X
- 1992
- R
- Fine Line Features
- 1 h 43 m
- 1992
- R
- Fine Line Features
- 1 h 43 m
Summary A drug dealer reconsiders his profession when his boss plans to go straight and an old flame reappears.
Directed By: Paul Schrader
Written By: Paul Schrader
- 1992
- R
- Fine Line Features
- 1 h 43 m
- 1992
- R
- Fine Line Features
- 1 h 43 m
Light Sleeper
70
6.8
Where to Watch
Summary A drug dealer reconsiders his profession when his boss plans to go straight and an old flame reappears.
Directed By: Paul Schrader
Written By: Paul Schrader
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
70
77% Positive
17 Reviews
17 Reviews
23% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
70
77% Positive
17 Reviews
17 Reviews
23% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
I think what I like best about Light Sleeper -- more than Dafoe's peculiar magic or Schrader's wise, sympathetic writing -- is the fact that it gives you so much to chew on. So many contemporary films seem to evaporate as soon as you walk out of the theater. Light Sleeper resonates. [04 Sep 1992, p.C1]
This doesn't have the high style that made Taxi Driver or American Gigolo instant cultural icons - although Schrader shows more than a few traces of Scorsese as his camera creeps- perhaps because it's concerned with a chilly 90s that looks back with a sort of nostalgia on the cocaine-fuelled craziness of earlier years. But it does develop powerfully the themes of Schrader's earlier work and will not disappoint his fans.
For all of Schrader's capacity for spectacular self-laceration and spiritual agony, Light Sleeper finds him able for the first time to express a certain peacefulness, and the effect is delicate and discreet.
Schrader seems to have found his way. In Light Sleeper, he attains a new, fluid emotionalism. The movie is a small but absorbing mood piece, a canny insider’s view of the life of a Manhattan drug dealer.
Paul Schrader has created a pointed companion piece to his earlier portraits of lonely outcasts (Taxi Driver, American Gigolo). Contemplative and violent by turns, this quasi-thriller about a long-time drug dealer leaving the business has a great deal to recommend it but could have been significantly better had Schrader done some fresh plotting and not relied on his standby gunplay to resolve issues.
Bolstered by a solid premise, this film starts out impressively enough - it looks to be a worthy character study. But it soon stops dead, wheels spinning badly, and then, hungry for momentum, lurches off in a completely cockeyed direction. [16 Oct 1992]
At its best, Light Sleeper is merely theoretical. Most of the time, though, it is artificial and laughably unbelievable. Even the dark, gritty Manhattan locations don't add authenticity.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 4 User Ratings
6.8
75% Positive
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 4 User Ratings
6.8
75% Positive
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Production Company
Carolco Pictures,
Grain of Sand Productions,
Live Entertainment,
Seven Arts Productions
Release Date Jan 1, 1992
Duration 1 h 43 m
Rating R
Tagline A story about the discovery of the spirit, the Lure of Decadence, and the Chance for Escape. [Australia theatrical]
Awards
Film Independent Spirit Awards
• 2 Nominations
Sant Jordi Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Berlin International Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
