ElijahCSkuggs After seeing a freaky avatar of a gigantic slimy lookin baby over-flowing a bathtub I realized, almost immediately, that I needed to see this flick. And not too long after realizing I needed to see this film I got off my bumbum and did what I had to do to see it. And I'm very glad I did.The story revolves around Jeff Daniels character realizing that his wife hasn't come home from work. He begins to worry and calls the police. From this moment, you begin to realize Jeff's character is severely withdrawn from sleep. He's struggling to remember what time of day it is, and he believes he is sleeping but for only moments at a time. It's a mish-mash effect that works pretty damn well. The sleep-depraved Daniels is trying to juggle the disappearance of his wife, the interaction with his daily life and the inability to count sheep, and it's beginning to take a toll.Chasing Sleep is an underrated gem of a flick. It's a slow-burn flick, but it's also very interesting and has amazing direction, music and camera-work. My only problem was that the script, and the delivery of the lines, felt too rushed. Conversations would fly by with not enough hesitation. Even with this minor fault, the acting still held up and the writing was still strong enough to keep you feeling this was a realistic situation. Nevertheless, Chasing Sleep was a very nice surprise and that baby lived up to all it's weird-ass glory. Check it out if you get the chance.

subzerobob This is yet another movie that I picked up from the .99c store. It is good, but it is not up to the level of movies such as "What Lies Beneath" even though it is in the same genre - psychological thriller. In its defense, I would say that I would much rather watch "Chasing Sleep" than "What Lies Beneath." (I have a problem with "major release" films that are specifically targeted towards broad audiences, done through immense advertising and artificially created hypes - only to capitalize on the week minds and weekend box office sales). But I guess one of the best movies, in this genre, that is superior to all of the ones mentioned above, and the one that I would enjoy watching the most, will be "Secret Window." But going back to commenting on "Chasing Sleep." It should be noted that there is a border line of making movies inexpensively, and dirt cheap. And this movie almost crossed it. It shouldn't really cost that much since it is stationed only on a couple of locations. But maybe paying off the actors significantly decremented the balance sheets. I guess what I am trying to say is that there should have been a little bit more money spend on locations and perhaps trying to show some of the action in other means - much like it is done in "Secret Window - where we see the character talking to himself, or to the air, etc. There are a few known names in this movie. However, there is only one actor that is great in this movie and that is Jeff Daniels, everyone else gives mediocre performances. The director has done a fine job with what it is. Particularly there are several very interesting techniques, which he used to build the psychological profile or maybe even the schizophrenic atmosphere. As a matter of fact those techniques are so well done and used, that they could easily end up in movie books. However, at the end of day, I can still see him saying "it is what it is," and retire to bed with a glass of whiskey. The plot is tough, just as you would expect. Just don't get high, thinking it is the only way you could understand it. Or maybe this genre targets that specific purpose? Just like X rated movies target… you know what… I don't think we are supposed to understand it, otherwise we would know everything about the conscious and there will be no more crazy people. Then everything will become boring. In the mean time - if you are bored, pick this up for a little mind puzzle. Don't worry - the IMDb message boards have plenty of discussion boards that will help you to form you own opinion about what happened. And that is - without the worthless need to use drugs. The moral of the story is - stay drug free! And for that (and for the amazing camera/sound techniques) I give it 6 out of 10.

gridoon Wouldn't this be a better world if today's talented thriller-makers knew how to end their films as well as they know how to start them and keep them going? Most of the time you'll be thinking "where has this movie been hiding all these years?", but at the end you'll almost be sorry that you invested the time to watch it in the first place. There is an undeniable mastery in the way Walker directs: first he grounds the film in reality, then he allows it to go on bizarre trips into the surreal, and all the time he moves the camera gracefully through the limited sets. Then comes the "say what?", non-explanatory ending, and it all goes to pieces. (**1/2)

Laura As one who loves "different" movies, such as Memento, I hated Chasing Sleep, especially the way they ended it. I felt that the ending made the movie a total waste of time for me. Also, the crawling finger and large baby were ridiculous and took away from the quality of this psychological thriller. I add it to the long list of "could have been a good movie".