The Science of Sleep

Fanciful and surreal effort will appeal most to fans of Gondry's previous work. Immature and hyper-imaginative graphic artist Stephane (Garcia Bernal) has just returned to Paris and his mother (Miou-Miou) after growing up in Mexico with his divorced dad. Maybe he's suffering from culture shock and maybe Stephane is more than a little weird but he's certainly more comfortable living in his own fantasies. Stephane chums up with artist neighbor Stephanie (Gainsbourg) but pulls back from the romantic impulses he can't handle, going back into his dream world. Visually fascinating and sometimes funny, but the perpetual parade of dream sequences never pays off.