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Dead Man Walking (film)

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the 2005 film, see Dead Men Walking (film).

Not to be confused with another 1995 movie Dead Man.

Dead Man Walking
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Tim Robbins
Screenplay by	Tim Robbins
Based on	Dead Man Walking 1993 book by Helen Prejean
Produced by	Jon Kilik Tim Robbins Rudd Simmons
Starring	Susan Sarandon Sean Penn Robert Prosky Raymond J. Barry R. Lee Ermey Scott Wilson
Cinematography	Roger A. Deakins
Edited by	Lisa Zeno Churgin
Music by	David Robbins
Production companies	Working Title Films Havoc^[1]
Distributed by	Gramercy Pictures (United States) PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (International)
Release dates	December 29, 1995 (United States)April 12, 1996 (United Kingdom)
Running time	122 minutes
Countries	United Kingdom United States
Language	English
Budget	$11 million
Box office	$83 million

Dead Man Walking is a 1995 American crime drama film starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn, and co-produced and directed by Tim Robbins, who adapted the screenplay from the 1993 non-fiction book of the same name. It marked Peter Sarsgaard’s film debut.

In the film, Sister Helen Prejean (Sarandon) establishes a special relationship with Matthew Poncelet (Penn), a character based on convicted murderers Elmo Patrick Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie. He is a prisoner on death row in Louisiana, and she visits him as his spiritual adviser after corresponding with him.

The film was a critical and commercial success; it grossed $83 million on a budget of $11 million and received praise for the performances of Penn and Sarandon, as well as Robbins’s direction. Sarandon’s performance won her the Academy Award for Best Actress, while Robbins and Penn were nominated for Best Director and Best Actor respectively. Bruce Springsteen was nominated for Best Original Song for the single “Dead Man Walkin'”.

Plot

Matthew Poncelet, who was sentenced to death for the murder and rape of a teenage couple, Walter Delacroix and Hope Percy, has been on death row at the Louisiana State Penitentiary for six years. His accomplice, Carl Vitello, was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. As his scheduled execution date approaches, Poncelet asks Sister Helen Prejean, with whom he has corresponded, to help him with a final appeal.

Sister Helen decides to visit Poncelet, who is arrogant, sexist and racist, and does not even pretend to feel remorse. He protests his innocence and insists Vitello killed the two teenagers. Convincing an experienced attorney Hilton Barber to take on Poncelet’s case pro bono, Sister Helen tries to have his sentence commuted to life imprisonment. After many visits, she establishes a relationship with him. At the same time, she gets to know Poncelet’s mother, Lucille, and his three brothers, Craig, Sonny, and Troy. She later meets the victims’ parents, Earl Delacroix and Mary Beth and Clyde Percy. The victims’ parents do not understand Sister Helen’s efforts to help Poncelet, believing that she is “taking his side”. They desire “absolute justice” (i.e., his life for those of their children).

Sister Helen’s application for commutation is rejected. Poncelet asks Sister Helen to be his spiritual adviser through his execution, and she agrees. Sister Helen tells Poncelet that his redemption is possible only if he takes responsibility for what he did. Just before he is taken to be executed, Poncelet tearfully admits to Sister Helen that he had killed Walter Delacroix and raped Hope Percy, before Vitello killed her. As he is prepared for execution, he appeals to Walter Delacroix’s father for forgiveness, and tells Hope Percy’s parents that he hopes his death brings them peace.

Poncelet is executed by lethal injection, and has flashbacks of his crime as he dies. He is later given a proper burial. Walter Delacroix’s father attends the funeral ceremony; although he is still filled with hate, he soon begins to pray with Sister Helen.

Cast

Susan Sarandon as Sister Helen Prejean
Sean Penn as Matthew Poncelet
Robert Prosky as Hilton Barber
Raymond J. Barry as Earl Delacroix
R. Lee Ermey as Clyde Percy
Celia Weston as Mary Beth Percy
Lois Smith as Augusta Bourg Prejean
Scott Wilson as Chaplain Farley
Jon Abrahams as Sonny Poncelet
Roberta Maxwell as Lucille Poncelet
Margo Martindale as Sister Colleen
Kevin Cooney as Governor Benedict
Clancy Brown as State Trooper
Michael Cullen as Carl Vitello
Peter Sarsgaard as Walter Delacroix
Missy Yager as Hope Percy
Jack Black as Craig Poncelet
Barton Heyman as Captain Beliveau
Nesbitt Blaisdell as Warden Hartman
Steve Boles as Sergeant Neal Trapp
Shannon Proctor as Assistant to Governor Benedict

Soundtrack

Main article: Dead Man Walking (soundtrack)

