Dream Lover (1986)

the audience applauded

Simply Perfect

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

The involvement of lead actress Kristy McNicohl, director Alan J. Pakula and cinematographer Sven Nykvist (best known for his regular work with Ingmar Bergman), as well as a fascinating premise, were four good reasons to see 'Dream Lover'.Really hate to see one of the dissenting voices here but 'Dream Lover' didn't do it for me. Can see why it was panned by critics because to me there were some big problems, while not finding it anywhere as dreadful as reputed (certainly do not agree that 'Dream Lover' didn't have redeeming values). 'Dream Lover' was just a film that could have executed a good idea much better. It had all the makings of a thought-provoking and creepy film, but both of these only came in spurts rather than an overall whole.'Dream Lover's' best asset is Nykvist's cinematography, frighteningly surreal and beautifully dreamy 'Dream Lover' looks striking in this regard. The sets and lighting are similarly atmospheric. Some sequences actually are pretty unsettling and have suspense and creepiness.The cast are also a strength and do their best with the wanting material with professional. McNichol is in an atypically darker role to usual and gives plenty of intensity and vulnerability, it's a great lead performance in a challenging and different role for her. Plus she looks sensational. Paul Shenar, who if he made better career choices and hadn't died so young just three years later would have made it bigger, plays one of the creepiest domineering father figures personally seen in any film recently. His chemistry with McNichol has moments of pathos and chills.Ben Masters is charming and Justin Deas makes the most of a role that isn't developed enough. There are a few thought-provoking moments.On the other hand, the story and pacing spoil 'Dream Lover'. Some of the pace is leaden and like riding on the back of a lethargic snail. In terms of atmosphere, there is a lack of tension and suspense in general and too often is too sterile. The story is dull with parts that feel like overlong and irrelevant padding and not always easy to follow (downright confusing even in some places), while the ending is anti-climactic and preposterous.Pakula's direction is uninspired at best and somnambulist at worst, don't think he was that interested in the film or knew what to do with it. While the production values are generally good some of the editing is amateurish, especially the shocking gaffes in day/night scenes.Rest of the cast struggle to do anything with sketchily written plot device characters (true of the characters here in general) and weak dialogue. The script has thoughtful moments but generally is flabby and gets bogged down by too much confused and rambling psychobabble and overkill histrionics. The music score is forgettable and doesn't really gel with the atmosphere of the film.On the whole, not that bad but to me it was far from a dream. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Many reviewers here have said that this film is probably only worth watching if you are a Kristy McNicholl fan and that may well be true and I'll admit I have a video copy for that very reason. This is the darkest role that was played by Kristy and is in stark contrast to her earlier Tomboy roles, and that should have been a good move for her. But this movie doesn't give her enough of a chance to prove her potential."Dream Lover" shows Kristy in a light that was different from Buddy (Family) just as "Extremities" shows the late Farrah Fawcett in a darker role than those for which she was previously known. Both actresses deserved better opportunities to show the harder, grittier acting of which they were capable.For me, the best scene in the film is the one where she reacts to the experiment not being stopped at the agreed signal, and the conflicting anger and upset from the character is brilliantly shown by Kristy. I find it hard to watch, knowing what eventually happened to this young actress in her personal life and that she never got to make the movies that would have shown how powerful an actress I believe she was going to be when she was older. Watching it makes me wonder what she could have done later on. May be I am biased, as a fan, but when Kristy stopped acting that was a great loss to the movie industry. For that reason alone I would recommend watching this film if you can.

Kristy McNicol is totally miscast and the ending, the one that takes place outside with the characters teetering on the edge of the skyscraper, was really bad and a groaner, but the rest of the film is pretty good. I'm not a big Pakula fan but I really like his minimalist approach to the somewhat contrived story. The look and feel of the film are my favorite part. The cinematography is excellent. McNicol's NY apartment is one of my favorites in any movie. It's so small and compact but cool. Wish I had it. The recurring dreams have a really unsettling quality to them. I'm impressed that Pakula actually went ahead and had these dream sequence be really become repetitive. I'm sure this turned off a huge portion of the audience but I thought they were really effective because they were so repetitive. The sound design during those nightmares sequences are also worth noting. The dream sequences of McNicol walking down a huge hallway were also amazing. I give the film's production design a huge 10. I wish I could give 10 to the rest of the film but can't. But even with all its faults, DREAM LOVER is a very overlooked movie.

Fans of Kristy McNichol (and her character 'Buddy' from TV's "Family") probably won't like this movie much as it dispels the actress's jovial tomboy persona and showcases a darker side. As a young flautist who is both enamored of and terrified of her widower papa, McNichol's extraordinary acting range gets a real work-out; director Alan J. Pakula keeps her low-keyed and appealing, but also intensely focused. The domineering daddy (Paul Shenar, a Ray Wise look-alike who'd be right at home in a David Lynch story) is a puzzlement, and the other supporting characters are sketchily-drawn, but Kristy is surprisingly right at home in these spooky, melodramatic settings. Attacked by a stranger, and then wracked by nightmares, McNichol seeks help in an unorthodox dream-research lab--which only makes things worse. "Dream Lover" is an intricate, deliberately-paced psychological thriller with some stunning set-pieces: the green lamp (and its evil implications), the refrigerator hawking on (signaling the terror ahead), the mix of two dreams (wherein Kristy's Kathy takes flight) and the entire last reel, where one sequence is seen differently through two pairs of eyes. Take note that this is a slow movie. It wants to build a character study by moving each chess piece smoothly and efficiently across the board. When I saw this in the theater, the few people there were yawning. Give this a chance. It successfully maneuvers itself into hazy crawlspaces that few films manage to do. ***1/2 from ****