Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Hayden Kane There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Scott LeBrun There's a fair amount of 80s style imagination and panache to be found in this nifty combination of sci-fi, thriller, and political intrigue. It's got a hell of a good cast and a more than capable director, Joseph Ruben, who'd started out in exploitation films and later turned out the solid sleeper "The Stepfather" as well as mainstream fare such as "Sleeping with the Enemy". Its premise may be too close to "A Nightmare on Elm Street" in some ways, but at least the political element helps it to stand apart.Dennis Quaid, at the peak of his charisma, plays Alex Gardner, a psychically gifted young man who would rather use his gifts for self- gain but reluctantly agrees to help old pal Paul Novotny (ever delightful Max von Sydow) who's developed a revolutionary dream therapy program. It seems that now people like Alex can be inserted into the nightmares of others, and help them to deal with them. However, there's a smooth but cold government man (a chilling Christopher Plummer) who has sinister motives for supporting this program.Wonderful visual design is just one of the hooks of this story; the nightmares each get their own "dream tunnel", for one thing, and for another, the bleak post-apocalyptic landscape of which the President (Eddie Albert) dreams and the skewed images experienced by young Buddy (Cory "Bumper" Yothers) are very well realized. The special effects are eye popping, and things do get pretty grim and gory (a heart is ripped out of a chest). One of the highlights of the movie is the nefarious Snakeman, a monster brought to life through a combination of stop motion and an actor (Larry Cedar) in a costume. The music is cheesy electronic stuff, which is kind of surprising considering that the composer is the great Maurice Jarre. There's some witty dialogue, and a steamy subplot involving Alex and the young Dr. Jane DeVries (Kate Capshaw, who's lovely but sporting some real 80s hair here).The cast couldn't be better; also appearing are the eternally amusing David Patrick Kelly as weaselly little psychopath Tommy Ray, George Wendt as a horror novelist who snoops around, and character actors such as Redmond Gleeson, Peter Jason, Chris Mulkey, Madison Mason, and Brian Libby. Also, Ruben keeps the pacing consistent and the big showdown between Alex and Tommy Ray is a set piece worth waiting for.With all of this going for it, "Dreamscape" is a totally engrossing diversion that may be very much of its time but still does a good job of entertaining the viewer.Eight out of 10.

Tss5078 I really wish that I had seen this film, before I saw Inception. Of course you can't compare the graphics or special effects, in fact, the effects in Dreamscape are laughable by today's standards, but this was really the first movie to explore entering someones dreams. The story is wonderfully creative with unlimited possibilities, but at the time it was made, you couldn't rely on the special effects to make the movie, the way some films today do. What Dreamscape really needed was a young charismatic star to put the film over the top, and they found him in Dennis Quaid. The difference in his personality and the types of roles he chooses to take have done a complete turnaround over the last thirty years. The Dennis Quaid of today is a strong, emotionless character, who is determined to do whatever he sets his mind to. In Dreamscape he's funny, ambitious, and absolutely adds character to a story that could have gone either way. What the film loses in predictability and the sometimes slow pace, is more than made up for with Quaid's standout performance. I'd always heard good things about Dreamscape and how it was the inspiration for Inception, but it's a thirty year old film with outdated effects and some really cheesy stuff, I really didn't expect it to be as good it as it was.

bwanabrad-1 Dreamscape.A generation before Inception there was Dreamscape. Quaid and other psychics are investigated by a secretive laboratory run by Novotny. The young Quaid has been involved with Novotny before and is wary of becoming a lab rat again, but because of his nefarious activities he is all too easily cajoled into joining the program. Through a computer link up in a controlled environment he is able with his special powers to get inside the mind of another person and influence their dreams. The program is not without risks however, and previous failures have had disastrous consequences, he is however able to save one particularly troubled boy from a terrible, recurring nightmare. Also involved in the program is the menacing Glatman, another psychic and from his demeanor, it is obvious that they will square off before the story is finished. Lurking in the shadows is a smarmy Bob Blair, played by the impeccably dressed Christopher Plummer, who runs the secretive yet powerful government agency that finances the program. This agency is so covert that even the CIA gives it a wide berth. His motives are sinister ones, he wants to develop the psychics into the ultimate weapon for the military, one that can assassinate enemies in their sleep, and leave no trace. He gets his chance to put his theory into practice when the president, racked by feelings of guilt over the atomic weapons threat, seeks help to overcome his nightmares. The basic premise of the story is a good one, but the script needed more much development, and some of the special dream effects look pretty cheap, quite amateurish even for when they were made, even without the use of CGI. Quaid plays Quaid, as cheeky and irreverent as ever. To keep under the radar of Novotny he has been misusing his psychic powers, becoming a hustler and gambler who has really only ever used his gift to stay one step ahead of the people he owes money to. He is not helped by having him parade around in some terrible 1980s fashions complete with Shaun Cassidy hair style. Max Von Sydow, is the serious scientist and humanitarian who runs the program investigating the mind powers, who wants all of those who are troubled in their sleep to benefit. While a young Kate Kapshaw ( looking very much like Julie Christie ), is largely wasted as the token female research assistant and all too obvious romantic interest. Plummer takes the acting honors here, as the immaculately groomed Blair, a shadowy and ruthless figure with his own agenda, who will let nothing stand in his way. Less impressive is David Kelly as the psychotic psychic Glatman, a character it is difficult to take seriously at any stage. Also obvious is the timing of this release on DVD. l admit l had never heard of this movie before, but you don't need to be a psychic to understand why it is being released now, to cash in on the interest generated by Inception. Unfortunately, even for the time it was made, it looks cheap and dated, even though it was a highly probable idea. It has also not aged very well, this is no classic, it looks very much a product of its time, although the president's nightmare scene, where Eddie Albert and Quaid ride a trolley car through the ruins of Hiroshima under a red filter is well done. This is the sort of film that makes you wonder what Hitchcock or the Wachowski brothers could have done with it even though this film is from the wrong era for either director.

moonspinner55 Dennis Quaid, self-confidently impudent and smirking, plays a young psychic who is enlisted by scientists to telepathically link his mind with a series of patients who are suffering troubled dream states, sending him down the very same wormhole as the dreamer; this is merely training, however, as a very important subject--no less than the President of the United States himself!--is in need of some dream therapy, though there may be a saboteur or two in the mix. Predictably written and directed fantasy, with several cardboard supporting characters adding little to the mix and a production which fails to live up to expectations. The villains are exposed too early on, and there's no mystery or wonder in the dream sequences. Still, Quaid is a surprise; moving easily through this unconvincing scenario (which should be over-the-top but never gets up enough energy to bring itself there), the actor slips around corners and into forbidden rooms like a teen detective from a comic book. Quaid holds his own with acting stalwarts such as Max Von Sydow and Christopher Plummer, and emerges as a happily-horny hero who's not above a little dirty pool. ** from ****