The Perfect Sleep (2008)

38% of critics liked it
(13 reviews)
33% of users liked it
(13,975 ratings)

Anton Pardoe, Roselyn Sanchez, and Patrick Bauchau star in this nightmarish film noir about a tortured soul who returns to the city he vowed to leave behind in order to save the woman he knows he can never have. He was a ruthless killer whose disregard for his own life and devotion to the… More Anton Pardoe, Roselyn Sanchez, and Patrick Bauchau star in this nightmarish film noir about a tortured soul who returns to the city he vowed to leave behind in order to save the woman he knows he can never have. He was a ruthless killer whose disregard for his own life and devotion to the luminescent beauty Porphyria earned him the nickname "The Mad Monk" by his fellow assassins. But that was ten years ago, before he decided to make a break from his violent past. Now Porphyria is in danger, and the only man who can help her is the man who intended to disappear forever. There are men in this city who have been awaiting his return since the day he left, men who would relish the opportunity to watch him die slowly. At the forefront of this diabolical group is the formidable villain named Nikolai -- a man who not only raised the so-called Mad Monk, but may be his biological father as well. Now, as the man with no name returns to the city that never forgives, the guns are drawn and the mystery deepens. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 46 min.
Directed By: Jeremy Alter
Written By: Anton Pardoe
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure

In Theaters: Feb 8, 2008 Wide
On DVD: Jun 16, 2009
Studio: Cinema Epoch

Critic Reviews

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
There are shadows on top of shadows. It's the film noir universe, all right. What does the title refer to? Perhaps to what you will enjoy during the film.
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
Easy on the eyes but brutal on the ears, The Perfect Sleep fuses Shakespearean tragedy and noir iconography into a strange, lovely, leaden ball of confusion.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
The disjointed story is no more comprehensible than The Big Sleep. Though Alter is no Howard Hawks and Pardoe and Sanchez are no Bogie and Bacall, this movie looks great. You won't nap through The Perfect Sleep.
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times
Style significantly trumps substance in The Perfect Sleep, a good-looking but convoluted homage to film noir, Russian literature and Shakespearean tragedy, among a few too many other things.
Andrew Barker, Variety
Unfortunately, Alter's often inventive work is kneecapped by a deliriously nonsensical script, which misses the mark as both over-the-top parody and straight-faced homage, and could have been intended as either.
Anton Bitel, Eye for Film
might not strictly be novel, or original, or even entertaining - but it cuts to something quintessential about cinema, as if to say: with visuals like these, what does it matter?
Avi Offer, NYC Movie Guru
Well-directed with exquisite visuals, but suffers from an often dull, convoluted and confusing plot as well as too much style over substance.
Prairie Miller, NewsBlaze
Nothing makes much sense in this ridiculously high minded narrative, but the emptiness is brimming with intensity and attitude, along with some inspired night vision footage and dialogue delivered as over the top self-serious soundbites.
Mark Holcomb, Time Out New York
Alter's film is a rare pleasure.
Henry Stewart, Slant Magazine
The Perfect Sleep is an empty homage to a bygone genre.
Scott Weinberg, Cinematical
An undeniably odd mixture of 80% noir, 15% action, and 5% random homage. I dug it.
Lance Goldenberg, L.A. Weekly
An ungainly fusion of dutiful homage and snarky send-up.
Pete Hammond, Boxoffice Magazine
The well-chosen supporting cast also deliver with especially sharp turns from Sanchez, Bauchau and Amendola who act this script as if it were Shakespeare.