TOO MUCH SLEEP / (2001) *** (out of four)
By Blake French:
It's one thing for a movie to depend on metaphors to make its point, but it's another for a movie to depend on metaphors when it has no point. "Too Much Sleep," the directing debut of Asian American filmmaker David Maquiling, propels into a modern tale of misfits, manhood, culture, and finding a stolen gun. The gun serves as a metaphor for a character's searching for manhood, while encountering a bunch of misfits and awakening to the achievements of current culture. There is a story here, and it incorporates a sly, sarcastic sense of humor, but the message Maquiling tries to get across is never really clear. "Too Much Sleep" is actually unsuccessful in more ways than one, but its dark, quirky humor, consistent narrative, and weirdly involving storyline keeps the overall production afloat-even if its target motif is undigested and misunderstood.
The movie's central character, named Jack Crawford (Marc Palmieri), is 24-years-old and lives in an customary, small suburb town. He works nights as a security guard and spends his sleepy days living home with his nagging mother. While on a bus one sunny afternoon, Jack's gun is stolen. The gun, inherited from his father, is unregistered, so he cannot go to the police for assistance. He goes to the town's "know-it all," Eddie (Pasquale Gaeta), who brags about his immoral doings, spews out almost continuous profanity, and boasts about his job as a deputy county clerk for nearly twenty years. He persuades Jack to search out suspects on his own, which leads him to encounters with a beautiful young woman, an annoying older woman, and even a bouncer in a gay bar.
Audiences Can connect to Jack because he is the only "normal" character out of the many present in the film. Although never really absorbing, Jack's story is never boring or bland, even though he himself is both boring and bland. It is what he experiences that interests us, and I am going out on a limb by recommending the picture on that merit. Many people will get nothing but a good nap out of this picture. I liked it because of the smartness and spontaneity of the dialogue and situations, the consistent narrative, and an unbiased point of view.
Many will complain that the characters have zero of concern to say or do, or that the movie lacks a conclusive resolution. I agree with those ideas, and I will be the first to admit "Too Much Sleep" is far from greatness. But there is a kind of novelty here that I found quirky and amusing. In its own way, the film's unusual sense of humor is also effective. It's a close call here, but I recommend the production to fans of independent, low-budget film making and to people who want a break from brainless violence and senseless Hollywood hype.
