Sonhando Acordado

This movie had a lot going for it. The art direction was incredibly fun and creative, and overall the movie looked great and had a very unique vision. It was cute and quirky and definitely made me laugh out loud at times while at other times it made me feel awkward and tense in the best possible way.

The dream sequences were fun and blended with reality in a very seamless and engaging way (though on a personal level I prefer the way dreams were portrayed in Waking Life). And while on the surface the love story was thoughtful and true (and I could even relate to it in some ways), the problem for me was that I just couldn't sympathize with Bernal's character, Stéphane. I couldn't really see where Gainsbourg's character, Stéphanie, was coming from either. While their interaction was at times endearing, I just didn't feel like I had to root for them. Still though, there was enough charm in this movie that that fact didn't ruin the movie for me.

One of the most important things to note about this is that it is not meant to be a mainstream piece. If you like Charlie Kaufman and/or Michel Gondry(as I do, I love the latter's approach and style, and it is immensely evident here; Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of my favorite films), this is for you. No, there is little real plot. This is delving into the mind of the lead, and in doing so, exploring emotions(including complex, ambivalent ones) and his relationship with a woman. Ah, not just any, she may be the one. Shifting back and forth between imagination and reality, this is often intentionally disorienting about which we're seeing at that specific time. There is marvelous ambiguity in this. The visuals are amazing, creative, and always perfectly conveying the mood that they are supposed to. Excellent stop-motion animation. The actors(who all deliver impeccable performances) actually got to see what their realistically written(not all likable) and nicely fleshed out characters were meant to be seeing, so they could react to it, not merely "pretend it's there". This is in English with a bit of French and occasionally Spanish, and both are subtitled. The editing is spot-on. There is a little sexuality, infrequent strong language and brief male nudity in this. I recommend this to anyone who believes that this medium can be an artform. 8/10

This is a perfect example of a love-it-or-hate-it movie simply because its very nature means it's somewhat plot less -- we're constantly unsure if what we're seeing on the screen is really real or just in Gael Garcia Bernal's dreams, and some moviegoers abhor uncertainty, hence I think the large number of "1" votes for this flick. (Also, the film is ostensibly foreign, but moves from French to English with equal measure, with a little bit of Spanish tossed in, too. So maybe the shifts in language also irked some people, but I found it enchanting.) So don't let those low votes fool you; this is a beautiful, sublime film, and if you let yourself go onto its wavelength, you'll most likely find yourself *enjoying* the (perhaps unsolvable) visual puzzle Michel Gondry has created here. It is the quintessence of magical realism, and yet everything comes across as absolutely effortless, unlike the forced whimsy of, say, last year's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or the too-clever-by-half Adaptation. I dare say it's probably one of the best films of the year.

I just saw this at the Sundance Film Festival and feel compelled to saw a few things about the flick. This movie is so insanely good and just plain insane at the same time. The movie follows Gael Garcia's character as he moves back to his mothers home in Paris and finds himself falling for the girl across the hall. Gael's character experiences reality through dreams and the present, creating all sorts of confusion. The movie has some of the most unique props and eccentric animation pieces I have ever seen, but would you expect anything less from Gondry (Eternal Sunshine..). This movie really can't be described in truth but holds so much potential for multiple viewings as its so full of life and visual wonders for the eyes. Gael Garcia is just perfect in this role and is fascinating in gesture and laugh out loud funny when the script allows. I think you should definitely look forward to seeing this movie when it gets a wide release, its funny, its art, its pleasure for the eyes and a puzzle for the mind.

Or, The Science of Sleep. A film that rates -very- high on the weirdness scale as it tells the story of a man that has trouble keeping reality and dreamworld apart. It starts when he moves back to France to live with his mother after his father passes away. The rest of his story is a fairly normal one, just the way it is played out is rather odd.

This film had me watching it open mouthed for most of the time. From the very start of it to the very end. In fact, I might have had my mouth open from the moment it started - I didn't realize it until about halfway through. The astonishment and pleasure on my end started with the very first shots - the way things got depicted and worked out. A film that is as much a film as a true piece of art.

I can do nothing other than rating this one very highly. It is like a dream but also like reality and it explains its title and theme very clearly. Acting is good enough and the music choice is very fitting. All in all, very worthwhile material.

9 out of 10 fuzzy dreams