Creation and conception

Christopher Buchanan, an associate producer of a PBS documentary, stated that, “The movie, based on the book by Sister Helen Prejean, combined the stories of the first two men she counseled on Louisiana’s death row: Elmo Patrick Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie. In rather broad strokes, it is fair to say the film captures Sonnier’s crime and Willie’s character. “^[2]

Reception

Box office

Dead Man Walking debuted on December 29, 1995, in the United States. With a budget of $11 million, the film grossed $39,387,284 domestically and $43,701,011 internationally, for a total of $83,088,295 worldwide.^[3]

Critical response

Dead Man Walking was well received by critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 95% positive rating based on reviews from 60 critics, with an average rating of 8.24/10. The site’s consensus states: “A powerful, thought-provoking film that covers different angles of its topic without resorting to preaching, Dead Man Walking will cause the viewer to reflect regardless of their political viewpoint.”^[4] Metacritic gives it a rating of 80/100 based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating “generally favorable” reviews.^[5]

Hal Hinson of The Washington Post commented: “What this intelligent, balanced, devastating movie puts before us is nothing less than a contest between good and evil.”^[6] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times described the acting: “For this kind of straight-ahead movie to work, the acting must be strong without even a breath of theatricality, and in Penn and Sarandon, Dead Man Walking has performers capable of making that happen.”^[7] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four stars, his highest rating, and called it “absorbing, surprising, technically superb and worth talking about for a long time afterward.”^[8]

Accolades

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Academy Awards	Best Director	Tim Robbins	Nominated	^[9]
	Best Actor	Sean Penn	Nominated
	Best Actress	Susan Sarandon	Won
	Best Original Song	“Dead Man Walkin'” Music and Lyrics by Bruce Springsteen	Nominated
Australian Film Institute Awards	Best Foreign Film	Jon Kilik, Tim Robbins, and Rudd Simmons	Nominated	^[10]
Berlin International Film Festival	Golden Bear	Tim Robbins	Nominated	^[11]
	Prize of the Ecumenical Jury		Won
	Prize of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas		Won
	Reader Jury of the “Berliner Morgenpost”		Won
	Best Actor	Sean Penn	Won
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards	Favorite Actress – Drama	Susan Sarandon	Nominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards	Best Actor	Sean Penn	Nominated	^[12]
Chlotrudis Awards	Best Movie		Won	^[13]
	Best Actor	Sean Penn	Won
	Best Actress	Susan Sarandon	Won
David di Donatello Awards	Best Foreign Actress	Susan Sarandon	Won	^[14]
Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama	Sean Penn	Nominated	^[15]
	Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama	Susan Sarandon	Nominated
	Best Screenplay – Motion Picture	Tim Robbins	Nominated
Heartland International Film Festival	Studio Crystal Heart Award		Won
Humanitas Prize Awards	Feature Film	Tim Robbins	Won	^[16]
Independent Spirit Awards	Best Male Lead	Sean Penn	Nominated	^[17]
Independent Spirit Awards	Best Supporting Female	Celia Weston	Nominated	^[17]
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards	Best Actress	Susan Sarandon	Won	^[18]
Movieguide Awards	Most Inspiring Movies		Won	^[19]
MTV Movie Awards	Best Female Performance	Susan Sarandon	Nominated
National Society of Film Critics Awards	Best Actor	Sean Penn	Runner-up	^[20]
Nikkan Sports Film Awards	Best Foreign Film		Won	^[21]
Online Film & Television Association Awards	Film Hall of Fame: Productions		Inducted	^[22]
Palm Springs International Film Festival	Best Director	Tim Robbins	Won
Political Film Society Awards	Exposé		Won
Political Film Society Awards	Human Rights		Nominated
Sant Jordi Awards	Best Foreign Actor	Sean Penn	Nominated
Sant Jordi Awards	Best Foreign Actress	Susan Sarandon	Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role	Sean Penn	Nominated	^[23]
Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role	Susan Sarandon	Won	^[23]
Turkish Film Critics Association Awards	Best Foreign Film		18th Place
USC Scripter Awards	USC Scripter Award	Tim Robbins (screenwriter); Helen Prejean (author)	Nominated

Tim Robbins dedicated the movie to his paternal grandfather, Lee Robbins, and maternal grandmother, Thelma Bledsoe, in gratitude for his college tuition.^[24]
The real-life Helen Prejean can be seen briefly in the candlelight vigil scene outside the prison protesting the death penalty with the rest of the cast.

Other versions

In 2002, Tim Robbins, who adapted the book for the film, also wrote a stage version of Dead Man Walking. The book has also been adapted as an opera by the same name, premiering in San Francisco.

Legacy

Yvonne Koslovsky-Golan, author of The Death Penalty in American Cinema: Criminality and Retribution in Hollywood Film, stated that even though public debate on the death penalty increased for a period after the release of Dead Man Walking, the film did not result in “real political or legal change” but encouraged additional academic study on the death penalty.^[25]