Blood Capsule #275

DREAMSCAPE (1984)

1984 was a most propitious year.  Why, it saw the birth of two maniacal bastards - Freddy Krueger and...me!  Putting aside the fact that I'm entirely too old, let's talk about Freddy for a minute.  Actually, let's talk about coincidences.  Dreamscape was released a couple of months before A Nightmare on Elm Street.  Both films deal with the topic of dreams.  More specifically, they both posit the theory that if you die in your dream, you die in reality.  Here's another weird coincidence that I can't believe I haven't seen others dissect (I'm sure someone has, but I can't read every review).  At one point, a key antagonist in Dreamscape kills a character in the "dream world" by stabbing them with razors that pop out of his fingers.  Insane, right?  Am I the only nutjob dumbfounded here?  I guess I should continue with the review.  Dreamscape doesn't reach the cinematic heights of Elm Street, but it's a fine horror/fantasy crossbreed that is also notable for being the second film to earn a PG-13 rating.

Dennis Quaid stars as Alex, an ordinary guy with extraordinary abilities.  He's a telepath, and the local university wants to use him for the purposes of sleep research.  A scientist (Max von Sydow, if you can believe it) has figured out how to link the brains of two unconscious parties.  Party #1 can jump into Party #2's dream, and he can even manipulate the contents of said dream.  There is a lot of exposition to unpack, but eventually, the President (y'know, of the United States) gets involved.  If only movies could cross over into one another, Freddy could have landed a sweet gig as a hitman.  Yes, there is an assassination plot, and yes, you are required to suspend disbelief to enjoy the show.  In essence, I enjoyed the show.  The cast is high-class, the effects are special (more on that in, like, two seconds), and the pacing is snappy.  Oh, and we get a stop-motion monster.  I should have opened with that, but we're privy to the nightmares of a little boy.  That's where we meet The Snakeman!  Exclamation point!

You're right.  This whole capsule should have been squarely focused on The Snakeman.  My apologies.  In my defense, he only appears in two (rad) dream sequences.  Dreamscape merely qualifies as horror-adjacent, but if you dig Freddy, I don't see why you wouldn't dig this bit of business.  Random trivia!  Director Joseph Ruben is a pro when it comes to domestic thrillers (you could argue that Dreamscape falls into that category).  He also helmed The Stepfather and Sleeping with the Enemy.