Sister Helen Prejean (Susan Sarandon) is asked by death row inmate Matthew Poncelet (Sean Penn) to be his spiritual advisor. As she tries to redeem his soul, she must also reconcile his needs with the heinousness of the crime and the grief of the victims' parents.
It's ironic once you think of it. The lead actors and director are well-known for not only their acting but for their activism and they're making a movie on one of the most debated subjects in existence. But it's not mentioned whether Dead Man Walking is pro-death penalty or anti-death penalty.
The performances from Penn and Sarandon are spectacular. Tim Robbins' direction is also excellent (not bad for his second time as director). It may be fifteen years old (at the time of Dean Man Walking's release, the death penalty debate was at its peak), but it still packs a wallop.
My Rating: ****1/2
great movie; one of sean penn's best!
ReplyDeleteNot sure if you heard or not, but Kai Parker and I were talking about this flick briefly on his most recent podcast.
ReplyDeleteI realized that it was the film that just turned me into a young moviegoer into a full blown film lover.
I saw you had reviewed this film and I'm just now getting around to reading it. I was hoping you'd do it justice. This is a film near and dear to my heart. The death penalty has been a subject close to me for a while. This is one of only a handful of films that brings a tear to my eye every time I view it. As he's about to face everyone she tells him to stay focused on her as he dies...gets me every time.
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