THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP
"Sleep"-deprived
PopcornReel.com Movie Review: "The Science of Sleep"
By Omar P.L. Moore/September 22, 2006
Director Michel Gondry's "The Science of Sleep" starts
extraordinarily brightly. For the first hour or so, the story about a man
who has a television show which showcases his dreams and subconscious is lively,
energetic and absurdly funny. After that however, the film stops in its
tracks, and to its credit while it does not go downhill it does not gain any
further traction, either.
Gael Garcia Bernal, who has enjoyed roles in a variety of films over the last
four or five years, including most recently "The King" and next month's "Babel"
(his second collaboration with Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu), shines here very
strongly as Stephane, an artist with a television show he created that is
broadcast in France. On it he explores dreams, fantasies, desires and
fears. A "Truman Show" of sorts, "Stephane TV" follows its protagonist as
he journey's through his own subconscious and after a chance encounter with
Stephanie (Charlotte Gainsbourg), the friend of a woman that Stephane has his
eye on, Stephane focuses on Stephanie, who happens to be his next door neighbor.
In several funny sequences that evoke the physical comedy of Robin Williams and
Jerry Lewis, Stephane pretends that he does not live directly across from
Stephanie. When his scheme falls short and he is caught red-handed, he
begins to foment his inventiveness to draw closer to her.
Live or Memorex? Gael Garcia Bernal tangos with Charlotte Gainsbourg in
his dreams and on his TV show. Peek-a-boo, I see you: Bernal is caught by
Gainsbourg's eye in the door in "The Science of Sleep", which opens today.
(Photos: Etienne George/ Warner Independent Pictures)
Other distractions, such as Stephane's annoying and vulgar
co-worker Guy (Alain Chabat) creep in, but the advice Guy gives Stephane on
getting closer to the opposite sex goes in one ear and out of the next. If
that isn't enough, his flirtatious co-worker Martine (Aurelia Petit) is (at
least in his mind or in reality) throwing herself at him. Is Martine
trying to simulate in his mind the substitute for Stephanie, the woman he
desires, or is his subconscious is Stephane wishing that Martine was Stephanie,
but he doesn't have the courage to ask Stephanie to be his?
If the last couple of sentences sound confusing, then it reflects some aspects
of "The Science of Sleep", which while entertaining, is a Rubick's cube that
will tease and tantalize your brain -- but only up to a point. The visual
effects (such as the cellophane for water that runs out of a faucet, among other
effects) are clever, not new -- but become repetitive after a while. There
are some well-designed production sets and set pieces by Ann Chakraverty, Pierre
Pell and Stephane Rosenbaum, however. The screenplay, which Michel Gondry
also wrote is fresh and full of good ideas -- it's just that the visuals that
supplement the dialogue and the story aren't as engaging after seeing them more
than a few times. Given the dream state of the main character it probably
makes sense that visuals are a hazy shade of confusion, but in a two-hour movie
where ideas could have probed deeper and been more impacting, the visuals and
the strength of plot seem to float on something that is less than substance
after the first great hour of the film passes by.
"Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", Mr. Gondry's last film, was terrific,
alive and quietly profound. Something ephemeral about it, despite its
two-hour length, and something ethereal, along with its strong performances,
made the film a unique experience. The subject matter in that film is not
so dissimilar to the director's new one. Resisting a lazy urge to compare
the two, "The Science of Sleep" lacks some of the sustained inventive punch of
its Gondry predecessor. Nonetheless, it provides enough laughs to carry
any audience through. It remains to be seen that if this film was pitted
against "Eyes Wide Shut" -- which in a very real sense deals with somewhat
similar subject matter -- which film audiences would gravitate to.
Copyright 2006. PopcornReel.com. All Rights Reserved.
"The Science of Sleep" is rated R for language, some sexual content and
nudity. It is primarily in English language, but contains French and
Spanish dialogue, as well as English, French and Spanish subtitles. The
duration of the film is approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes.