Review of Dreamscape (1984) by Adam I — 07 Mar 2010

"Dreamscape" was one of my absolute favourite movies when I was ten years old and, somewhat amazingly, it still holds up today. The filmmakers do a great job at handling what could very well have been a complete mess of a premise, and everything pays off satisfactorily.

Dennis Quaid is a charming, Han Solo-esque rogue of a protagonist, Christopher Plummer plays a good sinister government official, and Max von Sydow's friendly professor is instantly likeable. David Patrick Kelly is particularly awesome, too, as the twitchy, menacing psychic Tommy Ray.

One thing that makes "Dreamscape" unique is that the special effects, while extremely dated, work here because they are only ever used in surreal dream sequences, which means that they aren't particularly disruptive or jarring, and it works to the film's benefit.

The dream sequences are the real star of this movie, and are executed brilliantly. The sequences with the Snakeman are especially cool, as they seem to have been torn out of the mind of Tim Burton, and will no doubt remind certain audience members of nightmares from their own childhood.

I've never understood why "Dreamscape" never developed a big cult following, but no matter. I still think it's a terrific adventure flick from the 80s that's smarter than your average special effects extravaganza.

If you're looking for a more adventurous (and imaginative) spin on the plot elements of "A Nightmare on Elm Street", then "Dreamscape" is definitely worth looking into.