Here's one of the top candidates for the yearly "soon to be remade by Hollywood" foreign film that is darkly comic/straight up freaky horror that is South Korean film Sleep.
The debut film of director Jason Yu, who here announces himself as a director to watch after some assistant directional duties on hit Netflix offering Okja, Sleep is a unique blend of lots of different elements that eventuate into a very unpredictable film, that while rough around the edges in parts, combine into an engaging film that gets better as it goes.
Following the lives of Jung Yu-mi's Soo-jin and Lee Sun-kyun's Hyun-su, a happy couple who start to find their cosy lives interrupted by Hyun-su's unusual sleep habits that begin to exhibit increasingly odd and dangerous incidents, Sleep at first appears to be a relatively straightforward experience but as is usually the case with the top-class of Korean cinema, nothing in Sleep is really as it seems as it delves further and further into some loaded territories.
Neatly paced out across a brisk and baggage free 90 minute running time, Yu wastes little of his screen-time on unnecessary elements as his film is divided into three fairly distinct chapters that offer up a lesson in tonal shifts and narrative pivots that many Hollywood films could take lessons from as we are constantly left wondering as to exactly where the bizarre experiences of Soo-jin and Hyun-su are going to take us.
Well performed by its leading duo, who are tasked with carrying much of Sleep's runtime on their shoulders, Sleep may not ever achieve the scaling of grand heights that other Korean films like The Handmaiden, Parasite, Train to Busan or I Saw the Devil achieved in their various ways but there's no doubt that many will find great joy in being able to partake in another fine example of foreign filmmaking that shows the Hollywood creative forces how things can be done, often on budgets equivalent to catering allotments in big studio productions.
Culminating with one of the most unexpected and entertaining final acts you're likely to see this year, Sleep is a an experience best enjoyed before the remake comes along and squanders what was an already solid all-round package.
Final Say -
Earmarking debut director Jason Yu as a talent to watch, Sleep may not be an instant classic but this wild genre mashing ride provides a plethora of enjoyable elements that should ensure a worthwhile viewing experience for all those that seek it out.
3 1/2 frozen pupsicles out of 5
Jordan and Eddie (The Movie Guys)
The debut film of director Jason Yu, who here announces himself as a director to watch after some assistant directional duties on hit Netflix offering Okja, Sleep is a unique blend of lots of different elements that eventuate into a very unpredictable film, that while rough around the edges in parts, combine into an engaging film that gets better as it goes.
Following the lives of Jung Yu-mi's Soo-jin and Lee Sun-kyun's Hyun-su, a happy couple who start to find their cosy lives interrupted by Hyun-su's unusual sleep habits that begin to exhibit increasingly odd and dangerous incidents, Sleep at first appears to be a relatively straightforward experience but as is usually the case with the top-class of Korean cinema, nothing in Sleep is really as it seems as it delves further and further into some loaded territories.
Neatly paced out across a brisk and baggage free 90 minute running time, Yu wastes little of his screen-time on unnecessary elements as his film is divided into three fairly distinct chapters that offer up a lesson in tonal shifts and narrative pivots that many Hollywood films could take lessons from as we are constantly left wondering as to exactly where the bizarre experiences of Soo-jin and Hyun-su are going to take us.
Well performed by its leading duo, who are tasked with carrying much of Sleep's runtime on their shoulders, Sleep may not ever achieve the scaling of grand heights that other Korean films like The Handmaiden, Parasite, Train to Busan or I Saw the Devil achieved in their various ways but there's no doubt that many will find great joy in being able to partake in another fine example of foreign filmmaking that shows the Hollywood creative forces how things can be done, often on budgets equivalent to catering allotments in big studio productions.
Culminating with one of the most unexpected and entertaining final acts you're likely to see this year, Sleep is a an experience best enjoyed before the remake comes along and squanders what was an already solid all-round package.
Final Say -
Earmarking debut director Jason Yu as a talent to watch, Sleep may not be an instant classic but this wild genre mashing ride provides a plethora of enjoyable elements that should ensure a worthwhile viewing experience for all those that seek it out.
3 1/2 frozen pupsicles out of 5
Jordan and Eddie (The Movie Guys)