Sleepers
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: October 18, 1996
8.1
USER SCORE
Universal acclaim based on 151 Ratings
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125
Mixed:
14
Negative:
12
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7
SpangleMar 27, 2014
Disturbing in the beginning and happy in the ending, Sleepers is relatively straight forward. The acting is good, especially from all of the child actors, Robert De Niro, and Jason Patric, the story is interesting, and the disturbing momentsDisturbing in the beginning and happy in the ending, Sleepers is relatively straight forward. The acting is good, especially from all of the child actors, Robert De Niro, and Jason Patric, the story is interesting, and the disturbing moments really strike a chord with the audience to the degree that they want it to. Overall, the film is a solid watch and while it winds up devolving into your run-of-the-mill courtroom drama, the intrigue is still there throughout.

However, the film just never is great. It's good at most moments, but never really takes that extra step and is really missing the "it" factor that makes a great film great. As of now, it is quite watchable and is still a fine film, but it had just never reached for the mountains, which is a shame. Regardless, the film was a fine watch and I cannot complain too much.… Expand
2 of 2 users found this helpful20
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10
mrmadridApr 15, 2012
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. With a quite unforgiving Metacritic score, this one is worth a second look. Kevin Bacon exhibits his range by playing a repulsive, utterly hateful villain. Truly memorable. Personally, the satisfaction one feels when he gets what's coming to him makes the movie worthwhile, in what is an eerily realistic and well-acted scene of rightous revenge that reminded me of the famous scene in the Godfather when Michael kills the police chief and mob don at the Italian restaurant. The recreation of Hell's Kitchen, New York in the 60s, the social types, daily life, the presence of the Mafia, the lives of the kids there, is very convincing and lavish, really well-done. Sure, it´s conventional and a bit dumb in parts, but the depiction of the era, some great performances make it mesmerizing at times. The users kinder score here is fairer.… Expand
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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10
DogeGamer2015Jul 11, 2020
Es una película bastante triste y deprimente, pero también emocional y profunda.
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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10
Tss5078Mar 11, 2013
By this point, Sleepers is legendary, not only as a film that told of the shocking true story of abuse inside of juvenile prisons, but for launching the careers of some of today's best known stars. Along with being one of Brad Pitt and JasonBy this point, Sleepers is legendary, not only as a film that told of the shocking true story of abuse inside of juvenile prisons, but for launching the careers of some of today's best known stars. Along with being one of Brad Pitt and Jason Patric's first major roles, it also launched the film careers of Jonathan Tucker and Geoff Wigdor. Along with a terrific cast of legends and newcomers, Sleepers brought with it an intense story, the likes of which we hadn't really seen before. The film starts out by introducing us to four boys in Hell's Kitchen during the 1960's. These boys are your typical young teens, having fun, and horsing around, when a horrible accident leads them to jail. This is where they're troubles really begin. The second part of the film jumps twenty years into the future, where we see firsthand how this abuse had a profound effect on all the boys, and the results that come from their behavior. The only major actor in both time periods is Kevin Bacon who just keeps getting better. By that point in his career, I'm sure Bacon could have play just about anyone and made it believable. Other people like Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman, give strong performance in what amounts to bit parts in support of the newcomers. Their influence can be seen throughout the film, especially in support of the child actors who I'm sure benefited from being around such legends of the screen. Sleepers is an unbelievable true story that was so well written and supported by some fantastic performances. It's not the perfect movie, but I think it's pretty close.… Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful01
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9
avatar16Jan 20, 2012
Le réalisateur de Rain Man au service d'un nouveau chef-d'oeuvre! Oui, Sleepers est un chef-d'oeuvre! Un grand film qui parle d'un sujet dur et violent (abus sexuels dans les maisons de redressements) non pas deLe réalisateur de Rain Man au service d'un nouveau chef-d'oeuvre! Oui, Sleepers est un chef-d'oeuvre! Un grand film qui parle d'un sujet dur et violent (abus sexuels dans les maisons de redressements) non pas de manière excessivement dramatique mais de façon incroyablement sobre. Il n'y a qu'à voir la (longue) intro qui présente les quatre héros, leurs connaissances, leur quartier, dans la bonne humeur. Puis tout vire dans une ambiance plus sombre, le film dévoilant sa puissance. Mise en scène, musique, scénario, casting... Tout dans Sleepers est de qualité pour livrer aux cinéphiles un superbe produit du septième art. Et puis, rien que voir de grands acteurs dans des seconds rôles juteux et inattendus (Robert De Niro en curé, Dustin Hoffman en avocat alcoolique, Kevin Bacon en gardien de prison inhumain...), cela vaut largement le coup d'oeil !… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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8
RegOzSep 30, 2014
Kevin Bacon was definitely the best, he is absolutely fabulous, as always! The kids were brilliant too. Robert de Niro and Dustin Hoffman;s performances were pretty good too. The first part of the movie was far more engaging than the secondKevin Bacon was definitely the best, he is absolutely fabulous, as always! The kids were brilliant too. Robert de Niro and Dustin Hoffman;s performances were pretty good too. The first part of the movie was far more engaging than the second part. I, however, believe Brad Pitt was miscast. Perhaps Ethan Hawke would have been a better choice. I give this film the score of 8, although it had more potential it had a weak ending.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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10
gracjanskiApr 4, 2022
This movie was so sad, I felt so sorry, what happened to the 4 boys. So yes, the movie was well made: thats the function of a movie: take you into another world. In addition there are many top actors, who played brilliantly of course.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
mohamad91hkMay 19, 2020
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Nice movie and heart breaking story. Briefly, the first half of film talk about four boys (friends) were abused by prison guards and the second half show you the boys after 13 years (became an adults) how they will revenge.

