Sleeper (1973) Queer Film A-

DIRECTOR: Woody Allen
Sleeper is a 1973 American science fiction comedy film directed by and starring Woody Allen, who co-wrote it with Marshall Brickman. Parodying a dystopic future of the United States in 2173, the film involves the misadventures of the owner of a health food store who is cryogenically frozen in 1973 and defrosted 200 years later in an ineptly led police state.
While on the run from the police with his kidnapped victim, Diane Keaton, Woody happens upon a gay household presided over by a hilarious George Furth (uncredited), who has a gay Robot named Reagan – the film was released the same month as The Exorcist. When Keaton asks if he or his partner has a Hydrovac suit to use on a Space Shuttle, the dialogue is as follows:

Furth’s character:
Reagan, bring me out my Hydrovac suit, right this minute
Reagan:
Here’s your silly old Hydrovac suit. I could hardly find it, there’s such a mess in that bedroom!

Turns out Reagan is voiced by Douglas Rain (also uncredited), the Canadian voice artist who did the sibilant lisping for another cantankerous AI phenomenon: the HAL 9000 computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
It’s pre-Annie Hall Woody Allen at his best.
Sleeper is not available for streaming. DVDs and Blu-rays are available from AMAZON.

Popular Articles

Subscribe for the latest reviews right in your inbox!