Sleep With Me (1994).

The Scoop:
Oh, the angst! This romantic comedy is emblematic of the navel-gazing neuroses that characterized “GenX” indie cinema in the early 1990s.

The product of six different writers (and it shows), “Sleep With Me” follows the self-absorbed romantic tribulations of Joseph (Eric Stoltz), who is about to marry Sarah (Meg Tilly) only to find that his best friend Frank (Craig Sheffer) is in love with her, too. Of course, the complications flow.

Despite the ocassional amusing moment, a terrific cast of indie film veterans (including Parker Posey, Adrienne Shelley and Joey Lauren Adams) is let down by indifferent direction and a trite script. The only redeeming moment comes in the extended party scene in the middle of the film, in which Quentin Tarantino makes a cameo with a classic spiel about the secret gay subtext of “Top Gun.” In those couple minutes, he steals the show and gives the only reason to even watch this movie.

Best Line:
“You can ride my tail anytime!”

Side Note:
The “Top Gun” speech was written for Tarantino by his filmmaking partner Roger Avary and had been originally used in some of their other screenplays, only to keep winding up on the cutting room floor. But they liked it so much that Tarantino brought it with him when asked to appear in “Sleep With Me.”

Companion Viewing:
“Kicking and Screaming” (1995) and “Reality Bites” (1994).

Links:
IMDb.

Take a Look:
Thankfully, someone has compiled all the Tarantino bits into a single YouTube clip. So now you don’t have to rent the movie!