Review of Sleep Dealer (2008) by Donovan N — 28 Nov 2009

Sleep Dealer 2008 is named after a factory whose technology enables laborers to work themselves to death remotely without crossing the border. The film takes place in Tijuana, Mexico, in a not so distant future.

The world is heavily militarized, the borders are closed. People connect to a global computer network though nodes in their skin. This makes several kinds of experiences possible like upload of memories and cyber labor.

When Memo, a novice electronics hacking buff accidently invades a secure cyber node network--this accidentally gets his father killed; He decides to go to the city and look for a job to support his family.

He meets a woman (a cyber writer) with nodes and he decides to get nodes implanted...Sleep Dealer deals with some interesting issues like globalization, immigration and the coexistence of humans and technology.

In Rivera and David Riker's screenplay that the man who ultimately helps Memo and his family, though of Hispanic origin, is an American "pilot,' himself connected by nodes. This shows that the alienation by technology affects everyone, including people in the north.

He gives us an inventive depiction of the future of human labor, immigration and transnational borders. It is a very legitimate look at the future by the first time director Alex Rivera. He hired a veteran cinematographer who greatly helped the look and feel of the film.

The film is done on low budget but is quite exceptional without a lot of special effects. Its concerns about privatization of water are real. The film won twice at Sundance, winning coveted Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award & the Alfred P.

Sloan Prize (film dealing with science). Although influenced by a variety of films, including "Blade Runner" and "The Matrix," this futuristic story remains distinctively original.

I am always glad and entertained when I see good films from Mexico our neighbor to the south. This film and plot are not without problems but I liked this film a lot!! Recommended 3 stars.