Actually, I connect with the first half more (boys part), on the second half i didn't feel they are same characters. I think if the film start with adult part and show what happened to them as a flashback, it will be better.

There is something confused also, why they didn't tell anyone what is happening with them when there were boys, i know they felt shame, but rationally they could tell the priest when he was visiting them or their family, they could tell them since the abuse started. Also why they took 13 years to revenge, it looks like revenge by coincidence!!

Anyway, the film is nice and watchable, it could be better but no matter now.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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9
MovieMasterEddyApr 3, 2016
With its colorful characters, richly evoked settings, epic story of friendship, and a strong dose of good old-fashioned star power, Barry Levinson's "Sleepers" should be a potent fall performer. The film, based on Lorenzo Carcaterra'sWith its colorful characters, richly evoked settings, epic story of friendship, and a strong dose of good old-fashioned star power, Barry Levinson's "Sleepers" should be a potent fall performer. The film, based on Lorenzo Carcaterra's controversial semi-autobiography, is shrewdly packaged to appeal to a mass audience, though its revenge theme carries a questionable message.

Basically an ensemble piece, pic is notable for being the first to co-star two of the top actors of their generation, Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman, who give solid performances as a fatherly priest and washed-up attorney, respectively. Hoffman’s is the lesser role, but the actor makes the most of his material.

Levinson’s best films have focused on friendship, and friendship proves to be the central theme of this evocative tale of four teenagers whose lives are irreparably changed by one foolhardy moment of unthinking recklessness.

Story kicks off in the summer of 1966 in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen, which was according to narration spoken by Jason Patric populated “by hard men living hard lives.” Levinson deftly sketches in the backdrop against which four friends, about age 14, hang out, an environment controlled by priests and gangsters, and where “outside” crime is severely punished.

In this enclosed world, where domestic violence is “a cottage industry” but where divorce is almost unknown, thanks to the power of the Church, the boys Lorenzo, nicknamed Shakes (Joe Perrino), Michael (Brad Renfro), John (Geoff Wigdor) and Tommy (Jonathan Tucker) spend as little time at home as possible; their best friend is the local priest, Father Bobby (De Niro), a latter-day Spencer Tracy who plays sports with them and counsels them on every aspect of life.

The other father figure who fascinates the quartet is King Benny (Vittorio Gassman), an elderly restaurant proprietor and gang boss rumored to have been the killer of Mad Dog Coll. Shakes gets part-time summer work from the King, paying bribe money to crooked cops.

These early scenes evoke carefree summer days in which the four friends fool around, play stupid pranks and generally enjoy life. But it all comes to an end one day in the summer of ’67, when a thoughtless incident involving a quick-tempered Greek hot-dog vendor results in a near-fatal accident. The boys are arrested and sentenced to nine to 18 months at the Wilkinson Home for Boys, a Dickensian hellhole where chief guard Nokes (Kevin Bacon) proves to be a sadistic pedophile.

Repeatedly raped and beaten in this nightmare world, the boys are comforted only by Shakes’ obsession with the Alexandre Dumas classic “The Count of Monte Cristo,” with its theme of suffering and eventual revenge.

Almost exactly one hour into the 2hour film, the action abruptly shifts forward from June 1968 to the fall of 1981. Shakes (Patric) is now a journalist and Michael (Brad Pitt) an assistant D.A., while John (Ron Eldard) and Tommy (Billy Crudup), who seemingly never recovered from the traumas of Wilkinson, are street-smart drug dealers and killers.

Revenge theme kicks in when John and Tommy happen across Nokes, now a run-down security guard, eating in a bar; they deliberately, and quite sadistically, gun him down in front of several witnesses and are soon arrested. At this point, Michael and Shakes conspire to save their friends: Michael applies for, and is given, the task of prosecuting the duo, determined to handle the case so badly his former friends will be found not guilty. Shakes seeks help from his two old mentors, King Benny, who supplies the alcoholic, drug-dependent Danny Snyder (Hoffman) as defense counsel, and Father Bobby, whom he urges to lie under oath to give the accused a false alibi for the time of the killings. Other witnesses are intimidated.

The moral dilemma posed by the film that taking the law into one’s own hands is acceptable if the original crime was heinous enough is not as glibly presented here as it is in the John GrishamJoel Schumacher hit “A Time to Kill.” Nevertheless, the theme can interestingly be contrasted with all those liberal, anti-revenge, anti-lynch-mob pics that Hollywood once produced. As in the Grisham film, the assumption here is that because the crimes against the four youths were truly terrible, the avenging of those crimes outside the legal system is perfectly in order.

Bacon, as the monstrous Nokes, strongly conveys the evil perversion of a man who callously abuses the youths in his charge. De Niro’s Father Bobby is an engaging enough character, though on the whole a somewhat conventional turn from this actor.

But Hoffman has lots of fun as the ragged, ponytailed attorney who’s sharper than he seems to be. Minor characters are all vividly etched.

Production values are tiptop, starting with the fine widescreen camerawork of Michael Ballhaus and the neat production design of Kristi Zea. John Williams contributes another solid score.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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7
alejandro970May 14, 2021
The fact that it was based on a real case of child abuse and subsequent revenge, and that it will feature an interesting range of actors, the film was very promising. The but is that after the first hour, the next ninety minutes feel eternalThe fact that it was based on a real case of child abuse and subsequent revenge, and that it will feature an interesting range of actors, the film was very promising. The but is that after the first hour, the next ninety minutes feel eternal and insipid. To see with certain reservations.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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9
eva3si0nSep 18, 2021
Sleepers is a great crime drama. A good cast, and the division of the film into 2 parts looks unusual. The beginning of the film is certainly somewhat slow, but this is compensated by the 2 part of the film. I advise everyone to view.
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9
FilipeNetoJan 18, 2020
Powerful, disturbing, it addresses disturbing topics.

This film starts with a bad joke by a group of criminals and where a man ends up dying. The entire group is tried and the juvenile court condemns them to one year in a reformatory, whichPowerful, disturbing, it addresses disturbing topics.

This film starts with a bad joke by a group of criminals and where a man ends up dying. The entire group is tried and the juvenile court condemns them to one year in a reformatory, which in practice is a prison for minors. There, young people will be humiliated and finally sexually abused by guards. Decades later, deeply traumatized by the experiences lived there, they finally have the opportunity to take revenge.

The film is intense. It is not at all recommended for a family afternoon as they have deeply difficult scenes, involving pedophilia and blasphemy against Catholic religious symbols. Skillfully directed and written by Barry Levinson, it has a pleasant rhythm, putting young people's lives in context and explaining how they end up falling into marginality. However, after a certain moment, it becomes basically a court drama full of amorality. The accepted film basically says that everything that happened in the reformatory justified the revenge actions years later, and never directly questions whether it was worth it for young people. Well, in a way, it does this discreetly by revealing each other's fate to us at the end of the film, but it can go unnoticed by many people.

Overall, the cast's performance is positive but it could be better. I particularly highlight the work of Vittorio Gassman and especially Kevin Bacon, who proved to be extraordinary. The children's roles were good enough, as were Robert de Niro and Dustin Hoffman who managed to make his character look incompetent and despicable. The worst was seeing Brad Pitt just show up and look too much like himself. I think it was not the most suitable film for this actor. The production values ​​are within the standard that Hollywood has accustomed us to. Regular cinematography, discreet but effective soundtrack, credible costumes and sets.

