Dreamkiller

I saw the movie yesterday at the Beverly Center and had a pleasure of meeting the filmmakers for the Q&A session afterwards (I was told they will be there every weekend thorough their release and I highly recommend it).

This is not a big budget movie, which I expected was made for under $5 million, but I was stunned when the director answered the question "What was the budget?" by, we shot the whole film for around $50K. $50K?

For anyone that has ever been involved in any kind of production (like myself) will be hard to believe that this movie was shot for so little budget. Most short films are shot for more so I suspect that this might be their publicity stunt.

But regardless of the budget I feel that the movie gives something completely new and original and it kept me in the seat. I was entertained thorough and the movie grabbed me from the very beginning.

I would not compare it to "Shutter Island", in terms of budget it would not be fair even if this movie was made for $20 million, but in terms of the story and execution this movie can stand tall.

Well, 4 out of 5 reviews already gave the film 10 stars... calling it a near perfect film... way better than "Shutter Island"... full of twists and turns... with acting performances larger than life... displaying a strong script through brilliant directing skills.

In a nutshell: go see this movie before you die, it'll give you the meaning of life.

With this kind of friends, the filmmakers don't need enemies. No honest perspective whatsoever, no clear artistic judgment, no clear criticism, only blind loyalty... or several alias-users, giving a hyper-positive new review every other day.

5 reviews, all written by "virgin" users in rapid-fire, one of them calling himself an ardent film buff... with no other "reviews" under his belt.

Still wondering who wrote those marvelous pieces?

I went to The Beverly Center to see "Hurt Locker" when I was stopped by a team of young people promoting a new thriller "Dreamkiller", an independently produced psychological thriller.

I was intrigued by the poster (particularly the fear of failure) and they gave me a hard sale so I gave it a shot. This is not a big budget movie and it felt a bit slow in the beginning but about 10 min. in, the story became very intriguing and unpredictable and once it grabbed me I had to watch it 'till the end. In short, I was entertained.

On my way out I saw a group of people near a table in the lobby next to the Dreamkiller poster. I approached them and told the young girl (who happened to be the director) that I enjoyed the movie. We spoke for a while and I learned that the movie was allegedly made for much less than I imagined.

When she told me the actual number I couldn't hide my disbelief. This is NOT a Blair Which or such a movie with shaky camera and available light but a real production so I told her that I don't think that would be possible to which she responded "we didn't know it was impossible so we did it".

By the time I got home the general theme and questions that the movie arose started to nip at me. Even more so now, related to the people behind it.

I always aspired to create a feature film. I wrote my screenplay over 40 years ago and had been working on putting it together ever since. I got close a few times but it never truly came together, mainly due to the lack of financing. A few times I had almost enough money but was afraid to do it and needed more. And now, after all these years I look at these kids and wonder…

I get it. "Dreamkiller"! My fear killed my dream. Or did it, maybe it's not too late. Maybe I'll send my script to them. With the money I had available they would have made three movies.

This movie has nothing to envy to big budget movies. I give it a 10 because anyone can make a movie with money, but very few with talent and will.

I had yet to see a film that had such an enormously affecting plot and characters before I had seen Dreamkiller. I walked into the theater not expecting much unfortunately, with the way films are made now-a-days, the Hollywood machine pumping out remakes and adaptations, and shying away from films such as Dreamkiller because of fear they will lose money. Missing out on true creative genius, and such subtlety in performances. Let me make this clear, I have never written a review before, I have seen too many films to count but haven't seen anything in recent years worth writing about. Since this film is struggling to get an audience, and simply because I know that it's worth the time to write a review, I am here to let you know that you need to see this film, it is enthralling, wonderfully acted, magnificently directed by a devoted young female director, whom I had the pleasure to meet at the q&a after the film. It deserves attention, and I hope that everyone has a chance to see it.

Very cleverly done and brilliantly executed psychological thriller. Though occasional reminders that this is an indie do come out, you will loose yourself in the story and most importantly have a lot of fun. Acting is great specially from the lead protagonist Dario Deak in such a demanding role. The soundtrack is also great. Overall a very refreshing ORIGINAL in the world of remakes and sequels. I used to brag that I can always guess who the killer is or how a movie is going to end. "Dreamkiller" got me. It kept me guessing all the way through and the plot has one of the greatest twists I've ever seen. Definitely a thinkers movie. Makes one wonder how would my own fear would destroy me?