Don't Sleep

I'm pretty surprised with the talent of actors like Elwes, DiMatteo and Alex Rocco of "God Father" fame would be in a film with such a stupid plot and terrible, Total "B" class production value. This is not to say any of these actors are top notch Hollywood "A" listers. They are, however, talented and have been in some very good films and TV shows.

That said, this is simply one of yet another non-relevant mediocre at best, attempt to delve into a Horror story that tries to be different. Let's face it, it's not the easiest task of creating a "new" type of horror film that has not been done in one way or another 100's X's over. But, every once in a while a really good new film comes out that does manage to be original despite using formats already used many times. (Sinister, The Conjuring, Paranormal activity, Saw, Hostel Deliver us from evil etc)....

It seems as though anyone with a few bucks and a decent camera can write, produce, direct and sell crap dressed up as scary and unique yet, us Horror and Thriller fans pay (with time and $) hoping we find something worth telling your friends about. They are few and far between. If you do tell anyone about this film in the form of a recommendation, make sure you say "steer way clear".

Don't Sleep is no different. Acting was way below par surprisingly. One caveat, in defense of Cary Elwes, he is only in a few scenes. Direction was all over the place and the flashback scenes made no sense. Frankly, it was a boring film that I had to struggle to get through. The makeup (for the Demons/Ghosts?) was akin to something you would expect from a 10 year old kid showing up at your door on Holloween. Yes, it really Is that bad.

I don't like writing spoilers in any of my reviews and won't do that now, although I should and save you all a lot of wasted time and $.

The name of this film should have been "Do sleep"! And there should have been a recommendation at the beginning of the film advising to do just that for the next 97 minutes rather then a quote from Nitsche, which was, BTW, the best part of the film.

Go and rent ANY of the films I mention above if you want to see an original, worthwhile film that will put a fright into you.

By the end of Don't Sleep I felt bad, the ending was so interesting that I wished that I had enjoyed the film. But I didn't, I simply couldn't.

Starring Cary Elwes (Princess Bride, Saw, Top Gun) and Drea De Matteo (Joey, The Sopranos) but both as side characters this supernatural thriller staggers along at a dreadful pace from start to finish.

The story a mess, the creation abysmal and yet there was something there something frustratingly beneath the surface but unable to break free.

In the hands of a decent writer this could have been something quite watchable but Don't Sleep is far from that in its present form.

The Good:

Well the ending was certainly interesting

Cary Elwes

The Bad:

Lame/dull leads

Dreadful story

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

I learnt that we had a backup pack of ibuprofen at the back of our cupboard for the headache this 95 minute embarrassment gave me

The ending music happens. 🙄 This was beyond disappointing. I may actually sue for damages.

'Don't Sleep' drew me into seeing it, with a cool poster/cover, an slightly intriguing but very derivative premise and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was low-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive.

It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws are here present in those films, that to me was incredibly disappointing considering its potential which it doesn't do anywhere near enough with. 'Don't Sleep' is terrible, with a plethora of problems (huge ones too) and doesn't do enough with its potential, which was hardly small. There is next to nothing to recommend and it is a sleeper.

Lets start with the sole positive. The scenery is atmospheric and spooky.

Unfortunately, it is not done justice by the rather direct to video schlocky way it's shot and edited, it was very clear that the film was made in a rush with no care or enthusiasm.

Going on further to the negatives, the story does feel paper thin, disjointed and over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their annoying and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrates. Especially the best friend who is just as annoying as that squeaking door mentioned previously.

Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it. The effects are ropy at best, the sound quality is obvious and utilised cheaply (being too loud in the build ups and people's reactions) and it's best not mentioning the uniformly lumbering and histrionic acting. It even gets the worst out of Cary Elwes, an actor who to me is generally watchable.

Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, with lots of clichés and no depth whatsoever, while the pace goes to a standstill very quickly and drags on forever with very little going on worth caring about, never recovering. Found too many the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness, a lot of dumb and vague moments and explanations and the lack of tension and suspense. Would not have minded the lack of originality (the film is extremely derivative and in a dumbed and watered down way) if the story and atmosphere were at least alright in execution, in reality they were both dreadfully done.

A lot of 'Don't Sleep' has underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations, while too many of the things to make you jump or shocked are far from creative or scary and are pretty tame. The ending makes the film finish on an incomplete and confused whimper, in fact it is not really an ending at all.

There is not enough threat here and what there is of it tends to be used poorly, while the psychological elements are unimaginative and are more odd than scary, completely failing to show any sense of horror. Some badly sagging momentum too. The direction is leaden, got the sense their heart was not in it, and the music doesn't really fit.

Concluding, near-irredeemably awful. 1/10 Bethany Cox

Don't, Sleep

"Don't" bother watching this. And yet, ironically (or is it just coincidentally?), this may represent a cure for insomnia.