No Rest For the Brave

Colour, 35mm
France, Austria, 2003, 107 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

Basile Matin has a bizarre dream. He dreams that tonight could be his last night. If he falls asleep, he dies. At least, this is what his dream told him. He saw Faftao-Laoupo, the symbol of the pre-ultimate sleep. But Basile feels too young to die. In order to triumph over mortality, he decides never to sleep again. Igor is another young man. He is broke and bored, so Basile’s story is a source of great fascination for him. Last but not least, there’s Johnny Got, an amateur journalist and detective, interested in stories which are not his business. He sets out to find Basile... A completely absurd story which breaks all the rules and repeatedly oversteps the border between reality and fantasy. If there is any at all.

About the director

Alain Guiraudie (b. 1964) worked as a night watchman when he started to make short films: Les heros sont immortels (1990), Tout droit jusqu’au matin (1994) and La force des choses (1997). While he worked as an assistant in TV, he started to make medium length films: Du soleil pur les gueux (2000) and Ce vieux reve dui bouge (2001). No Rest For the Brave is his first feature film.