| UK NEW RELEASE THIS WEEK : 'The Science of Sleep' [5/10] |
|
|
| Sunday, 11 February 2007 | |
|
written for the next issue of Tribune magazine ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Science of Sleep France/Italy 2006 Starring : Gael Garcia Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg Director : Michel Gondry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ DIRECTOR Gondry's last picture was Dave Chappelle's Block Party: a raucously enjoyable documentary about a free Manhattan rap/r&b event which was one of 2006's genuine cinematic highlights. It even managed to satisfy those of us who'd rated Gondry's previous release - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - to one of the more bafflingly overrated movies of the current decade. The director now returns to the world of narrative features with The Science of Sleep - an uneven affair about a young man struggling to reconcile dreams and reality - which provides further evidence that Gondry's skills are best suited to non-fiction subjects. This is the first time Gondry has made a film based on his own screenplay: Eternal Sunshine, like the director's Human Nature (2001), was written by Charlie Kaufman - who won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for his pains. Kaufman - also responsible for Being John Malkovich and Adaptation - is established as one of the most original, talented and audacious in his field. Gondry, who has long enjoyed similar status in the world of the pop video (especially via his collaborations with Bjork), simply isn't any great shakes when it comes to writing - and it doesn't help that he's chosen to tackle such ambitious material here. The Science of Sleep (the original French title, which translates as 'the science of dreams' fits better) is a post-modern update of the old Walter Mitty story. Our dreamer-hero is Stephane (Bernal), a Paris-based graphic artist whose response to the travails of everyday life is to escape into elaborate fantasy. As well as causing trouble at work, this tendency also stymies the puppyish Stephane's love-life - until, that is, he becomes friendly with sympathetic neighbour Stephanie (Gainsbourg). The similarity in the protagonists' names only hints at the picture's deep fondness for cutesy tweeness - one which threatens to overwhelm proceedings as the Stephane/Stephanie relationship takes on more romantic overtones. The result is a visually-striking film with undeniable moments of sweetness, but which ends up feeling like an overdose of exquisite patisserie. Neil Young 11th February, 2007 THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP : [5/10] : La science des reves : France (Fr/It) 2006 : Michel GONDRY : 106 mins (BBFC timing) seen at Odeon cinema, Nuneaton (UK), 8th June 2006 - press show (CinemaDays event) |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
