‘Sleepers’ Best Of Year’s Films
When I saw “Courage Under Fire” for the first time a few months back, I was convinced it would be a nearly unchallenged winner of both the Best Picture and Best Director Academy Awards. Obviously I hadn’t yet seen “Sleepers.”
Based on a book by Lorenzo Carcaterra, which was based on real events, “Sleepers” tells a powerful, convincing story that is truly unforgettable.
Director/writer Barry Levinson does an excellent job with the touchy subject. As with most serious novels, they are much too long and detailed to fit into a 90-minute film, so Levinson didn’t hold himself to that. “Sleepers” runs two and a half hours, but is interesting for every minute of it.
Levinson isn’t given a simple topic to direct, either. “Sleepers” covers a wide variety of subjects, everything from friendship to honor to murder to sexual abuse.
The movie opens in the mid-‘60s when we meet four best friends living in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. As we watch them try to top each others’ pranks, it seems only inevitable that sooner or later one of them is going to backfire.
And then one does. The boys are scamming a hot dog vendor and take off with his cart. When they lose control of the cart, someone is badly injured. The boys are sent to the Wilkenson Home for Boys, a juvenile detention center.
It doesn’t take long before we find out about the awful crimes committed there. The first thing one of the boys is asked to do is strip naked in front of one of the guards, only for him to smile and tell him to get dressed again.
Before long, the guards - led by Sean Nokes (Kevin Bacon) - start regularly beating and sexually abusing the boys. After winning a guards/inmates football game, the main characters are beaten and given solitary confinement without food or light. Another inmate is Then, 13 years later, two of the boys, now leaders of a gang, see Nokes in a bar and kill him.
The last hour of the movie portrays their trial. It is no normal trial, however, since the prosecuting attorney is one of their old friends. He not only purposely tanks the case, but writes a script for the hapless defense lawyer.
As could be expected by the names involved, the acting is spectacular. Robert DeNiro as Father Bobby, a parental figure to the foursome, gets the best writing of the film, and knows exactly what to do with it. He should be a major contender for an Oscar.
Brad Pitt, continuing to deviate from standard sex symbol roles, is also fantastic as Michael, the prosecuting attorney. He is given the always difficult job of acting the role of someone who is acting. In this case, he’s acting like someone who wants to win a case he doesn’t actually want to win.
The scripted defense lawyer is Dustin Hoffman, who is simply too good for this small role. His character is an alcoholic with a drug problem who, many years ago, was a top notch attorney.
The list seems to go on and on, but I must not neglect to mention the young and old versions of Shakes - Joe Perrino and Jason Patric. Patric serves as the narrator, but Perrino does most of the work.
Shakes is the focal point of the abuse at the Wilkinson home, and Perrino performs far beyond his years. Patric is excellent as well, but to give his adult character the attention it deserves, “Sleepers” would need another half hour.
When the book was initially published, many questioned whether or not it was actually true, but that shouldn’t effect whether or not you see this movie. It might even be reassuring to think it wasn’t true; parts of this movie are terrifying enough as fiction.
For those of you interested in Oscar watch ‘96, this is a must-see. It is difficult for me to believe “Sleepers” will not get several nominations, impossible that it won’t get any. On top of that, the movie is still fascinating to watch.
Grade: A
MEMO: Want another opinion on “Sleepers”? See page G2