La Science des Rêves (The Science of Sleep)

• 
  
  September 29, 2009

  SirPant

  Found it hard to watch, it took 2 sittings in the end and I never ever do that! That said, this is a really sweet film, a feature length music video into Gondry's imagination maybe, but rewarding in the end. It?s a three star film really but I'm giving it 4 because there are some...( read more) blink if you miss it golden nuggets hidden in this film that I only caught second time round. Watch it but make sure you're in the right frame of mind! (And can speak 3 different languages!)

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• 
  
  November 4, 2008

  ceWEBrity

  I want to bang Gael Garcia Bernal until he cries.
  
  That is all.

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• 
  
  October 8, 2008

  wellmeetagain

  A charming and creative romantic fantasy. Recommended.

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• 
  
  June 18, 2008

  EarthlyAlien

  Stephane: "¡Un, dos, tres, cuatro!
  [Stéphane plays the drums, then the piano, then moves the cameras. "Stéphane TV"]
  Hi, and welcome back to another episode of "Télévision Educative". Tonight, I'll show you how dreams are prepared. People think it's a very simple and easy proc...( read more)ess but it's a bit more complicated than that. As you can see, a very delicate combination of complex ingredients is the key. First, we put in some random thoughts. And then, we add a little bit of reminiscences of the day... mixed with some memories from the past.
  [adds two bunchs of pasta]
  That's for two people. Love, friendships, relationships... and all those "ships", together with songs you heard during the day, things you saw, and also, uh... personal... Okay, I think it's one.
  [Red smoke comes out of the pot]
  There it goes. Yes! Yes.
  [coughs]
  Okay, we have to run."
  
  
  
  Shy and introverted by day, Stéphane (Gael García Bernal) uses his dreams and imagination as his chief form of expression. The dreams - elaborate fantasies that exist in a world dominated by arts and crafts - allow him to escape reality in favour of a world where he hosts a nightly TV show, is seduced by co-workers, writes an acclaimed book, becomes something akin to Antoine Doinel, and is generally beloved. Only, Stéphane often confuses his dreams with reality, so when he woos Stéphanie (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a similar soul who lives next door, he has trouble reconciling the girl in his dreams who loves him and the actual girl who might, if given the chance.
  
  This is not a healthy habit for Stéphane to indulge, but in Michel Gondry's The Science of Sleep it is neither a shortcoming nor a virtue, but rather a fundamental part of who he is, a necessary by-product of a misunderstood creative genius. Or perhaps he is a genius who has not yet begun to reach his potential. I'm not sure which. Not that it really matters. We just know Stéphane is far from normal, and that's enough. He fashions himself an artist, but he finds his disaster calendar series to be a difficult sell after his mother gets him a job cutting and pasting letterheads. Without creative stimulation, his mind wanders and his work becomes secondary to his imagination, just as life is often secondary to his dreams. When that happens, Stéphane is effectively paralyzed.
  
  You don't have to look far to see the connections between the character of Stéphane and Gondry himself. Stéphane's tousled hair and sweater-centric outfits emulate Gondry's physical appearance, and his endless tinkering on charmingly infantile inventions recalls Gondry's technical wizardry with the camera. Gondry has clearly spent a lot of time analyzing and recounting his own dreams because the dream sequences in this film feel as authentic as one can imagine; as Stéphanie points out, "Randomness is very hard to achieve." In particular, an extended dream sequence late in the film veers so radically between vignettes that it feels marvelously uncanny; you forget they are supposed to be dreams, while simultaneously recognizing how much the structure reflects your own dreams.
  
  The set design is meticulous, with each successive scene interweaving minor details from the previous. Due to the uncertainty of dream and reality, you could watch the film multiple times without being able to tell when Stéphane is experiencing something for the first time or when he is being influenced by a nagging memory.
  
  As the film progresses, Stéphane becomes an increasingly sad character, which is augmented by the film's autobiographical quality. Early on, Stéphane and Stéphanie share a heartbreakingly sweet scene in which they engage in the joy of creativity and their childish cheerfulness is infectious. But the more we get to know him, the more that Stéphane's disillusionment becomes extremely detrimental. Ultimately, we have a strongly emotional film in which we're not sure what emotion exactly to feel - leaving a slightly foul taste in the mouth, all the more unpleasant after the initial sweetness of whimsy.
  
  Reason is a low priority here, but, even with that in mind, there are times where The Science of Sleep feels like a series of filmed ideas, half-realized dream sequences that do little to advance either the plot or the characters. One wonders if Gondry occasionally falls in love with images at the expense of the film's greater whole. It's in these moments where his direction, which in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was so deft, wanders, stumbling around for a bit while he searches for a narrative thread. This is due, in part, to the nature of the story Gondry chooses to tell.
  
  Managing the chaos The Science of Sleep embraces is a Herculean task, to be sure, and Gondry succeeds for the most part. It would hardly warrant discussion if he hadn't done it before, but he has, and comparisons to Eternal Sunshine are inevitable. Done correctly, they are also helpful. The only aspect in which The Science of Sleep struggles comparably to its predecessor, is on the page. The only thing that's missing is the unique genius of Charlie Kaufman, the ability to be at once quirky and melancholy. Gondry is by no means a bad writer - in fact just the opposite, this was after all his first actual sole script so imagine what will he do in years to come - but he's no Charlie Kaufman, and it may just be that he's a better visual artist than he is a storyteller. Narratively speaking, the film doesn't match the level of brilliance it's literally made of, aesthetically.
  
