Dream House - A Movie Review

The house across the street is like watching television. Just change the channel, and there’s a new plot-line.

Dream House is a 2011 film about a family who moves into a new house. Strange occurrences happen at night. Will Atenton learns from the neighbor across the street about brutal murders that took place in the house years ago. Finding out secrets, history starts to repeat itself.

Luckily, I did not watch the full trailer to Dream House before watching the movie. Even with the twist, Dream House does not make much sense. It feels like the writers had no idea where they were going, constantly changing the plot-line leaving viewers confused. However, if you pay close attention this film proposes a probable theory behind everything.

Daniel Craig was impressive as Will Atenson. He loves his family, and I enjoyed the little moments he had interacting with his young daughters. Due to the writers changing the plot-line every so often, Craig stayed focused actually trying to make something of this film. Craig is engrossing having to go through multiple personality changes, fighting for his own rights, and making his character believable.

The neighbor across the street knows more than what you think. Naomi Watts has an interesting role in the movie. Writers didn’t care to expand more on her character. She is mainly here to deliver exposition about the events that took place in the house, but then she serves as an entirely different role that was intriguing. Again, it doesn’t go anywhere!

Other credits who try to make this movie seem concise are Rachel Weisz, Elias Koteas, Martin Csokas, Taylor Geare, Claire Geare, Rachel G. Fox, Jane Alexander, Brian Murray, and Bernadette Quigley. The acting is what sells this movie to make up for the script that keeps changing the channel every time it thinks up a new story element. Congrats to everyone who took it seriously instead of not trying which would have ruined the film.

I have to give a hand to Taylor Geare and Claire Geare for their performances as the children of Will and Libby (Weisz). For how young they were at the time of filming, they did a great job. The family scenes were endearing and well-acted in serious moments.

This movie made me think of The Amityville Horror. If writers stuck to the original twist that they hammered into the trailer, then it would have been a more engrossing movie about an angle you don’t see too often in movies.

Eventually, the writing became so corny that I couldn’t help but laugh at some scenes. I kept saying ‘what?’ through the majority of the second half of the film. I don’t want to say that I gave up on this movie making any sense, but arguably it still an entertaining film for what it is. I have to give the film credit because it’s a movie that really makes you think of endless theories once the final scene airs.

Whether that was the intention that director Jim Sheridan was going for or not, Dream House is not your dream movie. He could have had a more concise script. I am surprised that even he understood it, filming all sorts of scenes that could have made for three separate movies in the final edit!

If you want to check out this movie, I highly suggest that you do not watch the trailer. I was very surprised about the twist in which I did not see coming. Dream House was a well-acted film and I did not enjoy it for what it was. Go find it on Netflix.