Sleepers (1996)

Director:

Barry Levinson

Writers (WGA):

Lorenzo Carcaterra (book)
Barry Levinson (screenplay)

Release Date:

18 October 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

When friendship runs deeper than blood

Plot:

After a prank goes disastrously wrong, a group of boys are sent to a detention center where they are brutalized; over 10 years later, they get their chance for revenge.

Plot Keywords:

Guard | Revenge | Boy | Prank | Friend

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

Cast

Kevin Bacon	...	Sean Nokes
Billy Crudup	...	Tommy Marcano
Robert De Niro	...	Father Bobby
Ron Eldard	...	John Reilly
Minnie Driver	...	Carol Martinez
Vittorio Gassman	...	King Benny
Dustin Hoffman	...	Danny Snyder
Terry Kinney	...	Ralph Ferguson
Bruno Kirby	...	Shakes' Father
Frank Medrano	...	Fat Mancho
Jason Patric	...	Lorenzo 'Shakes' Carcaterra
Joseph Perrino	...	Young Lorenzo 'Shakes' Carcaterra (as Joe Perrino)
Brad Pitt	...	Michael Sullivan
Brad Renfro	...	Young Michael Sullivan
Geoffrey Wigdor	...	Young John Reilly
Jonathan Tucker	...	Young Tommy Marcano
Peter Appel	...	Boyfriend
Joseph Attanasio	...	Male Juror (as Joe Attanasio)
Gerry Becker	...	Forensics Expert
Casandra Brooks	...	Young John Reilly's Mother
William K. Butler	...	Juanito (as William Butler)
Eugene Byrd	...	Rizzo
Rose Caiola	...	Juror
Pasquale Cajano	...	Superintendent
Robert W. Castle	...	Priest
John Di Benedetto	...	Tony
Jeffrey Donovan	...	Henry Addison
Drew Eliot	...	Business Man #1
Reuben Larry Elliot	...	Business Man #2 (as Reuben Larry Elliott)
George Georgiadis	...	Hot Dog Vendor
Marco Greco	...	Waiter
Saverio Guerra	...	Man #1
Don Hewitt	...	James Caldwell
Ben Hammer	...	Judge Weisman
Paul Herman	...	Court Bailiff
Frank Inzerillo	...	Hanging Man
Lennie Loftin	...	Adam Styler
Chuck Low	...	Dance Judge (as Chuck Lewis Low)
Peter Mahoney	...	Priest #2 (as Father Peter Mahoney)
Ruth Maleczech	...	Woman at Subway Station
Juan Maria Jr.	...	Davy
Danny Mastrogiorgio	...	Nick Davenport (as Daniel Mastrogiorgio)
Mary B. McCann	...	Sister Carolyn (as Mary McCann)
Pat McNamara	...	Guard
Peter McRobbie	...	Lawyer
Conrad Meertins Jr.	...	Inmate #2
Gina Menza	...	Jury Forewoman
Dash Mihok	...	K.C.
Michael P. Moran	...	Judge #1
Rocco Musacchia	...	Salvatore
Mick O'Rourke	...	Man in Tub
Carmine Parisi	...	King Benny's Boy
James Pickens Jr.	...	Marlboro
Wendell Pierce	...	Little Caesar
Salvatore Paul Piro	...	Mimi
Monica Polito	...	Young Carol
Angela Rago	...	Shakes' Mother
Sean Patrick Reilly	...	Young King Benny
Peter Rini	...	Frank Magcicco
Larry Romano	...	Man #2
Gayle Scott	...	Confessional Woman
Tom Signorelli	...	Confessional Man
John Slattery	...	Fred Carlson
Henry Stram	...	Prison Doctor
Ralph Tabakin	...	Warden
Mary Testa	...	Nun
Jenique Torres	...	Davy's Sister
Patrick Tull	...	Jerry the Bartender
Aida Turturro	...	Mrs. Salinas
Joe Urla	...	Carson
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Zachary Ansley	...	Burly Man (uncredited)
Michael J. Burg	...	Court Officer (uncredited)
Maria Deasy	...	Marine Widow (uncredited)
Peter Gerety	...	Juvenile Lawyer (uncredited)
Justin Halliwell	...	Kid in Cafeteria (uncredited)
Michael Harkins	...	Fat Mancho's Buddy #1 (uncredited)
Matthew Hoffman	...	Neighborhood Boy (uncredited)
Billy Malone	...	Wiseguy (uncredited)
James Rosin	...	Neighborhood Man (uncredited)
Todo Segalla	...	Lawyer (uncredited)
Anthony Sinopoli	...	Receiving Communion (uncredited)
Barry Squitieri	...	Juror (uncredited)
Kevin Richard Sullivan	...	Boy in Cafeteria (uncredited)
George Vincent	...	Pallbearer (uncredited)

