The Science of Sleep is a frantic and funny diversion, but it pales and tires before its time is up. It doesn’t know the meaning of enough.
Comment
09/18/06
The Science of Sleep (2006)
69
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:152
Fresh:105
Rotten:47
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: Lovely and diffuse, Sleep isn't as immediately absorbing as Gondry's previous work, but its messy beauty is its own reward.
Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $4,572,038
Synopsis: For his first non-documentary film after 2004's ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, French writer/director Michel Gondry applies his highly inventive cinematic vision to THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP.... [More]
Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Miou-Miou, Alain Chabat
Director: Michel Gondry
Reviews for The Science of Sleep
Top CriticA richly imaginative and enchantingly playful work of onscreen art, The Science of Sleep is not so much a straightforward narrative as it is a pastiche of fanciful reveries, brightly-colored visuals and childlike innocence personified.
09/14/06
Kind of all over the place and self-indulgent, but that's what's so great about it. When's the last time you saw a movie that was truly unpredictable?
09/13/06
Even though the visual fireworks of Gondry's mind keep you attentive, his clumsy stutterings about love and honesty are painfully underdeveloped.
09/11/06
The flying sequences, though extremely lo-tech, succeed in stirring that feeling of flight, stirring a few stomach butterflies.
09/11/06
Gondry's hallucinatory brilliance holds you in thrall.
09/07/06
The Science of Sleep is probably not a film for everyone, but in a perfect world where dreamers and artists were celebrated, it would be.
09/05/06
Gainsbourg has anti-film presence. Why is she in movies hiding from the camera and not wearing makeup or combing her hair?
08/24/06
As weird and playful as Eternal Sunshine, but not as poetic, romantic or engaging, this structurally messy and visualy busy film is a reflection of Gondry's unbridled and undisciplined imagination--it's the first film based on his own script.
08/09/06
There's no question about it-the mind of Michel Gondry is a weird, wonderful place.
07/13/06
The difference between Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep is the difference between a good pop song and a great punk record.
06/22/06
Every element of the set design, cinematography, dialogue and sound blurs the line between realism and fantasy.
03/04/06
The hyperactive juvenile whimsy and the stoner dream theories are out of control -- and fascinatingly close to pathology.
01/31/06
The Science of Sleep truly has to be seen to be believed.
01/31/06
It's a textural mindblower and a lot of fun.
01/26/06
Like Eternal Sunshine and Gilliam's Brazil, it demands to be seen more than once and is impossible to sum up in one review.
01/24/06
A whimsical, irrepressibly creative and playfully childlike confection.
01/23/06
Top CriticLatest News for The Science of Sleep
February 21, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Vantage Point Aims For #1 Debut
A terrorist attack is played out through multiple perspectives in the high-octane political thriller Vantage Point which leads the four-pack of new openers which also includes... More...
January 10, 2007:
Golden Tomato Awards: "Casino Royale," "The Queen" Best-Reviewed of 2006
The 8th Annual Golden Tomato Awards were announced today, and "Casino Royale" and "The Queen" are the best reviewed wide and limited releases, respectively.... More...
October 09, 2006:
Box Office Wrapup: Leo and Matt Face Off at #1 with The Departed
Martin Scorsese scored the best opening of his career, and his first number one film in fifteen years, with the star-studded gangster thriller "The Departed," which... More...
October 02, 2006:
Box Office Wrapup: Open Season Shoots Up #1 Opening
Ashton Kutcher ambushed the top two spots at the North American box office this weekend playing an animated mule and a Coast Guard rookie in Open Season and The Guardian,... More...
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Fresh Links
Featured
Dressing Wonderland 
Tim Burton's costume designer talks to Movieline about her long collaboration with the filmmaker and Johnny Depp.
Wes Anderson on Fox
The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox
Win Glee DVDs
We've got 20 copies of the hit TV series' Pilot Episode to giveaway.
Win tickets to Cold Souls
Double passes up for grabs to the new comedy starring Paul Giamatti.
Follow Rotten Tomatoes on Twitter
Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Competitions
Win Star Wars prizes
Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser
Win the entire 007 collection
Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.
Win Fight Club Special Editions and more
We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection
IGN RSS Feeds