Mientras duermes (2011)

You wake day after day to the comfort and security of your home. But how safe is it really?

Director:

Jaume Balagueró

Writer:

Alberto Marini (screenplay)

Stars:

Luis Tosar, Marta Etura, Alberto San Juan

9 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Luis Tosar	...	César
Marta Etura	...	Clara
Alberto San Juan	...	Marcos
Petra Martínez	...	Sra. Verónica
Iris Almeida	...	Úrsula (as Iris Almeida Molina)
Carlos Lasarte	...	Vecino 4ºB
Amparo Fernández	...	Mujer de la limpieza
Roger Morilla	...	Joven de la limpieza
Pep Tosar	...	Padre de Úrsula
Margarita Roset	...	Madre de César
Ruben Ametllé	...	Trabajador Oficina 1
Manel Dueso	...	Comisario (as Manuel Dueso)
Tony Corvillo	...	Policía 1
Ricard Sadurní	...	Policía 2
Xavier Pujolràs	...	Policía 3

Storyline

Apartment concierge Cesar (Luis Tosar) is a miserable person who believes he was born without the ability to be happy. As a result, he decides his mission is to make life hell for everyone around him. A majority of the tenants are easy to agitate, but Clara (Marta Etura) proves to be harder than the most. So Cesar goes to creepy extremes to make this young woman mentally break down. Things get even more complicated in this twisted relationship when her boyfriend, Marcos (Alberto San Juan), shows up.

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Plot Keywords:

concierge | building | dog | apartment | evil child | 

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Taglines:

Don't let the bedbugs bite

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Mientras Duermes" is the name of the television program for which the journalist "Ángela" works, on the film "REC" by director Jaume Balagueró.

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Goofs

Cesar uses Chloroform on Clara using a cloth, several times. She is rendered unconscious in seconds, yet when Cesar spills it straight on his face he is able to stagger around the apartment and even make it to the bathtub.

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Quotes

César: Happy... That's exactly my problem. That I can't be happy. I never have been. Not even when good things happen to me. You can't imagine what it means to wake up every day with no motivation. The effort it takes me to find a reason, just one, not to let it all go to Hell. And believe me, I give it my best shot. My very best. Every day of my life...

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Connections

Referenced in Estrenos Críticos: Mientras Duermes, Contagio, Sin Salida (2011)

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Soundtracks

Smile
Written by Thomas Fletcher

User Reviews

Good and unsettling Spanish thriller by expert filmmaker Jaume Balaguero

¨Sleep Tight¨ is both an intense , intriguing and an exciting portrait of subdued madness . ¨Mientras Duermes¨ (the official English title is Sleep tight , but the correct translation is "while you sleep", which to me is far more creepy) lives up to Jaume Balaguero's reputation . This interesting film deals with Cesar (Luis Tosar) , a lone man being incapable of happiness . The residents of the building where Cesar works as a concierge are not aware of the overtime he has been putting in . Apparently, he is at their service both day and night . Before the sun even has a chance to get its morning coffee , César is climbing out of bed , the sympathetic Clara (Marta Etura) still sleeping deeply beside him . When we meet César, he is lying in bed next to the gorgeous girl . He says as much in Sleep's opening voice-over as he stands at a rooftop's edge . He's a sad doorman at an upper crust apartment complex , but , despite he cannot be happy , Cesar goes about his work with dignified class . The adorable Clara is César's polar opposite , she is full of happiness . She is a likable tenant in the apartment building and her gladness is insistent and contagious . But when her boyfriend (Alberto San Juan) arrives in the building the events go wrong .

While Balaguero earlier films focused more on family , social situations , religion and weird creatures , his latest introduces the audience to the worst monster : the human being . This suspenseful movie was produced by the successful Catalan producers Julio and Carlos Fernandez from Fantastic factory ; it displays relentless thriller , intrigue , shocks , hard-edged drama , plot twists , creepy images and some gore when crime takes place . Director Jaume Balagueró (Rec, Rec 2, Fragiles , Darkness , The nameless) uses that uneasy non-knowledge for both horror and introducing brief touches of black humor . ¨Sleep Tight¨ is a motion picture that balances precariously over the dark comedy , ¨Psycho¨' Hitchockian intrigue , Michael Haneke's ¨Funny games¨ invasion genre bins and Michael Powell's ¨Peeping Tom¨ style . The overall result is chilling proof that Balagueró can take us back into an apartment building while delivering a completely different scare . Extraordinary performance by Luis Tosar , he plays a real tour-de-force in one of his best acting of his important career as a solitary and unhappy psychopath and an attractive , enjoyable Marta Etura , both of whom are a happy couple in real life . The picture packs a thrilling and intriguing musical score by Lucas Vidal . Furthermore , a colorful and appropriate cinematography by Pablo Rosso , Balaguero's usual .

'Sleep Tight' demonstrates director Balagueró's versatility , resulting to be a sublime thriller that every genre buff should be excited for . Rating : Good , better than average . The movie will appeal to thriller and suspense fans .

Details

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

14 October 2011 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Mientras duermes

Filming Locations:

Parc audiovisual de Catalunya, Terrassa, Catalonia, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,791,590

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+ España, Castelao Producciones, Coser y Cantar

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min 92 min (DVD film)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1