A CLASSIC YOU SIMPLY HAVE TO WATCH... "SLEEPERS"

I was in two minds about sharing this film on my blog. Not because I had any doubts of its quality – quite on the contrary, it’s a classic. The director Barry Levinson won an Oscar® for his other great classic “Rain Man” – that alone speaks for itself. Then there is the cast: Brad Pitt, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffmann, Kevin Bacon, Minnie Driver and Justin Patrick. But the subject matter is slightly tough (to put it mildly) and then there is the small problem that anyone who is ANYONE has watched this… But then again I myself only got round to it later on in life and my mother got round to it later still so, well, maybe you haven’t seen it yet either. If you haven’t you most definitely should…
Ok, this is by all accounts a true story. It’s a story that starts in the 60’s in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. Lorenzo, Michael, John and Tommy are four friends who live in the area. While priests and gangsters duel it out to draw the inhabitants to their side, the boys have a happy, normal childhood, doing what boys to best – getting up to mischief. One fateful summer’s day, however, their prank goes a step too far, landing them in juvenile detention – Wilkenson Center for a year. It is an experience that will change their lives forever, for inside head guard Sean Nokes lies in wait, waiting to give them… Let’s just say a lot more punishment then anything anyone could deserve… The boys eventually get out of detention and swear never to talk about this again but then Mr Nokes crosses their paths again, this time quite by accident. Naturally, there is no way the boys can let him just “walk on by”…
Now, this film is undoubtedly very VERY tough viewing. My mother for instance, is particularly sensitive about violence towards children – she just can’t stand to watch that kind of thing… I was cautious as I told her she should watch it and she was duly shaken but didn’t regret it… But I mean, with some of the best acting talent of our time crammed into one film, how can you possibly regret it? The story, as I said, is claimed to be true. It is based on the memoirs of Lorenzo Caracatera – memoirs that have been strongly disputed by all the institutions cited in it who swear blind that the events are fictitious. I will not comment on this because I believe it has been the subject of lawsuits so I will leave “that jazz” to the courts.
However, I will say that it is a story that will shake you, disturb you but at the same time keep you glued to your seat. I will also say that cinematically, it is by far one of the greatest films of our generation. Levinson’s directing, Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro the two masters, a young Brad Pitt at the height of his talents, Kevin Bacon – who makes a SUPERB bad guy as Sean Nokes. Even Jason Patrick who seems to have faded off our radars these days. Just steel your stomach and watch the film - it will change you too…