J'ai pas sommeil (1994)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Claire Denis

Writer:

Claire Denis (writer)

Release Date:

18 May 1994 (France)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Beautiful Daiga (Katerina Golubeva) has emigrated from Lithuania to Paris and is looking for a place to stay and work...

Plot Keywords:

Paris | Prostitution | Drugs | Gay Interest | Gay Lead Character

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Yekaterina Golubeva	...	Daiga
Richard Courcet	...	Camille
Vincent Dupont	...	Raphael
Laurent Grévill	...	le docteur
Alex Descas	...	Theo
Irina Grjebina	...	Mina
Tolsty	...	Ossip
Line Renaud	...	Ninon
Béatrice Dalle	...	Mona
Sophie Simon	...	Alice
Patrick Grandperret	...	Abel
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Serge Abattucci	...	Detective
Philippe Besson	...	Policeman
Jean-Paul Bonnaire	...	Detective
Simone Bonte	...	Ninon's Mother
Arnaud Carbonnier	...	Neighbor
Antoine Chappey	...	Car Buyer
Jean-Quentin Châtelain	...	Detective
Dani	...	Dressmaker
Denise Dax	...	Karate Class Woman
Solveig Dommartin	...	Blonde Woman
Jean-Marc Emier	...	Babysitter
Serge Esposito	...	Detective
Didier Flamand	...	Le commissaire / Detective
Thierry Flamand	...	Policeman
Muriel Foures	...	Redheaded Woman
Catherine Frot	...	La femme à la bibliothèque
Lionel Goldstein	...	Detective
Manuela Gourary	...	Mona's Mother
Arlette Havet	...	Victim
Sohiab Heshmati	...	Brown-haired Man
Alice Hurtaux	...	Victim
Daniel Isoppo	...	Detective
Philippe Kara-Mohamed	...	Policeman
Gabriel Laferrière	...	Policeman
Hopi Lebel	...	Set Decorator
Francis Lemonnier	...	Cafe Patron
Fabienne Mai	...	Victim
Ira Mandella-Paul	...	Little Harry
Hilton McConnico	...	Doctor's Friend
Jacques Nolot	...	Le spectateur au cinéma
David Sako
Marion Stalens	...	Neighbor
Kamil Tchalaev	...	Sacha
Ysé Tran	...	Comedienne
Danielle van Bercheycke	...	Fleur
Michel Gondoin	...	Extra (uncredited)

Directed by
Claire Denis

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Claire Denis		writer

Produced by
Bruno Pésery	....	producer
Fabienne Vonier	....	associate producer
Ruth Waldburger	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Jean-Louis Murat
John Pattison

Cinematography by
Agnès Godard

Film Editing by
Nelly Quettier

Casting by
Nalini de Rozario
Frédérique Moidon

Production Design by
Arnaud de Moleron
Thierry Flamand

Costume Design by
Claire Fraisse

Makeup Department
Laurent Cazeau	....	hair stylist
Anne-Marie Demeur	....	makeup artist
Danièle Vuarin	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Didier Carrel	....	production manager
Catherine Chouridis	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Olivier Coutard	....	second assistant director
Nils Hoffet	....	assistant director
Gabriel Laferrière	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Vincent Arnardi	....	sound re-recording mixer
Thierry Lebon	....	sound
Santiago Thévenet	....	assistant sound editor
Emmanuel Ughetto	....	boom operator
Jean-Louis Ughetto	....	sound

Other crew
Patrick Boshart	....	location scout
Zoe Zurstrassen	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Agora Films S.A.
• Arena Films
• France 3 Cinéma
• Les Films de Mindif
• M6 Films
• Orsans
• Pyramide Productions
• Vega Film

Distributors

• Cinemagi (Sweden) (video)
• Mongrel Media (Canada)
• New Yorker Films (1995) (USA) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

I Can't Sleep
I'm Not Sleepy

Runtime:

France:110 min | Sweden:112 min

Country:

France | Switzerland

Language:

French | Russian | English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Sweden:15 | France:-12

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Company:

Agora Films S.A.

Trivia:

The character of Camille, the old women's killer, was inspired by Thierry Paulin.

let me explain

This film is a fictional portrayal based on the true story of Thierry Paulin, who with the help of his lover murdered twenty or so elderly women in the Montmartre area of Paris, during the eighties. He was known as the "granny killer." What I think confused the viewer who commented before me was the following: The United States has created a crime genre in which the detectives are heroes and the murderers are detestable yet mysterious. In a way, the pleasure in these films comes from watching the murderer act out our unconscious aggressions without our having to admit any identification with him. Claire Denis tried for a truer, more sociological portrait of the situation. She attempted to show the murderer's daily life and interactions with his community in a fashion that proved that, in some ways, he was no different than any other human being. There are no heroes or villains in this film, just a group of immigrants interwoven by the forces of urban life, and one of them happens to be a murderer. The film is a demystification of the "noir" genre. Since people are so used to seeing crime portrayed according to the usual formula, this film can be confusing at first glance. But the achievement of this film is monumental because it manages to draw us into the intimate life of a murderer without hyperbole and without demonizing him. It abandons the sensationalism created by the media to bring us face to face with a real situation.