  Obvious comparison apart and baring in mind its flaws, The Science of Sleep still reiterates what a visionary Gondry is. Every frame is brimming with creativity and his craftsmanship is unchallenged. Gondry's effort here is much more reminiscent of his earlier music video work. It shows viewers a childlike world full of inanimate objects that come to life and defy basic physical principles. Sets are made from corrugated cardboard, and large portions of the film appear to be re-dubbed for no other reason than to look cheesy. This film was never exactly destined for mainstream success, but those experienced with Gondry's pre-Hollywood work will recognize it as something that might even be a more pure look into the filmmaker's mind. And what a fascinating mind it is.

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• 
  
  June 8, 2008

  PvtCaboose91

  "You have a serious problem of distorting reality. You could sleep with the entire planet and still feel rejected."
  

  
  The Science of Sleep is a wildly inventive and imaginative film from the same writer/director who also brought us Eternal Sunshine of the Spo

  ...( read more)tless Mind. Like most of Michael Gondry's movies it's an acquired taste. While the film was not warmly received by critics who called it pretentious, incomplete and confusing, I found the film to be a wonderful and unique experience. In a nutshell: The Science of Sleep is a surrealistic concoction of the weird and wonderful, the magical and inspirational, and the infantile and mischievous.
  
  This is Michael Gondry's bizarre imagination at its very finest: awe-inspiring visuals, great concepts and enchanting characters. As Gondry is addressing a scientific mystery of the chemical imaginings of the brain (that is, dreaming) you can definitely expect something vastly distinctive and different.
  
  This deep, provocative film presents the story of a young man who thrives in the dream world, but appears awkwardly dysfunctional in reality. Since childhood, Stéphane Miroux (Bernal) has often been withdrawn from reality both psychically and emotionally. Stéphane has been living in Mexico for years, but is drawn back to his childhood home in France following the death of his father. His mother Christine (Miou-Miou) promises her son a creative job; however Stéphane soon realises that this "creative job" is a mundane career at a calendar-printing company. Stéphane is charmed when he inadvertently meets Stéphanie (Gainsbourg): a girl who has recently moved into his building. Although Stéphanie is initially charmed by the enigmatic Stéphane, she becomes increasingly confused by his childish nature and an unstable connection with reality. As Stéphane is unable to find tranquillity in his newfound love for Stéphanie, he searches for the answer in his dream world.
  
  There's also a fascinating sub-plot concerning the happenings inside Stéphane's head: there's a charismatic host of "Stéphane TV" expounding on "The Science of Sleep" before an assortment of cardboard cameras.
  
  For viewers with an actual imagination, you will find the blurred line between dreaming and reality both fascinating and mesmerising. Director Gondry creatively utilises cinematic techniques to help the audience distinguish reality from the dream sequences. Subsequently, it's an easy task to comprehend the world from Stéphane's complicated, surrealistic point of view. Gondry even uses a smattering of admirable low-tech animation techniques that are a prominent of the dream scenes. I must also mention the creative contraptions featured in the film: from the one-second time machine to the 3D glass, and even cardboard objects that principally feature whenever the surrealistic side of Stéphane has taken control.
  
  This is a beautifully conceived film that uses brutality in its honest portrayal of relationships and friendships. The Science of Sleep can accurately be described as an eloquent dream - each scene is not constructed in a clear linear narrative order: instead the film is structured as a series of moments which are stimulated by the protagonist's perplexed emotions as well as his need to love and be loved.
  
  Gael García Bernal delivers an appealing, lively portrayal of the confused central character. I couldn't fault his performance at any point throughout the movie. He is the one who carried all the dream sequences, and was supported by minor characters. Charlotte Gainsbourg is one of the key characters who rarely appears, surprisingly. But she is a pivotal cog in the machine and is memorable when given screen-time.
  
  The Science of Sleep is highly entertaining viewing. This is a small-time gem directed to perfection by Michael Gondry. The visuals deserve recognition and are essentially faultless. The only marginal flaws lie in the script. It meanders frequently and plods despite some talented filmmaking. However this is insignificant and slightly detracts from the overall film value. Aside from that the film is a beautiful creation imbued with marvellously strange characters and an obvious vivid imagination.

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• 
  
  November 21, 2009

  dizzynorman

  Michel Gondry is at it again, combining tactile art with cinema. In fact, that is a major component of this film's theme and it's characters. Gael Garcia Bernal is perhaps the most edible figure of current international cinema. Even when he is behaving like an aberrant douche,...( read more) one can't help but want to devour the little imp. Comparisons to Eternal Sunshine are unavoidable, but I think that Sunshine is a stronger film. The surrealism of that film served a more solid narrative purpose, whereas the dream sequences in this film are merely that.

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• 
  
  November 15, 2009

  jemwise

  Extremely adorable ;)

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• 
  
  November 13, 2009

  theloneowl

  Grazie mamma di Michel Gondry per aver messo al mondo quest'uomo.

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• 
  
  November 11, 2009

  vanishedthoughts

  Very odd movie, bounces in and out of reality.

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• 
  
  November 4, 2009

  rajiv23gooners

  weird, funny, heartfelt, and artful at the same time.,
  this is beyond beautiful, i'm so in love.,
  unfortunately, this is 'love it or hate it' type of movie, so before watching this, i suggest you to close your eyes, and let your mind open..

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View more La Science des Rêves (The Science of Sleep) reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

• 
  October 12, 2007

  kristen121212

  i watched this movie last night and i loved it!
• 
  June 17, 2007

  pullupyourshirt

  Love this movie
• 
  September 23, 2006

  ZeenArya

  This movie was very intense and you get into the story from the begening. It's like a dream in which you get confused between reality and ireality. A very philosophical film, that not everybody likes.

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