Sleepwalk with Me

Matt, a comedian scraping by in bar rooms, is under pressure to marry after eight years with his girlfriend. In the same period he starts sleepwalking, and it grows dangerous. The two are connected: what he cannot say passes into the body in sleep. Mike Birbiglia directed and starred, writing with Ira Glass, who also produced. The story comes from Birbiglia's own life: he really did have a sleepwalking disorder and was badly injured jumping through a hotel window. He had told the same material on stage and on radio first. The form carries that history: the character sometimes speaks straight to camera and does not hide that he is narrating. The backstage of comedy, the long drives and the empty rooms are shown in detail; the world of performance is not romanticised. It won the audience award at Sundance in 2012. Who it is for: viewers who like stand-up and autobiographical comedy. Who it is not for: anyone after high energy; the film is calm and inward.