Girl Asleep (2015)

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Good movie but grossly overrated

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Girl Asleep is a imaginative take on the wild ride that is adolescence. This tale is told from the perspective of Greta, an awkward Australian teen who moves to a new house & school on the precipice of her 15th birthday. Having moved to a new city around the same time in my life, I definitely identified with Greta's plight--the difficulties of making new friends in a place where it seems everyone knows each other, all while dealing with hormones, mean girls & overbearing parents. The family dynamics between Greta, her kooky parents (a dad who loves short-shorts & potty humor, a mom who matches her outfits to the meals she makes & works out on a stationary bike in wedge heels) and a surly, world-wise older sister, make for plenty of hilarious moments. Originally a stage play, written by Matthew Whittet (who also adapted the screenplay & plays Greta's father), this film takes place in the 1970s, with a groovy soundtrack to match (including SYLVESTER!). The color palette is eye-catching, and found somewhere in the center of a venn diagram joining Napoleon Dynamite & any Wes Anderson flick. The subtitles for the passing of time (& even the opening title) are cleverly interwoven into the scenes--appearing on a basketball or the growth chart on a bedroom door. I just realized that if I sat here & told you all the fun, quirky details in this movie, we could be here for hours. . . so I will move on from that. For the first 45 minutes of this movie, non-stop laughter filled the theater, at times making it hard to hear the dialog. We are all far enough removed from this age that we can easily laugh about the parts that made adolescence traumatic at the time. (To preface Chaplin &/or Keaton, "Tragedy is a close-up. Comedy, a long-shot".) When her parents throw her a birthday party (without her blessing), a trio of mean girls show up with a "present" for Greta in the form of a song called "You've Got No Tits" (which I've had stuck in my head since last night). With that, Greta retreats to her room, and the dream sequence begins (hence, the title). The heroine's quest for a music box that ensues is a perfect allegory for navigating the space between childhood & womanhood. This was the first foray into film for director Rosemary Myers & I look forward to seeing more of her work on the big screen.

This is a short Aussie film, kind of inspired by 'Alice in Wonderland', but originally based on the stage play of the same name. A teen comedy set in the 70s and revolved around a birthday party. So, newly moved into the town, Greta, finds hard to make friends, except a boy. Entering 15th, her family wants to throw a big birthday party inviting her new schoolmates, against her will. On the occasion, something goes wrong and the next minute, she's in a strange place with strange events and people. Her adventure begins to return home and the party she had left behind in halfway which revealed in the rest of the film.I thought it was a children's and family film, but some of the references like relating to sex was a bold move. Though nothing was serious, if you are not considering the matter to the deep. It was just like any teen film, a simple topic. Creatively enough, but not impressive enough film. Those 70s were the plus point, especially for a comedy, that timeline is always so funny.Decent performances and filmmaking, should have been improvised the screenplay. But my guess is the budget. It is a small cost film, but if they had better financing, surely they would have pulled it off so much better than this. Now it is an average coming-of-age comedy- fantasy, but worth a watch if you are not forcing yourself into it.5/10

"Girl Asleep" (2015 release from Australia; 77 min.) brings the story of Greta, who is almost 15 yrs. old. As the movie opens, we are informed that it is "First Day, New School" and we see Greta trying to fit in. She is approached by geeky Elliot, who takes an immediate liking to her. After school, we get to know Greta's family (her goofy dd, her controlling mom, and her rebellious older sister). When mom decides that Greta should have a big birthday party, Greta is mortified at first, but then gives in. The day of the birthday party arrives... To tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: this movie is unlike anything that I have seen in a long time. It's both a coming of age movie as it is a fantasy movie. How so? Because midway into the movie, the movie takes a left, then a right, and then another left and ends up going back-and-forth between the birthday party and Greta's dreams when she nods off during the party. Doesn't make sense to you? No worries, mate! Just go with the flow. There is a long scene during the party where Sylvester's "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" blasts away and the entire group is dancing in unison to the song. Perfect! (The movie is set sometime in the 70s, so this fits in nicely). There are some wonderful performances from this no-start cast, notably Bethany Whitmore in the role of Greta. I noticed in the end credits that the movie is based on a theater play. I can't even imagine what that must've been like, but the movie certainly didn't feel like a staged play. Bottom line: the movie rolls by in no time, and I enjoyed it quite a bit."Girl Asleep" opened this weekend without any pre-release fanfare or advertising at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. I really didn't know anything about the movie, and simply took a flyer on it. So glad I did. The Friday evening screening where I saw this at was attended so-so, which didn't surprise me, given the lack of marketing or buzz around this film. A darn shame, if you ask me. Sometimes it's nice to be surprised with a movie the likes of which you don't get to see very often. If you are in the mood for something very different that is charming, quirky and funny, I'd readily suggest you seek out this movie, be it in the theater, on Amazon Instant Video, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray. "Girl Asleep" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Girl Asleep starts as a stylish coming of age "dramedy" about a misfit teenage girl named Greta who is bullied by three girls at school. Befriended by fellow misfit Elliot, the two form a sweet bond early in Act I where the audience is also introduced to Greta's colorful family which includes a quirky mom, a corny joke-telling dad and an apathetic older sister. Once the 2nd Act gets started, the story starts to gradually deviate and by the time Act III comes around, there's almost a complete shift in mood and genre. What was a light and fun narrative had become this kind of darkly juvenile fantasy adventure; it's disruptive and actually really strange.