TIFF 2023: Sleep Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

Taking a premise such as this and diving into the realms of comedy and psychological horror makes for a tall task for any director, much less a first-time feature filmmaker like Jason Yu, who has worked closely in the past with acclaimed director Bong Joon-ho. Sleep is a high concept thriller that revolves around Soo-jin (Jung Yu-mi) and Hyun-su (Lee Sun-kyun), a couple who one night experience an oddity that is both deeply disturbing and unsettling. Frightened, Soo-jin attempts to get the attention of her seemingly sleepwalk-entranced husband. His strange sleep outbursts continue, and soon become more than just words as they begin to threaten the structure and safety of their living space. Soo-jin must then seek to stop these night terrors before they get any worse. 

From the get go, it is clear that the film’s high concept approach and tight corridors will make for a tense experience as Yu executes that tension well. Meanwhile, there are many points where one can’t help but almost want to groan or wince as things play out on the screen. While the film isn’t necessarily gore heavy, it is effective in its use of it to further that intensity. Also, its balance between horror and comedy works quite well. Though it is not abnormal for horror-thrillers to involve a great amount of comedy, it often doesn’t quite work. Here it does, and that is clearly due to the director’s precise vision and razor-sharp filmmaking. 

The novelty and high concept ideas behind Sleep do eventually begin to wear off, and despite the film’s structure, it sort of loses itself in the middle. The film could have benefited from more character development, as there was a missed opportunity to hit the head on what could have been a really interesting dramatic side to the film as well. As it loses steam, it also loses a little bit of that intensity and tension that made its start so strong, and losing that definitely lessens the strength of the final act. 

All in all Sleep is an effective thriller that deploys effective comedy to compliment a strong concept. However, despite its strong premise, the film’s execution did see some issues. Even though Yu really does impress with its overall pacing and shot structure, it’s the writing that falters late. Jung Yu-mi and Lee Sun-kyun both shine and help to carry this film for the most part. Their chemistry is spot on and despite the horror their characters face, they never fail when it comes to reaching for some laughs. Balancing tones well, the result is a solidly entertaining film and an impressive feature debut by writer/director Jason Yu.

*still courtesy of Mongrel Media*

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Brennan Dubé

**ignore the above Instagram link**