Dream for an Insomniac

Director: Tiffanie De Bartolo
(1996)

Don’t let the annoyingly blah Breakfast At Tiffany’s inspired opening scene deter you from watching this delightfully clever independent romantic comedy. Ione Skye is elegant, witty and charming as Francesca—- a sexy, female Oscar Wilde of the San Francisco coffee house scene. Francesca is a young, aspiring actress, quote-crazy intellectual woman plagued by insomnia who spends her time articulating romantic theories in stark black and white cinematography until the gorgeous blue eyes of a new aspiring writer from Michigan transfers the whole film into color. The baby blue Sinatra eyes of Mackenzie Astin inspire Skye out of her unhappy funk and the two flirt and chat-cute in her uncle’s Café Blue Eyes, aptly named for Sinatra himself. The dialogue is fun and quote-worthy in itself and the affable young cast (especially the tangible chemistry of the leads) is fresh and appealing. The film is one of my favorite undiscovered little gems for rainy days. Fans of Happy Accidents will love this earlier sleeper.