Parasomnia (2008)

A horror-thriller centered on a woman (Wilson) suffering from a medical condition that causes her to sleep her life away, waking briefly on rare occasions.

Director:

William Malone

Writer:

William Malone

Stars:

Dylan Purcell, Patrick Kilpatrick, Jeffrey Combs

Cast

Credited cast:
Dylan Purcell	...	Danny Sloan
Patrick Kilpatrick	...	Byron Volpe
Jeffrey Combs	...	Detective Garrett
Cherilyn Wilson	...	Laura Baxter
Timothy Bottoms	...	Dr. Corso
Janet Tracy Keijser	...	Sara
Kathryn Leigh Scott	...	Nurse Evans
Brennan Bailey	...	Danny - Age 8
Dov Tiefenbach	...	Billy
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Alison Brie	...	Darcy
Katherine Carlsberg	...	Miranda
Serah D'Laine	...	Pretty Young Nurse (as Sarah Laine)
Madison Davenport	...	Young Laura
Jeff Doucette	...	Detective Conroy
Mekita Faiye	...	Nurse / receptionist

Storyline

In "Parasomnia," a stylish horror/thriller from director William Malone ("House on Haunted Hill," "Masters of Horror,") Laura Baxter is a young woman, literally a "sleeping beauty," who suffers from a medical condition called "parasomnia." A childhood accident victim, she is actually sleeping her life away, awakening briefly on rare occasions. Art student Danny Sloan falls in love with her, unaware that her hospital neighbor, a terrifying mass murderer and mesmerist named Byron Volpe has other, more sinister plans. Sloan helps Laura escape from her hospital prison only to discover that Volpe is about to enter her dreams.

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Plot Keywords:

blood | female nudity | self mutilation | massacre | female killer | 

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Genres:

Horror | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong bloody violence, language and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 October 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Das Dornröschen-Massaker

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Luminous Processes, Rising Storm Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 103 min (European Film Market)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Unknown by some is the fact that this film is not one of the big studio films that the director is noted for, but actually a personal project. Director William Malone (House on Haunted Hill) wrote this while he was working on his Masters of Horror episode "Fair-Haired Child". He was so taken with the concept that he decided to just make it, rather than taking the usual studio route. He apparently broke the first rule of film-making which is "Never finance your own movies." One of his friends and he refinanced their houses to fund the project. Interestingly, there is another connection to his MOH episode in that one of the creatures in the film is an unused design from that show. Malone actually built the creature himself for the film. Also, Malone's High School Garage Band, The Plagues, can be heard on the soundtrack, along with other garage bands from the 1960's.

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Goofs

While Danny is searching for information on Volpe, his screen clearly shows that he is browsing local files rather than internet pages.

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Quotes

Billy: Pretty things always have a tragic end. It's one of the laws of nature and only serves to make them more beautiful.

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Crazy Credits

This film is dedicated to Mom and Dad

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Connections

References Masters of Horror (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Entrance of the Montagues and Capulets"
(uncredited)
from the ballet music to "Romeo and Juliet"
Written by Sergei Prokofiev

User Reviews

Parasomnia (2008)

Quite an interesting movie! I didn't expected to be that good to be honest. That is why it was a pleasant surprise. The only two really negative things that I found are: firstly somewhere in the middle it seemed to be stretched a little bit that it somehow loses its point (not that bad though, it gets right back into place) and secondly I was hopping to see more of Sean Young. More than her grand exit in the beginning of the movie! If you have Sean Young I think that you should use her a little bit more, not just for a few minutes! At least I got to see a lot of Jeffrey Combs, who is really great, in a role where he doesn't play someone crazy! Patrick Kilpatrick was great too. He gave me the Goosebumps! This movie was really amazing! Like a crazy painting or something an artist would have dreamed! Tick tick and the nightmare begins… Tick tick dreams and reality are mixed with one another. Dreams made of crystals and a fragile reality. What would you choose if you could? In the middle of these two worlds is a girl suffering from a sleeping disorder. What will she do? Tick tick time is passing by. A crazy movie which deserves a chance, so give it a try. I think that most of you will like this one. It is a really great thriller.