Directed by
Barry Levinson

Writing credits (WGA)
Lorenzo Carcaterra		(book)
Barry Levinson		(screenplay)

Produced by
Lorenzo Carcaterra	....	co-producer
Peter Giuliano	....	executive producer
Steve Golin	....	producer
Barry Levinson	....	producer
Gerrit van der Meer	....	associate producer

Original Music by
John Williams

Cinematography by
Michael Ballhaus

Film Editing by
Stu Linder

Casting by
Louis DiGiaimo

Production Design by
Kristi Zea

Art Direction by
Tim Galvin		(as Timothy Galvin)

Set Decoration by
Beth A. Rubino

Costume Design by
Gloria Gresham

Makeup Department
Jean Ann Black	....	makeup artist: Mr. Pitt (as Jean A. Black)
Verne Caruso	....	additional hair stylist
Scott W. Farley	....	key hair stylist
William A. Farley	....	hair department head
Carl Fullerton	....	makeup department head
Ilona Herman	....	hair stylist: Mr. De Niro
Ilona Herman	....	makeup artist: Mr. De Niro
Christine Leiter	....	key makeup artist
Henry Philip Leto	....	additional hair stylist (as Henry P. Leto)

Production Management
Tim Clawson	....	executive in charge of production
Blair Daily	....	post-production supervisor
Joel Hatch	....	production supervisor
Amy Herman	....	assistant unit production manager
Glenn Kiser	....	post-production supervisor: Propaganda Films
Linda Shamest	....	post-production supervisor
Lucille Smith	....	production supervisor (as Lucille Masone Smith)
Gerrit van der Meer	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sam Hoffman	....	second assistant director
Joseph P. Reidy	....	first assistant director (as Joe Reidy)
Danielle Rigby	....	second second assistant director
Neri Kyle Tannenbaum	....	second second assistant director
Kristi Zea	....	second unit director

Art Department
Mark Bachman	....	principal signwriter
Joseph Badalucco Jr.	....	on-set dresser (as Joseph Badallucco)
John Canterella	....	set dressing coordinator
Barbara Clark	....	construction office coordinator
William Durnin	....	set dresser
James C. Feng	....	assistant art director
John R. Ford	....	assistant props
Robert Griffon Jr.	....	property master (as Robert J. Griffon Jr.)
Brent Haywood	....	construction foreman
Kalina Ivanov	....	storyboard artist
John R. Johnston	....	construction foreman
Nicholas Lundy	....	assistant art director
Charles E. McCarry	....	assistant art director
John McDonnell	....	assistant property master (as John B. McDonnell)
Ken Nelson	....	construction coordinator
Addison Pettit	....	assistant art director
Chuck Potter	....	buyer (as Charles M. Potter)
Miriam Schapiro	....	art department coordinator
Karl Shefelman	....	storyboard artist
Robert Topol	....	master scenic artist
M. Tony Trotta	....	camera scenic artist (as Tony Trotta)
Dave Weinman	....	lead man (as David Weinman)
Eric M. Klein	....	construction (uncredited)
Julian Laverdiere	....	special illustrator (uncredited)
Timothy Main	....	carpenter (uncredited)
Richard Vilas Montesanto	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Theodore Suchecki	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Richard Beggs	....	sound designer
David Boulton	....	adr mixer
Lindakay Brown	....	assistant sound editor
Nicole Bugna	....	sound design coordinator
Dean Drabin	....	adr mixer
Tony Eckert	....	foley mixer
Ken Fischer	....	sound effects editor
Sue Fox	....	adr editor
Ben Gold	....	assistant sound editor
J.R. Grubbs	....	assistant sound editor
Lora Hirschberg	....	sound re-recording mixer
Joel Holland	....	sound recordist
Tim Holland	....	supervising sound editor
Richard Hymns	....	additional adr editor
Tod A. Maitland	....	sound mixer
Frank 'Pepe' Merel	....	foley recordist
Gary Rydstrom	....	sound re-recording mixer
Susan Sanford	....	assistant sound editor
Michael Silvers	....	dialogue editor
Ewa Sztompke	....	dialogue editor
Dennie Thorpe	....	foley artist
Jana Vance	....	foley artist
Jerome R. Vitucci	....	boom operator
Hugh Waddell	....	additional adr editor
Marian Wilde	....	foley editor

