Beautiful, sad, lonely-guy, Paul Schrader noir. Willem Dafoe plays the drug-dealing simp so desperate for any kind of intimacy, but not finding it anywhere no matter how hard he tries. The foreboding soundtrack is glorious and truly enhances the movie. Set in the still-gritty 90’s New York City, making it feel like a distant sequel to Taxi Driver. Square yellow cabs. Luminescent mountains of garbage bags piling up (is this where Joker got that from?). Even the daytime is oppressive. Our main wants to feel like the hero even though he’s truly powerless. Features the most depressing ending to a sex scene I can remember. There’s nothing John can do but cause more suffering to simulate justice and use jail as an excuse for why he can’t get access to the intimacy he so craves.
Light Sleeper (1992) – Film Review