Image: Empire
The Science of Sleep (2006)
by Kevin Gardner
The Science of Sleep (La science des rêves) is a French romance film that was released in 2006. The actors in this film primarily speak in English, but there are parts of the film that are spoken in Spanish and French; subtitles are displayed during these parts of the film. Anyone who loves romance and the surreal nature of dreams is sure to love this film.
Plot
Many people ask themselves, how much sleep should I get each night? However, the main character of The Science of Sleep, Stephane, asks himself, how much should I dream each night? After his father dies, he moves from Mexico to France, where his mother's family is from. While there, he begins working at a dead-end job that he hates, but he also makes some friends who he loves: Gerard, Stephanie, and Zoe.
As his friendships blossom, Stephane becomes romantically interested in Zoe. However, he thinks that Stephanie is interested in him. Later, he starts to have very vivid dreams about his relationships; sometimes these dreams are so intense that he confuses his dreams and reality. He needs to decide which details of his dreams he shares with Zoe and Stephanie. These dreams, in the end, will help to decide which woman he feels he is destined to be with.
Cast
This film has a mix of both popular French and Spanish actors. However, many of these actors are not likely to be familiar to American audiences.
Gael Garcia Bernal plays the main character, Stephane Miroux. He began his acting career in 1989, working on telenovelas. He later moved on to playing small roles in movies in the late 1990s. However, it wasn't until 2002 that he got his first big role as Padre Amaro in The Crime of Padre Amaro. Since then, he has continued to work in both films and on telenovelas. He is also slated to play Zorro in the upcoming movie Z, which entered pre-production in 2021.
Charlotte Gainsbourg plays one of the love interests in the film, Stephanie. She is an English actor, but her father, Serge Gainsbourg, is French. Being English, she is most likely to be recognized by American audiences. Some roles Americans might remember her from include Claire in Melancholia and Catherine Marceaux in Independence Day: Resurgence. Of course, she has also spent some time dabbling in French films and television, including her roles as Fantine in the Les Miserables TV mini-series and as Alice Almeida in Passionnesment.
Emma de Caunes plays the other love interest, Zoe. She is a French actress, but she has also made appearances in many English-speaking television shows and movies. Funnily enough, she is probably best known for her role as Sabine in Mr. Bean's Holiday, which came out in 2007. More recently, she has played Nathalie Denard in Ransom (2018) and Claire Andrieux in Eleonore (2020). Apparently, her 1998 Cesar Award for Most Promising Actress for her work in the film Un Frere seemed to hold some truth to it.
Awards
The Science of Sleep went on to win and be nominated for film awards all over the world from 2006 to 2008. The awards won include Best Visual Design (Chlotrudis Award, 2007), Best Artistic Contribution for Production Design (European Film Awards, 2006), Best Independent Film (Golden Trailer Awards, 2007), Best Special Effects (Italian Online Movie Awards, 2007), Audience Award (Russian National Movie Awards, 2007), and the Audience Award (Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival, 2006).
The film has also been nominated for several other awards. Some of these include Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress (Chlotrudis Awards, 2007), Best Foriegn Film (Turkish Film Critics Association Awards, 2007), and the Best European Film (Gopo Awards, Romania, 2008).
While some critics may consider The Science of Sleep to be a B-movie, others will say it is more like a hidden gem. Either way, with its star-filled cast and numerous awards, watching it is a good way to spend your evening. If you love romance and everything to do with dreams, then you are sure to have a great time watching this film.
from Review Blog - Every Movie Has a Lesson https://ift.tt/3Dh4Dw5
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