Special Effects by
Mark Bero	....	special effects assistant
Wilfred Caban	....	special effects foreman
Carmen M. Campolo Jr.	....	special effects assistant
Steven Kirshoff	....	special effects coordinator (as Steve Kirshoff)
Michael Wood	....	special effects assistant

Visual Effects by
Lori Arnold	....	coordinator: ILM
Scott Balcerek	....	visual effects editor
Noel Brevick	....	digital technician: ILM
Eric Chauvin	....	digital matte artist: ILM
Lisa Drostova	....	rotoscope artist: ILM
Amanda K. Montgomery	....	digital technician: ILM (as Amanda Montgomery)
Joshua Pines	....	digital compositor: ILM
Thomas Rosseter	....	compositing supervisor: ILM (as Tom Rosseter)
Heidi Zabit	....	rotoscope artist: ILM

Stunts
Joseph Badalucco Jr.	....	utility stunts (as Joe Badalucco Jr.)
Bob Colletti	....	utility stunts
Danny Downey	....	utility stunts
Michael Finnerty	....	utility stunts (as Mike Finnerty)
Tim Gallin	....	utility stunts
Rusty Hanson	....	utility stunts
Don Hewitt	....	utility stunts
Jery Hewitt	....	stunt coordinator
Dave Martin	....	utility stunts
David Brian Martin	....	stunt double
Michael Russo	....	utility stunts (as Mike Russo)
Derrick Simmons	....	utility stunts
Donald John Hewitt	....	stunt double: Dash Mihok (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Florian Ballhaus	....	camera operator: "a" camera
James Bartolomeo	....	camera trainee
Jerry DeBlau	....	gaffer (as Jerry W. DeBlau)
Michael Finnerty	....	grip (as Mike Finnerty)
Brian Fitzsimons	....	best boy grip (as Brian J. Fitzsimons)
Dennis Gamiello	....	key grip
Peter Girolami	....	electrician
Brian Hamill	....	still photographer
Larry Huston	....	Steadicam assistant
Edward W. Lowry	....	dolly grip (as Edward Lowry)
John Lowry	....	key rigging grip
Martin Lowry	....	dolly grip: "b" camera
Bobby Mancuso	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
Larry McConkey	....	Steadicam operator
Kevin McKenna	....	video assist operator
Peter Norman	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Tim Norman	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
Heather Norton	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera (as Heather M. Norton)
Michael Papadapolous	....	electrician
Peter John Petraglia	....	best boy electric (as John Petraglia)
Noah Prince	....	rigging electrician
Lowell Schulman	....	electrician
Susan Starr	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
Kevin P. Williams	....	second rigging grip
Lee Ayrton	....	shop electrician (uncredited)
John Bonnin	....	crane operator: Akela crane (uncredited)
Eric M. Klein	....	grip: construction (uncredited)
Gábor Kövér	....	camera operator: "b" camera (uncredited)
Eric Leigh	....	electrician (uncredited)
Anthony S. Lenzo	....	underwater camera operator (uncredited)
Dan Mahoney	....	rigging grip (uncredited)
Mark Melendez	....	electrician (uncredited)

Casting Department
Lou DiGiaimo Jr.	....	casting associate (as Louis J. DiGiaimo Jr.)
Brett Goldstein	....	casting associate
Marco Greco	....	casting associate
Grant Wilfley	....	extras casting
Susanna Lo	....	casting associate (uncredited)
Jamie Mullins	....	casting assistant (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Daniel J. Adkins	....	extras set costumer
Cathie Filian	....	costumer (as Catherine Bush Cain)
Joan Kaufman	....	costume buyer
Wallace G. Lane Jr.	....	costume assistant
Marcia Patten	....	extras wardrobe supervisor
Lauren Press	....	costumer: women
Chuck Velasco	....	costume supervisor
Michael Anzalone	....	set wardrobe (uncredited)
Jan Finnell	....	costumer (uncredited)
Harvey Hubbell V	....	wardrobe assistant (uncredited)
Roseann Milano	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Lawrence Tarzy	....	set costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Blair Daily	....	associate editor
Mark Daily	....	first assistant editor
John F. Lyons	....	apprentice editor
David Orr	....	color timer
Amanda Pollack	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Sandy DeCrescent	....	orchestra contractor
Allan Mason	....	songs supervisor
Susan McLean	....	score recordist
Shawn Murphy	....	score mixer
John Neufeld	....	orchestrator
Frankie Pine	....	music clearance
Dawn Soler	....	executive in charge of music: PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
James Thatcher	....	musician
Kenneth Wannberg	....	music editor (as Ken Wannberg)
Tom Boyd	....	musician: oboe soloist (uncredited)
Mike Deasy	....	musician: guitar (uncredited)
George Doering	....	musician (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Henry S. Avelin	....	transportation co-captain (as Henry Avelin)
John Featherstone	....	driver
Kevin Flynn	....	transportation co-captain
William K. Gaskins	....	driver (as Willie Gaskins)
Kevin Keefe	....	transportation captain (as Kevin K. Keefe)
Steven Szucs	....	driver
Francis Volpe	....	driver
Bobby Marsh	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
Toni Baffo	....	assistant: Mr. Levinson, post-production
Jill Bianchini	....	assistant: Mr. Pitt
Brian Brown	....	craft service
Lashan Browning	....	assistant: Mr. Guilano
Cynthia Carriere	....	production assistant (as Cynthia Doyle Carriere)
Robin Chambers	....	assistant: Mr. DeNiro
Alex Cohn	....	locations department
Timothy Donohue	....	production assistant (as Timothy S. Donohue)
Kevin P. Faherty	....	set supervisor (as Kevin Paul Faherty)
Kate Fujimoto	....	production assistant
Annunziata Gianzero	....	assistant to head of production
Marlus Harding	....	production office assistant (as Marlus C. Harding)
Stephen Hauser	....	assistant: Mr. Levinson
Ellen Hofstadter	....	accounting supervisor (as Ellen Hofstadter-Shapiro)
Barrett Hong	....	shop supervisor (as Barrett P. Hong)
Mark Kamine	....	locations department
Danielle Katz	....	production assistant
Nancy Kolomitz	....	production assistant
Adam Leichtman	....	production assistant
Joseph Lombardi	....	payroll accountant
Mary McCusker	....	acting coach
Charles Mcdonald	....	title designer
Kiersten Pilar Miller	....	production assistant
Tim Monich	....	dialect coach
John P. Murchison III	....	production secretary
Rocco Musacchia	....	community relations
Eric Myers	....	unit publicist
Christine M. Norton	....	assistant: Mr. Hoffman
Sargent Pillsbury	....	assistant: Mr. Coin
Julie Pitkanen	....	script supervisor
Michael Pitt	....	production assistant
Angela Quiles	....	production coordinator
Shea Rowan	....	key set production assistant
Robin F. Samson	....	locations department
Howard Samuelsohn	....	dialect coach
Bart Schoudel	....	production office assistant
Jonathan Schwartz	....	location assistant
Gary Scott	....	locations department
Jonathan H. Shaw	....	production assistant
Shawnna Thibodeau	....	production assistant
Joseph Zolfo	....	location assistant
Steve Altes	....	stand-in: Mr. Eldard (uncredited)
John D. Bair	....	stand-in: Kevin Bacon (uncredited)
Leonard John Bruno	....	clearance and product placement (uncredited)
Michael Kriaris	....	location scout (uncredited)
Charlie Puritano	....	researcher (uncredited)
Abdur Rahman	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Jodi Shapera	....	first assistant accountant (uncredited)
Marce Sterner	....	location scout (uncredited)
Melissa Unger	....	personal assistant: Robert De Niro (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Baltimore Pictures
• Polygram Filmed Entertainment
• Propaganda Films
• Warner Bros

