Sleepers - Sentimento de Revolta (1996)

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

Director:

Barry Levinson

Writers:

Lorenzo Carcaterra (book), Barry Levinson (screenplay)

Stars:

Robert De Niro, Kevin Bacon, Brad Pitt

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Bacon	...	Nokes
Billy Crudup	...	Tommy
Robert De Niro	...	Father Bobby
Ron Eldard	...	John
Minnie Driver	...	Carol
Vittorio Gassman	...	King Benny
Dustin Hoffman	...	Danny Snyder
Terry Kinney	...	Ferguson
Bruno Kirby	...	Shakes' Father
Frank Medrano	...	Fat Mancho
Jason Patric	...	Shakes
Joe Perrino	...	Young Shakes
Brad Pitt	...	Michael
Brad Renfro	...	Young Michael
Geoffrey Wigdor	...	Young John

Storyline

As children, Lorenzo Carcaterra - Shakes to his friends - Michael Sullivan, Tommy Marcano, and John Reilly were inseparable. They grew up in Hell's Kitchen, a far from perfect neighborhood, one filled as Shakes says with scams and shake downs, but one where the rules were known by its residents. The one adult who they admired was Father Bobby Carelli, who understood them as kids more than most adults and more than he himself would like to admit. In 1967, their lives would change forever when a typical teenage prank went wrong which led to the four of them being sentenced to various terms at Wilkinson Home for Boys, a reformatory. There, they were physically, emotionally and sexually abused primarily by Sean Nokes, the head guard of their cell block, and fellow guards Ralph Ferguson, Henry Addison, and Adam Styler, although there were other caring figures of authority at the home including other guards. Their time at the home affected the four, not all who were able to emerge from the ...

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Plot Keywords:

sexual abuse | kicked in the crotch | boy | prank | guard | 

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Taglines:

Four friends made a mistake that changed their lives forever.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

M/16

Details

Official Sites:

Levinson.com

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 December 1996 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Sleepers - Sentimento de Revolta

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$44,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$12,305,745, 20 October 1996, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$49,100,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$165,615,285

Company Credits

Production Co:

Astoria Films,Baltimore Pictures,Polygram Filmed Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

147 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Devon Sawa was offered the role of Young Michael Sullivan, but passed because he was in production with América Selvagem (1997).

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Goofs

Defense Attorney Danny Snyder should have moved for a "motion for judgment of acquittal" after the state/prosecution rested their case. No lawyer would fail to make that motion because if granted, the defense does not have to put on a case because the State failed to meet its burden of proof during their case in chief. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 29 (a) states "after the government closes its evidence or after the close of all the evidence, the court on the defendant's motion must enter a judgment of acquittal of any offense for which the evidence is insufficient to sustain a conviction." New York follows this Federal Rule as discussed in U.S. v. Irving, 682 F.Supp.2d 243 E.D.N.Y.(2010).

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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.

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Connections

References O Homem Invisível (1933)

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Soundtracks

Walk Like A Man
Performed by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio (as Robert Gaudio)
Courtesy of The Four Seasons Partnership
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

The Sleeper of 1996

Sleeper(1996) is a deeply emotional and brilliant film that was overlooked in 1996. It deals with the past and how events from the past can be instrumential in shaping the present. The movie was very controversial due to the subject matter. I believe that one reason that Sleepers(1996) didn't get the praise it deserved is the film deals with things that were already present in Mean Streets(1973) and Once Upon a Time in America(1984). The first half of the feature reminds me a lot of the flash back sequences from Once Upon a Time in America(1984). Brad Pitt gives what I see as the best performance of his life. What I also like about Sleepers(1996) is that it puts together two of the best actors of their genreation in Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro.