Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

I found the whole movie patronizing to the audience. What struck me the most about this movie is in living memory it's easily the least I've ever cared about all the characters of a film in a long time. Someone Mike trusted should have told him "I hate to say this Mike but I don't like single character in this film".Abby treats him like crap the whole way and he won't tell her to take a hike? I don't get it. I get that this happens in life, but in a film it makes both characters seem one-dimensional and boring. Something like that is frustrating to watch.And why doesn't he see a doctor? Makes no sense. He clearly has a sleep disorder!The most interesting piece of acting in the film was from the comic who told him to use what he said in his act—it really looked as if he wasn't acting in that scene.Mike himself did some interesting acting but needs some acting lessons to help him speak with better diction. His constant mumbling brought me often to where I didn't care what happened his character.The saddest part of all this is you can tell Mike has talent and is probably quite funny in real life.The script itself wasn't ready. They needed someone with film chops involved (a producer etc.) to help advise them. I know first hand how difficult it is to make a film so I hate being so honest in my criticism but it's all we have. I made a short film and it's a piece of crap. You must be honest if you are to improve. I wouldn't give this film any award.I think it's highly probable it received more favorable attention than it deserved because Ira Glass was connected with it. There's a reason why good films take years to come to fruition. Filmmaking is hard. Try again.

In the charming, disarming Sleepwalk with Me, a neophyte stand-up comic relates his experiences juggling his burgeoning career with his relationship with his longtime girlfriend and his parents. It's a really thoughtful slice-of-life seriocomedy with a touch of whimsy and plenty of relatability and not the slightest bit as pretentious as it could have been.Matt Pandamiglio (Mike Birbiglia) tends bar at a hotspot that also occasionally has comics onstage. He's been in a relationship with Abby (Lauren Ambrose) for more than eight years, and she's been hinting strongly at marriage and babies and the like, which has poor Matt a little discombobulated. (Hint: he's not sure he's ready, nor good enough, for that.) He hems and haws and just can't commit. Sounds like a typical dude, right? In a way, sure, which makes Matt all the more like the rest of us. And luckily, because Birbiglia (who co-wrote the screenplay with Ira Glass of NPR) is so, well, normal, the role is imbued with a strong layer of honesty. This is not some glossy Hollywood romcom.But Matt has an unusual, additional problem: he sleepwalks. Oh, he doesn't just go into another room, sit down, get up, then go back to bed. Matt's walking is much more violent in nature; he is prone to acting out his dreams, which may mean fighting someone (a shower curtain) or even walking repeatedly into a wall. It's disturbing, to say the least, and his father (James Remar), a no-nonsense doctor, insists that Matt see a specialist immediately, as in now. But Matt shrugs it all off, thinking he needs to focus on his career and his girl, and not necessarily in that order.This is not to say that Matt is a bad guy. He gets a chance at the bar to tell some jokes, and he finds an agent as a result, which soon has him crisscrossing the Northeast US, doing small gigs for actual pay. It's fascinating to see someone so dedicated, driving hundreds of miles to make $100 or so, then driving hundreds more in the opposite direction to make a little more. It's tough work, and only those who truly believe they've found their spot in life's grand scheme will undertake it.It's only when Matt begins to work his real life into his performances that his career takes a genuinely positive turn, a little fact that he keeps from Abby. Now, his combination of observational humor and relationship woes works very well with his audiences, and he begins to develop a name for himself. But where, you might ask, does that leave Abby?That is what I liked the very most about this film. Now, bear in mind that this is a comedy more than anything else, so it is practically assured of a happy ending. And it gets one - just not the one you might expect to get. And the ending works. It works emphatically well, a terrific coda to a beautiful, sincere film about a schlub and his art and his girl. Because Birbiglia is so perfect for the role (yes, he wrote it, but how often does that mean he can act it as well), the movie is a by-gosh success. It's a movie without a Bad Guy. It's a movie that doesn't look at a relationship between a man and a woman and ask the audience to choose one for whom to root. Both Abby and Matt are good people (though you kind of wonder what Abby really sees in Matt other than being able to make her laugh); they're just not necessarily right for each other.Sleepwalk with Me is, indeed, a true sleeper of a movie. It stars an unknown commodity (both as an actor and as a comic) in a movie he wrote himself, often a recipe for disaster. And yet despite those long odds, the movie is compelling and perfectly told, narrated by Birbiglia himself (often speaking into a camera directly as if he were filming a documentary on his life). Are there laughs? There are laughs. There are laughs complemented by poignancy and optimism. Sleepwalk with me is a well-formed, quirky film that's decidedly outside of the cookie-cutter Hollywood milieu.

The first mistake is to think this is a comedy.Mike Birbiglia plays comedian Matt Pandabiglio (boy, he disguised that well, didn't he??) who is still struggling with material, delivery, gigs, and, by the way, his long-time girl friend Abby, played by Lauren Ambrose. It is clear by those around him, they are the ideal couple that will get married and have a family. If fact, they are wondering what is taking so long. So we get to see Matt do a few minutes on stage while working his regular bar-tending job, but obviously he is a work in progress.But Matt has another problem that is troubling to Abby and his parents - he is experiencing sleepwalking with such intensity, he starts acting out his dreams with whatever is around him. Much of this has to do with his evolving comedic life and the long term live-in situation with his girlfriend.I watched this movie with the same expectation of others that I'm sure thought it was going to be exclusively a comedy. There are some of Mike's classic comedy routines with his terrific understated sense of humor, but it really is window dressing for how his relationship, sort of stuck in neutral, begins to affect them both after so many years of no commitment. Just like life, there are some good times, bad times, and all of those times in between. I'm trying to remember the last good relationship movie I saw that so cleanly portrayed the love of two people that were really not made for each other and didn't know it until so many years had passed.I am stuck wondering how much of this is autobiographical and how much was fiction. There are some definite parallels between Mike B.'s actual life and Matt P. in the movie. All I can say is, if it wasn't all biographical, then Mike did a fabulous job of making a complete and honest storyline that has people asking questions of their own behavior and relationships. Give the people in the film credit for doing a wonderful job of acting. My had is off to Birbiglia for piecing together a terrific movie.

Really boring movie for a supposed "comedy." There is very little to write about and most of the movie is just one, long, dull flat-line. The main character is boring, the plot is almost non-existent and there was maybe one or two lines through the whole thing that even warranted a chuckle. I generously gave it 5 stars ONLY because in contrast, I've seen some REALLY horrible movies.I have no idea what else to say about this movie but apparently am required to write at least 10 lines.The only interesting aspect of the flick are the times where you're not sure if he's dreaming or not which forces you to pay extra close attention. Otherwise, you may very well find yourself falling asleep to this which is the last thing you'd expect when you turn on a comedy.