Sleepers (1996)

After a prank goes disastrously wrong, a group of boys are sent to a detention center where they are brutalized. Thirteen years later, an unexpected random encounter with a former guard gives them a 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 and easily understood 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 predatory lead guard of their cell block, and fellow guards Ralph Ferguson, Henry Addison, and Adam Styler, although there were other decent figures of authority at the home, including a few other guards. Their time at the home affected the four, ...

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Plot Keywords:

sexual abuse | kicked in the crotch | gang rape | confession booth | physical assault | 

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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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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Official Sites:

Levinson.com

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 October 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sleepers

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

Gross USA:

$53,315,285

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

Billy Crudup and John Slattery appeared in Spotlight (2015), which also revolves on similar themes of abuse.

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Goofs

In the mid 1960s, New York streetlight bulbs would have been mercury, not yellow sodium. Many streets would still have original cast iron lamps.

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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

Referenced in The Wizard of Lies: Cast Interviews (2017)

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Soundtracks

December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night)
Performed by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Written by Bob Gaudio and Judy Parker
Courtesy of The Four Seasons Partnership
By arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

Hell's Kitchen's legacy

A classic. The story is complex and very sophisticated. The cast is sheer brilliant and hardly to surpass. Here we get first-class entertainment in combination with suspense and a variety of themes that are fairly well known to anyone, just as revenge, justice, murder, abuse, atonement etc. The kids do a fine job, really. They add tremendous depth to the deeds and to the behave of the grown ups. Their genuine and sure-handed performances grant the movie a considerable amount of emotional recognition and chain anyone who soaks up and identifies with the storyline and the characters. The very end closes the circle and makes us aware of how quickly our lives can fall apart. Thrilling and suspense is guaranteed. Very recommendable.