Daïga, une jeune comédienne, a quitté la Lithuanie avec un maigre bagage : sa vieille voiture, deux numéros de téléphone, celui d’un metteur en scène et celui de sa tante, Mina, qui trouve à la loger et à l’employer dans l’hôtel que tient Ninon à Paris. C’est ainsi que Daïga découvre peu à peu que son voisin, Camille, un homosexuel qui se travestit la nuit, est le tueur de vieilles dames dans le 18è arrondissement dont parle quotidiennement la presse. Théo, le frère de Camille, vit une relation très tendue avec sa compagne, Mona, la mère de son petit garçon. Théo voudrait rentrer en Guadeloupe. Mona s’y refuse absolument.


avec
Richard Courcet, Katia Golubeva, Alex Descas, Béatrice Dalle, Line Renaud…

1h46, 33 mm

France is afraid! A « granny killer » is loose in Paris, inciting fear and havoc amongst its residents. Based on the true story of Thierry Paulin who, with his male lover, murdered over twenty elderly women in the eighties, I Can’t Sleep is an eerily atmospheric noir of contemporary urban alienation. A series of characters haunt the nights of Paris. Daiga, an aspiring Lithuanian actress unaware of the newspaper headlines due to a language barrier; Theo, a moody musician and carpenter from Martinique who longs to return to the safety of his homeland with his wife and young son; his brother Camille, a beautiful drag queen who seductively performs at local nightclubs.


Starring
Katerina Golbeva, Richard Courcet, Alex Descas and Beatrice Dalle

1994, France, 110 minutes. in French with English subtitles.

Acclaimed director Claire Denis (Chocolat; No Fear, No Die) navigates through a dozen characters who have little in common except location. Their lives briefly intersect and just as quickly separate. A disturbing portrait of dislocation and arbitrary violence, I Can’t Sleep will challenge your notion of security and « will make you look differently at people on the street » (Amy Taubin, Village Voice).

« Sensational! Definitely one of the year’s best films. A rich and startling noir that manages to evoke Wenders and Jarmusch at the same time as Chabrol and Hitchcock »
– George Brown, Village Voice

« Daring and original! »
– J. Hoberman, Premiere magazine

« One of the best films of the year! »
– Kathleen Murphy, Film Comment

« Claire Denis has become one of the great directors of our time »
– Amy Taubin, Village Voice



FESTIVALS

Official Selection, Cannes Film Festival