Dead Man Walking (1995)

Director:

Tim Robbins

Writers (WGA):

Helen Prejean (book)
Tim Robbins (written by)

Release Date:

12 January 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

A nun, while comforting a convicted killer on death row, empathizes with both the killer and his victim's families.

Plot Keywords:

Nun | Death Row | Murder | Bible | Lethal Injection

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 19 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Susan Sarandon	...	Sister Helen Prejean
Sean Penn	...	Matthew Poncelet
Robert Prosky	...	Hilton Barber
Raymond J. Barry	...	Earl Delacroix
R. Lee Ermey	...	Clyde Percy
Celia Weston	...	Mary Beth Percy
Lois Smith	...	Helen's mother
Scott Wilson	...	Chaplain Farlely
Roberta Maxwell	...	Lucille Poncelet
Margo Martindale	...	Sister Colleen
Barton Heyman	...	Capt. Beliveau
Steve Boles	...	Sgt. Neal Trapp
Nesbitt Blaisdell	...	Warden Hartman
Ray Aranha	...	Luis Montoya
Larry Pine	...	Guy Gilardi

Also Known As:

La dernière marche (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Ölüm yolunda (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
A Última Caminhada (Portugal) [pt]
Dead Man Walking - Sein letzter Gang (Germany) [de]
Dead Man Walking - condannato a morte (Italy) [it]
Gever Met Mahaleh (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Kuolemaantuomittu (Finland) [fi]
Ments meg, uram (Hungary) [hu]
Mientras estés conmigo (Argentina) [es]
Os últimos Passos de um Homem (Brazil) [pt]
Pena de muerte (Dead Man Walking) (Spain) [es]
Przed egzekucja (Poland) [pl]
Tha ziso (Greece) [el]
Zadnji sprehod (Slovenia) [sl]

MPAA:

Rated R for a depiction of a rape and murder.

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #34133) | Iceland:16 | Philippines:PG-13 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Chile:14 | Denmark:16 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:16 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Angola, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Havoc

Trivia:

In reality, Elmo Patrick Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie, both inmates on whom Sean Penn's character Matthew Poncelet is based on, were executed by the electric chair in Louisiana in 1984; by 1993, Louisiana switched that penalty to lethal injection as the most humane way to execute. Both Tim Robbins and Helen Prejean opted to use lethal injection in the film instead of the electric chair because, according to Prejean's interview, "We don't want to give people the moral (of the most humane death) out whereby people could say 'Oh well, we used to do electrocution but that's too barbaric so now we are humane and inject them'."

Goofs:

Continuity: Matthew says that they shaved his left leg in case they couldn't find a vein. In subsequent shots, it has clearly not been shaved.

Quotes:

Sister Helen Prejean: Show me some respect, Matthew.
Matthew Poncelet: Why? 'Cause you're a nun?
Sister Helen Prejean: Because I'm a person.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "NYPD Blue: Dead Girl Walking (#6.13)" (1999)

Soundtrack:

Isa Lei

Dead Man's Last Words

Tim Robbins's 'Dead Man Walking' is a brave piece of cinema. Though the film is about a man on death row and a nun's struggle to help him, I liked how he presented both sides of the central theme of capital punishment. This isn't a preachy film about capital punishment being wrong or right as I doubt one's opinion would change on that after watching the movie. But, it's more of a subtle movie that tells the story of two people who form an unlikely friendship.

This couldn't have been an easy film to make yet he manages to pull it off. Poncelet is a ruthless murderer and in no way does Robbins condone what he has done but he and actor Sean Penn manage to win Poncelet the viewer's sympathy. The execution is terrific. The last scene particularly stands out. We see, in flashback, what had happened while Poncelet meets his ultimate fate. We see how he and Helen make the final connection, we see remorse in his eyes, we see him dying a slow death and at the same time the horror of the crime is exposed to us. We know that what he did is unforgivable but he finally took responsibility for that which allows us to see him as a human being rather than a ruthless killer. This also makes the whole tragedy more astonishing because you just ponder, like Sister Helen, on how such a normal human being commit such a heinous deed?

Both Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon deliver powerful performances. We pretty much see most of the film from Helen's point of view. Sarandon clearly has put a lot of heart into the role as she skillfully downplays her part showing tremendous depth and pathos. Sean Penn plays his difficult complex character with ease. The supporting cast do well (watch out for a young Jack Black and Peter Sarsgaard).

The score is mesmerizing, especially the Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan tracks. I also felt that sense of isolation that was brought out in the prison scenes. The terrific writing grips the viewer's attention right from the start. Even though we can predict Poncelet's fate, we are drawn into the fascinating transforming journey of these two intriguing characters.