Highly inadvisable to children or impressionable people, it is a film that, despite occasional flaws, is powerful and holds us to the end without tiring or making us regret it. Worth seeing.… Expand
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8
DawdlingPoetNov 21, 2021
This is a crime thriller film, featuring themes including abuse, humiliation and revenge. This film features a surprisingly large amount of background character information, with the plot being slowly revealed. The film is quite long at justThis is a crime thriller film, featuring themes including abuse, humiliation and revenge. This film features a surprisingly large amount of background character information, with the plot being slowly revealed. The film is quite long at just under 2 and a half hours and its a sobering watch, with some distressing scenes of blatant child abuse, including sexual child abuse. I found myself feeling quite sorry for the main characters, the 4 boys, for many reasons, most obviously for being victims, victims of more than one type - victims of their adolescence, as well as their abuse. Their depicted very much as being young and scared but trying their utmost not to show it, for fear of obvious repercussions while incarcerated.

The film features some relatively jerky camerawork - there are flashback type scenes depicted in which the one visible colour is a very light blue, giving it a spooky, eerie effect. The camerawork gives the viewer a sense that what their seeing is coming from someones dreamlike recollections and is not entirely a depiction of what happened when...there's an emotional element to it, although the lack of colour also perhaps points to a sombre side as well.

Music wise, there are a number of classic 60s pop tunes played in the first part of the film, including 'Walk Like A Man' by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, Gimme Some Lovin' by Spencer Davis and 'Hurdy Gurdy Man' by Donovan. Aside from the 60s tunes are songs such as 'Tainted Love (Where Did Our Love Go) by Soft Cell'. A full list of the songs featured in the film can be found on IMDB.com of course. Generally speaking the tracks are surprisingly upbeat, certainly at the start of the film in any case, which clashes with the obviously rather dark and sombre tone of the film later on, as the plot develops. Cast wise, Billy Crudup plays Tommy, while Ron Eldard plays John and Brad Renfro plays young Michael, with Jason Patric playing Shakes as an adult and Joe Perrino playing him as an adolescent. They all give very good performances, showing their fear and vulnerability, while also giving an air of bravado. Also present are Robert De Niro, who plays the local priest that the boys grow up knowing, Father Bobby, who also visits them while their serving their sentence in juvenile. Meanwhile, Dustin Hoffman plays the lawyer Danny Snyder, who is less than happy to take on the case the boys propose. He is quite a quiet and unsuspecting sort of a person, which made me surprised that he would happen to be a lawyer, someone you expect to be (especially in America) very extroverted and a bit of a show off at the least. Also present, cast wise, are Brad Pitt, who plays Michael as an adult and Minnie Driver, who plays Carol, Mikey's partner.

Oh and then there's Kevin Bacon, who plays one of the key characters in the film - in this case, one of the detention officers, Nokes. He is really quite chilling in his depiction of a clearly evil man, who abuses his authority in shocking ways. I'd say his performance, along with that of Robert De Niro, their both the most stand out performances, or were to me in any case. One thing I did notice was that De Niro (obviously) didn't seem to age between scenes in which he's the priest during the boys young adolescence and scenes multiple years later but that is perhaps a bit of a 'nit pick' point and I wouldn't say it exactly ruins the believability of plot overall or the film in general, of course.

Unsurprisingly, the film is quite tough viewing and features a lot of disturbing and potentially upsetting and sobering content. For a start, there is some partial nudity and various sex references, although no explicit sex scenes shown as such (no doubt just as well, given the context). There are some instances of violence, which are between (I'd say) mild to moderate and includes gunfire related violence, including bloody injuries which are depicted on different people. The film features characters who talk about their drug and drink addictions/issues, although there are no scenes depicting drug use. The film was originally given a 15 rating but that was changed to an 18 rating when the film was released on video and, later, DVD and Blu-Ray. It dates from 1996, for the record.

Also, as an aside, apparently the term 'sleepers' refers to people who have been in juvenile detention centres, hence the title of the film. It wasn't a term I was aware of but it made sense once I heard that, so I thought I'd mention that, to clear up the reason why the film is called what it is. Plus, at the very end there is (as is present in some films) an explanation of what happened to various characters after the time depicted in the plot, which leads me to believe that its based on a true story, making it all the more sombre and sobering.

Yes, I thought that this was a relatively well made film. It covers some tough issues and it won't suit everyone but it has good characterisation and a decent plot.… Expand
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8
miguevindianoApr 27, 2021
I just can't resist to 90's movies vibes. In the beginning, you don't really see where is the movie going to head. Then, you start thinking about something horrible trying to guess the story, and it happens. Really liked how each characterI just can't resist to 90's movies vibes. In the beginning, you don't really see where is the movie going to head. Then, you start thinking about something horrible trying to guess the story, and it happens. Really liked how each character had its way to solve the problem.… Expand
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