly, I don't believe this film has much "thematic purpose." But that's not the point; this is a different kind of film: it is a film that wants to capture an image and the emotions and thoughts attached to that image. Those who have seen this have a lot of difficulty describing why they find it so moving and precious, a sign that it is deeply, truly moving.

The antics of the poor and ignorant have never been funny to me, but at least Jerry Springer tries to make it fun. Also, beware the animal abuse.

Harmony Korine's first masterpiece.

I really love weird and disturbing movies, but this was somehow too unpleasant to watch...

What can you really say about a movie like this one? It's an experience, one every movie lover should have once. I know I was uncomfortable throughout, but I still haven't decided if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Wanna say that everything is rotten? Please do find your own original way to say it. Don't manipulate me, don't aggressively provoke me. This is a tacky display of "my generation". Please, Mr. Korine, save your cats, save the retarded whores, god save Chloë Sevigny.

a lame jerk-off motion of a film.

i thought this movie was dumb. it made no sense. and of course, that can only mean that im not intelligent enough to understand it. shut the fuck up, you hipster faggots.

Not even remotely close to being shocking, breathtaking, revelatory or whatever the fuck else. Jokes are funny enough to make you smile, not laugh. The black metal soundtrack is...interesting, kind of funny, not really a plus. Really, the director is just a pretentious dickhead and this is hipster trash.

A fantastic film with moments of brilliance. I just didn't love it.

A genuinely original debut by Korine.

# 901

It's an interesting, original and fresh film, which details the moral downfall of a town after a tornado. It has some scenes you won't find anywhere else, and it's pretty much the only movie about killing cats for a profit that I know of. It's pretty much a new take on drama, instead showing a linear storyline it shows seemingly disconnected images which tell the story of a destroyed town and it's residents. Plus, the ending is great in my opinion, It makes great use of the song "crying".

I really want to hate this film with every ounce of my immense and terrible flesh. I cannot.

It's almost like watching a trainwreck, in that you both despise it and can't look away. A constant stream of quotable dialogue makes it a ton of fun to watch with friends.

Really don't know what to make of it. A mix of some really horribly gross scenes and a bit of charm, in an entirely unique package.

not quite sure what to rank

Harmony Korine should die in pain and suffer really long before that, same goes for the people financing that stuff. I think it was after the third dead cat and the tenth retarded person that i turned it off

Uniquely alive, so much more than any other film I've watched.

Ranked on February 16th, 2011

A movie that shows the darkness and trash and reality in the lives of people that you can find in any rural area that's poor enough. And in Virginia there's plenty of those. This movie just captures so well everything that a movie has the capabilities to be. It presents the plot in such a way beyond what many movies present, and it shows that the quality of the work is not hindered by being so different. And not just different to be different, but doing what suits the tone and images perfectly.