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1996) (USA) (theatrical)
• Ascot Elite Entertainment Group (1996) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• PolyGram Film Distribution (1996) (France) (theatrical)
• REP Distribution (1996) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Sogepaq Distribución (1996) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Vitória Filmes (1996) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• Pinema (1996) (Turkey) (all media)
• PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (1997) (Germany) (theatrical)
• PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (1997) (UK) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1997) (USA) (VHS) (widescreen)
• Astro Distribution (1998) (Germany) (video) (laserdisc)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (2000) (USA) (TV)
• Buena Vista International (1997) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. Entertainment (1996) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Abril Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (Australia) (VHS)
• Front Row Filmed Entertainment (2003) (United Arab Emirates) (all media) (Middle East)
• Gativideo (1997) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Gativideo (2003) (Argentina) (DVD)
• NTV-PROFIT
• Spentzos Film Home Video (1997) (Greece) (VHS)

Special Effects

• Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) (special visual effects)

Other Companies

• ARRI  ARRI 535 cameras
• Buena Vista Negative Cutting  negative matching (as Buena Vista Negative Cutters)
• Daily News, The  vintage newspapers
• Du Art Film Laboratories  color (as DuArt)
• Howard Anderson Company, The  titles and opticals
• Irish Guardian Service  security
• Jo Anne Kane Music Services  music preparation
• Mitchell, Silberberg & Knupp  legal services
• Movie Movers  star trailers
• Movie Movers  transportation
• NBC News Archives  archival footage
• Panavision  cameras and lenses
• Panavision  photographic equipment (as Panavision New York)
• Philips Records  soundtrack released by
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services
• Skywalker Sound  post-production sound
• Sony Pictures Studios  music recorded at
• Technicolor  prints
• Todd-AO Scoring Stage  music score mixed at

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for language, graphic violence and two scenes of strong sexual content

Runtime:

147 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Australia:MA | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 (bw) | Italy:T | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating) (1997) | USA:R | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Iceland:16 | Philippines:PG-13 | New Zealand:R16 | Singapore:PG (original rating) (cut) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Company:

Baltimore Pictures

Trivia:

Author Lorenzo Carcaterra has claimed that his book on which the film is based was a true story of his childhood. When the New York legal community went on record stating that no cases resembling the events of his book could be found in any court records, Carcaterra refused to discuss the discrepancy. His claims have been neither proven nor disproven.

Goofs:

Continuity: Near the end of the film, when DeNiro's character hands the basketball tickets to Pitt's character in court, Pitt reaches for the ticket twice.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Lorenzo:This is a true story about friendship that runs deeper than blood. This is my story and that of the only three friends in my life that truely mattered. Two of them were killers who never made it past the age of 30. The other's a non-practicing attorney living with the pain of his past - too afraid to let it go, never confronting its horror. I'm the only one who can speak for them, and the children we were.

Movie Connections:

References I Spit on Your Grave (1978)

Soundtrack:

Boogie Bands And One Night Stands

Outstanding

This movie is one of the best movies made in a long time. Previous comments seem to focus more on whether or not the story is true and seem to forget the phenomenal story. Who cares if the story is true or not? If it is, it only makes the movie that much more disturbing and heart-breaking. What is the big deal if it is or isn't true? It is still an amazing movie with a great story. Most so-called "classics" are not based on true stories, so what makes this movie any different? OK, now that I have said my peace about my feelings about the authenticity of the story, I can now comment on the actual movie. I can not say enough positive things about the movie. The actors are perfectly casted. I think every single one of them do an outstanding job in their portrayal. The story is heart-wrenching and it does an excellent job of getting its point across without showing or saying too much. This movie deserves more than it got.