Dreamland

Where to begin - Johnny Simmons is actually a really great and underappreciated actor. He's young, charming and displays an element of sensitivity. All in all he has this human quality and is very believable.

His portrayal of the young "Graduate"esque Jazz pianist is delicate and smooth. The other actors and actresses are finely cast and do the job perfectly fine. One of my favourite things about this film is how the soundtrack fits the scenes perfectly. The synthy waves compliment the lonely back drop of the Los Angeles urbanscape.

Without further ado I move on to cinematography. It had the inherently indie vibe going on throughout - and it worked. It's a Los Angeles thing and artistically it's a great reflection of the city. Some people will use you, some will make you and others break you and you have try not to be too trusting in a city that can be quite unforgiving but equally beautiful and full of vibrance.

The message within the story really resonated with me - as a twenty something Jazz lover and lonely city dweller I felt a pull to the storyline and really connected with the main character. So if that makes for a biased review then so be it.

I really enjoyed and relished every moment and when the credits started rolling I was sad because I really didn't want the "dream" to end.

Off beat and plenty of soul to carry it along on a tight budget - bravo.

Dreamland is a heavy hitter in both its honest and intimate portrayal of lost romantic opportunity and the lessons learned in this quirky and serious coming of age film.

At first glance this film may come off like an adult romance cliche but don't let that fool you. This is a fresh work and a brilliant first feature by Robert Schwartzman. The film has a way of grabbing your attention with each stage of the film. Monty's dream of becoming a jazz bar owner and the realization that love may not always come in neatly decorated packages.

Johnny Simmons and Amy Landecker create a fresh look at an overlooked cliche and instead deliver an honest view of love lost that is both charmingly playful and heartbreakingly dreamy.

Lastly, the music composition of the film was pieced together incredibly well. Jumping like a heartbeat, between awkward adolescence and the uncertainty of love to its more mature and intimate moments reminiscent of The Graduate (as another reviewer has commented on).

My title would refer to my reception of this movie and not any particular theme in the movie. In short, I thought the movie was great...especially in light of the conspicuous lack of fanfare over it. I discovered it through Netflix's "related searches" function and I must admit, the stylish "Cocktails and Dreams" motif sold me on it.

One of the other reviewers mentioned that he/she didn't find the Mrs. Robinson character to be pretty and that she looked "old" in a few shots but that she was a good actress...well, how very magnanimous? I thought that she was also a good actress, but did the reviewer miss the point of her character? Common sense says, "yes." She might have looked "old" perhaps because she was an "older woman." Now, does this have much to do with her sensuous nature? Not to anyone who is relatively sophisticated. The point of her inclusion wasn't to present a centerpiece that would be coveted and fawned over, but to be an available sexual option that represented acceptance and opportunity.... That is the point of her character, not to be some sort of high status beauty queen. I would have thought that was obvious. More over, her apparent wrinkles in many scenes further serve to illustrate the urgency of her condition: fading beauty and quiet desperation. Her character was obviously a driving aspect of the movie, but the fact that the actress nailed the role while the script writers did such a great job with the character, boosted my appreciation for this film.

Here's the setup - Monty Fagan is on the low end of the economic scale working jobs and trying to get a loan to open his dream piano bar. His girlfriend has become bored with their life together and having to live with her mother. Monty gets a break to perform on piano at a very high end restaurant and there he is taken by Olivia who is very much on the upper end of the economic scale. This situation cannot go well!

Director Robert Schwartzman presents a story any movie goer has seen before. Young man of average looks and struggling to make a life gets his heart stolen by a seductive older but beautiful and wealthy and bored woman. Each character is nicely performed and more entertaining, than being performed as being real. The plot keeps your interest with just enough twist, turns, and emotional suspense in the story to keep it lively.

As stated above this is a good afternoon flick for easy entertainment.

Yes, this story has been told (The Graduate), but I loved this for the character of Monty, because I can relate to being a piano teacher, hustling around town to earn $25/lesson, and then the elation of getting that gig at the swanky hotel. And I love piano bars!

Monty has dreams of opening his own piano bar. I rooted for him.

The older woman was not that pretty in my opinion, I mean in some shots she looked really old, (sorry); but she was a good actress. This movie was not so much about the romance, more about a guy trying to make a living from his doing something he loves. (Piano bar). Plenty of humor in this, especially a hilarious scene with Jason Schwartzman. This movie stayed with me a long time. LOVED IT. There could have been more piano music/piano playing scenes. Recommended for anyone who loves piano bars.