Jack is stuck in neutral. He lives with his mom in suburban New Jersey, works as a security guard, and can barely get out of bed in the morning. All that changes when he sees a cute girl on the bus – and then realizes seconds later that his gun is missing. Desperate to find it, he enlists the help of a fast-talking middle-aged maybe-gangster named Eddie, who sends Jack on an epic quest to explore the darkest, strangest corners of American suburbia. Will Jack ever find his gun? Or better yet, maybe that cute girl from the bus? A hilarious deadpan comedy that speaks directly to lost and adrift young people, this film made history as the first by a Filipino American director to get a theatrical release. Lost for 23 years after its original distributor’s bankruptcy, this new 4K restoration from the original camera negative marks the film’s long-delayed home video debut.

For thoughts on Too Much Sleep, please check out my thoughts on No Streaming Required:

Video Quality

Too Much Sleep debuts on Blu-Ray courtesy of Whole Grain Pictures with a digital AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1 that is derived from a 4K restoration of the 35mm Original Camera Negative. Considering the film has been out of circulation for a couple of decades, fans will be delighted by how great everything looks. The presentation maintains the natural filmic quality with robust image stability and delineation. The grain is delivered with a refined look rather than a clumpy or frozen mess.

Small specks of print damage show up, but this has been restored with care. Detail and clarity are in good shape with observable texture in the clothing and production design. The warm summer colors are faithfully saturated with deep, natural hues coming through impeccably accurately. The skin tones are natural and consistent with distinct features and perspiration easily distinguishable in closeup. Black levels hold up well with no major moments of crush or banding observed. This is a strong early effort from the team at Whole Grain Pictures.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with an LPCM 2.0 track that handles this languid soundscape quite well. The dialogue comes through clearly in relation to the competing elements. This is a dialogue-heavy picture as our character goes from location to location interacting with strangers for much of the runtime. Music is a notable part of this journey with a very gentle soundtrack complementing things with top-notch fidelity. There does not appear to be any major signs of age-related wear to this such as sibilance or distortion. The environmental elements add a nice din of sound that makes the world feel more fully realized and three-dimensional. This is a great audio track. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director David Maquiling and star Marc Palmieri provide a solid commentary track in which they reflect on the production, background details about certain scenes, memories of the people in front of the camera and behind the scenes, and more

Isolated Score: An option to view the film with only the music audible in LPCM 2.0 audio.

The Story of Too Much Sleep: A 20-minute documentary that tells the story of why the film was out of circulation for over 20 years and how it was made in the first place featuring new interviews with Maquiling and Palmieri. There are some really lovely insights that are likely to enhance your appreciation of the film.

Finding Uncle Eddie: A new five-minute piece culled from the same interviews as the above documentary that explores the casting of one of the standout characters.

Trailer: A minute-and-a-half-long trailer is provided.

Final Thoughts

Too Much Sleep fits neatly into the independent filmmaking scene that was burgeoning in the ‘90s with scrappy young filmmakers attempting to put their stamp on the landscape. What sets this one apart is its journey after being released, as it got unfairly buried for decades. Thankfully, this has a happier ending than most, and fans can once again watch this vibe-driven narrative filled with unique characters and a dry sense of humor. The film will not be for everyone, but those who love this era of indie filmmaking should appreciate what it brings to the table. Whole Grain Pictures has delivered a Blu-Ray featuring a fantastic A/V presentation and a couple of cool special features. Recommended

Too Much Sleep is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Whole Grain Pictures has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.