Sleeper (1973)

Director:

Woody Allen

Writers:

Woody Allen (written by) and
Marshall Brickman (written by)

Release Date:

17 December 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A love story about two people who hate each other. 200 years in the future.

Plot:

A nerdish store owner is revived out of cryostasis into a future world to fight an oppressive government.

Plot Keywords:

Directed By Star | Giant Fruit | Mud Mask | Abduction | Gagged And Bound

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Woody Allen	...	Miles Monroe
Diane Keaton	...	Luna Schlosser
John Beck	...	Erno Windt
Mary Gregory	...	Dr. Melik
Don Keefer	...	Dr. Tryon
John McLiam	...	Dr. Aragon
Bartlett Robinson	...	Dr. Orva
Chris Forbes	...	Rainer Krebs
Mews Small	...	Dr. Nero (as Marya Small)
Peter Hobbs	...	Dr. Dean
Susan Miller	...	Ellen Pogrebin
Lou Picetti	...	M.C.
Jessica Rains	...	Woman in the mirror
Brian Avery	...	Herald Cohen
Spencer Milligan	...	Jeb Hrmthmg

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Yiddish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-11 (new rating: 2001) | Brazil:12 | Netherlands:6 | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Iceland:Unrated | Ireland:12 | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:16 (nf) | Singapore:PG | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

Boulder, Colorado, USA

Company:

Rollins-Joffe Productions

Trivia:

According to editor Ralph Rosenblum, Woody Allen filmed and then deleted a fantasy sequence in which Miles plays a game of chess with life-sized chess pieces, and is then sentenced to death by the chess pieces after he loses the game.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Woody is stuck in a tree, he is wearing blue jeans, but both before and after that, his pants are black.

Quotes:

Luna Schlosser: You have to give yourself up! They won't hurt you. They'll re-structure your brain.
Miles Monroe: Hey, nobody touches my brain; they may drop it. Then I'll talk like Mr. Lepidus who got hit by lightning.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Just Shoot Me!: My Dinner with Woody (#2.6)" (1997)

A classic example of surreal `early Woody'

A health food store owner is cryogenically frozen and brought back in the year 2174 by anti-government radicals in order to assist them in their attempts to overthrow their oppressive government. With the help of his guide Luna Schlosser he finds that the world has changed significantly from the one he once knew.

When one speaks of Woody Allen films, it is common to talk of his `early, funnier films' and his later serious work (although that is beginning to change back recently). Love and Death falls easily into the period of `early funnier films'. The plot here is very loose and is simply an excuse of a series of observations, one liners and set pieces. The comedy is a wonderful mix - there is plenty of slapstick, physical comedy. This is complimented by a huge amount of one liners and witty monologues and a great banana skin joke!

Again Allen is great in his standup persona and Keaton is comfortable and familiar despite not having a great character. The imagination of the script gives plenty of room for Allen's surreal humour - the orgasmatronic booths are good and the robot scene allows him to pay a slight homage to Keaton.

Overall this is yet another example of an `early, funnier' Woody Allen film. It is an excellent comedy on so many levels.