"Sleepers" is an underrated tale of loyalty, friendship and ultimate revenge on the American Justice System. Despite having an all-star cast which includes stars Brad Pitt, Robert DeNiro, Kevin Bacon, and Dustin Hoffman plus future stars in Minnie Drive and Billy Crudup, the movie never became a major box office hit and has become almost forgotten many years after its theatrical release.
The story starts out following the lives of four children growing up in the Hells Kitchen section of New York. The kids decide to pull a prank which goes horribly wrong and lands them in a juvenile detention facility. While at the facility, the boys are verbally and sexually abused by the guards. Once they get released, they make a pact never to talk about what went on at the facility. Fast forward to adulthood where two of the kids turn out to be criminals. They have a chance encounter with one of the guards (Kevin Bacon) at a restaurant and decide to take out years of frustration on him. With the other two boys being a defense attorney and a newspaper reporter, respectively, they decided to rig the murder trial while getting revenge on all people who were associated with the juvenile detention facility while they were there.
Thought slow moving at time, "Sleepers" does a great job in showing how loyalty and friendship can triumph over the Justice System which was supposed to protect them but ultimately failed them. It shows how one incident can change several people's life, for both the better and the worse. I liked how they made Brad Pitt's district attorney character come across as an effective prosecutor without making it obvious that he was trying to purposely lose the case. Robert DeNiro does an excellent job as a priest who mentors the main characters as kids and faces a moral crisis of remaining loyal to them when they are on trial.
Though the movie seems to come across as a true story, there are many plot holes. First, no judge in any court would sentence all four boys who are obvious close friends to the same detention facility. Secondly, the detention facility would never get away with killing Rizzo like they did in this movie. Anytime someone dies at a prison or juvenile facility, there is a thorough investigation. Thirdly, I find it hard to believe that no one would find a connection between the four boys, the juvenile detention center, and Sean Nokes. It was only 13 years ago and I'm sure that the murder would be all over the newspapers and someone would put two and two together. Lastly, what are the odds that Brad Pitt's character would actually get the case. There are probably thousands of other district attorneys in New York who would have a shot at prosecuting the case.
Despite these plot holes and an overly long running time (2 1/2 hours), I still recommend this movie and give it an 8/10.
The story starts out following the lives of four children growing up in the Hells Kitchen section of New York. The kids decide to pull a prank which goes horribly wrong and lands them in a juvenile detention facility. While at the facility, the boys are verbally and sexually abused by the guards. Once they get released, they make a pact never to talk about what went on at the facility. Fast forward to adulthood where two of the kids turn out to be criminals. They have a chance encounter with one of the guards (Kevin Bacon) at a restaurant and decide to take out years of frustration on him. With the other two boys being a defense attorney and a newspaper reporter, respectively, they decided to rig the murder trial while getting revenge on all people who were associated with the juvenile detention facility while they were there.
Thought slow moving at time, "Sleepers" does a great job in showing how loyalty and friendship can triumph over the Justice System which was supposed to protect them but ultimately failed them. It shows how one incident can change several people's life, for both the better and the worse. I liked how they made Brad Pitt's district attorney character come across as an effective prosecutor without making it obvious that he was trying to purposely lose the case. Robert DeNiro does an excellent job as a priest who mentors the main characters as kids and faces a moral crisis of remaining loyal to them when they are on trial.
Though the movie seems to come across as a true story, there are many plot holes. First, no judge in any court would sentence all four boys who are obvious close friends to the same detention facility. Secondly, the detention facility would never get away with killing Rizzo like they did in this movie. Anytime someone dies at a prison or juvenile facility, there is a thorough investigation. Thirdly, I find it hard to believe that no one would find a connection between the four boys, the juvenile detention center, and Sean Nokes. It was only 13 years ago and I'm sure that the murder would be all over the newspapers and someone would put two and two together. Lastly, what are the odds that Brad Pitt's character would actually get the case. There are probably thousands of other district attorneys in New York who would have a shot at prosecuting the case.
Despite these plot holes and an overly long running time (2 1/2 hours), I still recommend this movie and give it an 8/10.