16岁的男孩Craig克雷格(凯尔·吉克瑞斯特 饰)经常会想象自己的死亡,在尝试多种药物皆没有效果后,自己来到精神病院接受治疗。在那里,他和一个自杀了几次却没能死掉的神神叨叨的Bobby鲍比(扎克·加利费安纳基斯 饰)成了朋友,还认识了一个特别的女孩Noelle,当然还有许许多多的“非正常人”。他们几个在医院的生活中,渐渐寻回了生命的意义,尤其是鲍勃·迪伦的歌词“He Not Busy Being Born Is Busy Dying”给了他们巨大的力量,让他们重新拥有勇气去面对生活的压力。最后,出院的克雷格是否能让他原本阴霾密布的生活重见阳光,他又将通过怎样的方式找回轻松充实的生活? 本片改编自Ned Vizzini的同名小说,在布鲁克林的一所大学预科学校和一所医院取景拍摄。
The direction of The Sleeping Tiger was credited to Victor Hanbury, but this was actually a pseudonym for the blacklisted Joseph Losey, whose first British film this was. Alexander Knox stars as psychiatrist Clive Esmond, who believes that he can stem the criminal tendencies of young fugitive from justice Frank Clements (Dirk Bogarde). To this end, Esmond hides Clements in his own home. At first hostile towards the handsome crook, Esmond's wife Glenda (Alexis Smith) gradually warms up to her house guest, and before long she and Clements are casting lustful glances at one another. She intends to run off with Clements and make a new life for herself, when suddenly he decides that he actually wants to reform. If nothing else, The Sleeping Tiger is a fascinating precursor to the sexual tensions prevalent in Losey's later Harold Pinter adaptations. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi