Dream No Evil

I wanted to like this film more than I did. Sadly, the grindhouse filmmaking missed more opportunities than it took.

Brooke Mills carries this little film with her mesmerizing beauty. I simply could not take my eyes off her. Her performance is good, as is that of Edmond O'Brien as her father. But although the basics of a decent story are there, the script left so little to work with that they relied upon her mere presence onscreen. Great as that may be, it simply is not enough.

This film is a fun diversion and time capsule of the early 70s. Enjoy it for what it is, and try to overlook a weak script and journeyman directing that failed to deliver on what could have been.

I pride myself in being able to sit through some pretty awful movies. To me, low budget doesn't always equal garbage. There are a lot of hidden diamonds on the rough out there that the world passed by because they weren't marketed well or never got solid distribution. I'd hoped Dream No Evil would be one of those movies, but it's anything but. It's a tedious, slow journey into absolute nothingness.

A young orphan girl who suffers from bad dreams is eventually adopted, but she still longs to, one day, meet her real father. She grows up and becomes a flamboyant preacher's assistant in their church act which seems much more circus than the churches I've attended. She falls for a guy, she meets her real father, and then she goes insane and starts chasing people with an axe in the last 5 minutes of the film.

There's not a lot of logical story progression in Dream No Evil. There's an odd, fairy tale-esque voice over throughout that seems to have been added to help better explain what the hell is going on, but it's about as useful as buying a hooker for a nun. Character motivations come and go and you never know why anyone is doing anything.

I'm sad to report that Dream No Evil is a film better left buried.

Not a bad movie but I'm not sure who it will appeal to. The pace is a bit slow for a slasher, and there are some missteps that prevent it from being effective as a psychological thriller. These missteps include the inclusion of narration and some edits that give too much of the plot away. Additionally, the character of the slimy preacher brother-in-law is wasted before the dynamic between him and Grace can pay off. But if I had to pick anything that undermines this movie, more than anything else, it's the narration, which commits the sin of telling you everything rather than letting you figure it out, right down to the symbolism of the white horse at the end of the movie. Just taking the narration out would improve this movie immensely.

This was one weird film. I recall seeing it on late-night TV as a kid, and then I rented it when I was in college. At least there are some decent actors in the cast (including Lawrence, who's slimier than a sack of snails). Worth a look on a slow evening.

If David Byrne made a movie combining elements of European art cinema, Southern Gothic, a dash of Polansky, principles of Bertolt Brecht's estrangement effect, Eraserhead, and Irish Ceili Dancing, it would be this movie. It has to be seen to be believed. And be seen it must. I'm not kidding. You have to see this movie. Tubi is your friend.

Dream No Evil is made with such earnestness that you can't help but admire it. It's not a horror movie so much as a psychological drama with psychokiller elements (speaking of David Byrne). If you are a fan of bizarre, surreal, or just wackadoodle cinema, put this one at the top of your list. I understand the negative reviews, but if you don't take it too seriously this is a very entertaining movie.