Girl AsleepTransitioning from a child to a teenager can be surreal and even absurd. Girl Asleep is a coming of age comedy about a quiet fourteen-year-old girl named Greta (Bethany Whitmore), who struggles to find emotional purchase as she approaches her fifteenth birthday. She is befriended by the chipper yet awkward Elliott (Harrison Feldman), but even his camaraderie isn't enough to diffuse the tension that ratchets up in her young mind when her parents conclude that the best way to pry Greta out of her presumed shell is to throw her a birthday party. They invite her new schoolmates and call forth that terrible parental maxim that rings out like a death knell--it's for her own good.
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Despite a relatively short running time of seventy-seven minutes, Girl Asleep feels like two movies played back to back, resulting from a sudden jolt that pulls Greta from her waking life and into a dreamscape half way through. The first half of the film has a deliberately staged aesthetic, and has been likened to the fable-esque films of Wes Anderson or Napoleon Dynamite; this shouldn't be surprising, since Girl Asleep was adapted from a stage play. Set in 1970s Australia, the film is drenched in the look of the period, from colorful fashions and hairstyles to the decor of Greta's home. Greta--and all of the students at her school--wear uniforms composed of yellow tops with red skirts (with shorts for boys) that make them look like they should be flipping burgers at McDonalds. Title cards are integrated into the background from scene to scene, like a bucket of fried chicken that reads "later that night. Even the 4:3 aspect ratio recalls films made in that era, as does the soundtrack which is full of funk and disco. Greta's mother, Janet (Amber McMahon), has big hair and vigorously peddles away at her exercise bike--situated in a living room that seems disproportionately small compared to the dining room. Her father, Conrad (Matthew Whittet), sports a fondness for tiny shorts and puns about bathroom humor. Greta's older sister, Genevieve (Imogen Archer), is going through a "rebellious" phase that amounts to little more than being late for dinner and making out with her suave boyfriend, Adam (Eamon Farren), while listening to smooth jazz. To compensate for the predominance of birthday parties they held for Genevieve at Pizza Hut, Greta's parents go overboard for her fifteenth birthday--whimsically set on February 31st--as if making up for lost time, convincing themselves that the party is something Greta will appreciate when she gets older. Despite Greta's profanity-spiked indignation at the party--which is shocking considering she comes across as quiet, even shy--she ultimately caves after she overhears a heated argument between her parents which she presumes is because of her refusal. Greta is planting the seeds of a psychological complex or two which she will need years of therapy to cope with later--the pressure of not wanting to have a party and not wanting to disappoint her parents is palpable, and is hardly a welcome birthday present. One of Greta's hobbies includes making origami cranes, which increases in frequency like a nervous tic after the announcement of the party. When the party comes, it appears to be a swinging good time at first, filled with copious dancing and excitement as her home becomes a night club; a smile unwittingly creeps onto her face. But a trio of contemptible bullies (cut from the same cloth as the eponymous clique from Heathers) actively humiliates her at her own party, which is promptly followed by Elliott--in the acme of awkwardness--declaring his love for Greta. Overwhelmed, she hurtfully throws his attentions back in his face, and experiences a crisis in her lowest moment.
It is here that Girl Asleep shifts gears from a whimsical tableau of growing up in the Seventies to an "Alice in Wonderland"-inspired journey--Greta's childhood music box zaps her with a potent electric shock, legitimizing the film's title by knocking her into unconsciousness. In this dim and gloomy netherworld, Greta chases a fantasy character through the barren woods, looking to reclaim a totem from her childhood, and finding the process increasingly harrowing with each moment. She is protected by a mature warrior woman known as "The Huldra" (Tilda Cobham-Hervey), mentioned to her in her correspondence with her pen pal from Finland--also named Greta. The Huldra is competent and fierce, and shows bravery and wisdom in pushing Greta into escaping the dangers of the woods, which includes a disgusting goblin credited as the "Abject Man", a frigid witch called the "Frozen Woman", and a sleazy musician whose advances on the underage Greta are rightfully distasteful--all of whom are played by people from Greta's waking life. Greta is also hunted by a trio of lupine girls--played by the same "Triplets" who accosted her in the first half of the film--leading to a full-blown kung fu battle, during which Greta reclaims her dignity by hurling the sneering snots through the walls of her adolescent bedroom, destroying her collection of childhood trinkets in the process. One of the implied triggers of Greta's adolescent breakdown comes from a flood of conflicting emotions--puberty starts deejaying the soundtrack of her life, leaving her stuck trying to reclaim the proverbial beat. She is treated like a little girl by her family; her father literally tucks her into her bed like he was wrapping up leftovers in cellophane, keeping any air out. When the handsome Adam proffers her a flirtatious wink through his violet sunglasses, you can practically see the flutter of her heart. The triplets--all named after hard gemstones--corner her in the girls' bathroom and tease Greta through a blasé conversation about whether it is better to kiss with more tongue or less. These moments awaken something in Greta, even if she doesn't know what it means. After her parents refuse to listen to her protests about the birthday party, she drops her first f-bomb on them, emphasizing that she isn't a kid anymore and can choose for herself whether to have a party or not. When she invites Elliott up to her room, the way she positions herself as they sit together on her bed--and the look of irritation that crosses her face when her mother interrupts them--reveals that Greta is contemplating feelings about sexuality she had never previously considered. Greta's journey through the darkness brings her in touch with her inner child; the two find common ground and the dread of these new, grown-up feelings is quelled, emphasizing that these conflicting feelings about childhood and maturity don't have to be mutually exclusive.
Recommended for: Fans of an idiosyncratic, stylized comedy and coming-of-age story that blends adolescent awkwardness with storybook imagery while telling a fable about crossing from childhood to adulthood. Girl Asleep is a whimsical movie that inserts absurd humor and nonsensical dialogue for comic effect, like when Conrad and Adam are visibly seated in the living room, and Janet bursts in and says, "I hope you're sitting down".
It is here that Girl Asleep shifts gears from a whimsical tableau of growing up in the Seventies to an "Alice in Wonderland"-inspired journey--Greta's childhood music box zaps her with a potent electric shock, legitimizing the film's title by knocking her into unconsciousness. In this dim and gloomy netherworld, Greta chases a fantasy character through the barren woods, looking to reclaim a totem from her childhood, and finding the process increasingly harrowing with each moment. She is protected by a mature warrior woman known as "The Huldra" (Tilda Cobham-Hervey), mentioned to her in her correspondence with her pen pal from Finland--also named Greta. The Huldra is competent and fierce, and shows bravery and wisdom in pushing Greta into escaping the dangers of the woods, which includes a disgusting goblin credited as the "Abject Man", a frigid witch called the "Frozen Woman", and a sleazy musician whose advances on the underage Greta are rightfully distasteful--all of whom are played by people from Greta's waking life. Greta is also hunted by a trio of lupine girls--played by the same "Triplets" who accosted her in the first half of the film--leading to a full-blown kung fu battle, during which Greta reclaims her dignity by hurling the sneering snots through the walls of her adolescent bedroom, destroying her collection of childhood trinkets in the process. One of the implied triggers of Greta's adolescent breakdown comes from a flood of conflicting emotions--puberty starts deejaying the soundtrack of her life, leaving her stuck trying to reclaim the proverbial beat. She is treated like a little girl by her family; her father literally tucks her into her bed like he was wrapping up leftovers in cellophane, keeping any air out. When the handsome Adam proffers her a flirtatious wink through his violet sunglasses, you can practically see the flutter of her heart. The triplets--all named after hard gemstones--corner her in the girls' bathroom and tease Greta through a blasé conversation about whether it is better to kiss with more tongue or less. These moments awaken something in Greta, even if she doesn't know what it means. After her parents refuse to listen to her protests about the birthday party, she drops her first f-bomb on them, emphasizing that she isn't a kid anymore and can choose for herself whether to have a party or not. When she invites Elliott up to her room, the way she positions herself as they sit together on her bed--and the look of irritation that crosses her face when her mother interrupts them--reveals that Greta is contemplating feelings about sexuality she had never previously considered. Greta's journey through the darkness brings her in touch with her inner child; the two find common ground and the dread of these new, grown-up feelings is quelled, emphasizing that these conflicting feelings about childhood and maturity don't have to be mutually exclusive.
Recommended for: Fans of an idiosyncratic, stylized comedy and coming-of-age story that blends adolescent awkwardness with storybook imagery while telling a fable about crossing from childhood to adulthood. Girl Asleep is a whimsical movie that inserts absurd humor and nonsensical dialogue for comic effect, like when Conrad and Adam are visibly seated in the living room, and Janet bursts in and says, "I hope you're sitting down".