6.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
An accident puts the consciousness of an elderly dream researcher into the body of a bratty teenager. The problem? The kid prefers dreamworld limbo to real life.
Starring: Jason Robards, Corey Feldman, Piper Laurie, Meredith Salenger, Harry Dean StantonComedy | 100% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Romance | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English, English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
A lot of people may default to Freaky Friday (or Freaky Friday or Freaky Friday or Freaky Friday) when thinking about so-called "body swap" movies, but perhaps surprisingly, this particular plot device goes back quite a bit further than even the first Freaky Friday, which appeared circa 1976-77. Some folks may find it especially unexpected to find out that one "body swap" source property which was itself adapted into more than one film came out in 1882 (!) in novel form. That novel ultimately became Vice Versa and Vice Versa, among a number of other identically named adaptations. While both Freaky Friday (which many allege is an uncredited adaptation of Vice Versa) and Vice Versa itself were somewhat whimsical in tone, there have been a number of "body swap" or at least "body swap adjacent" films that have plied horror territory, or at least have taken themselves a bit more seriously than either Freaky Friday or Vice Versa in any of their many forms. Audio commentator Jarret Gahan makes a case that Dream a Little Dream probably shouldn't even be considered to be a "body swap" property, since there's a certain psychological limbo present for one of the focal characters, but the fact remains that the plot of this film revolves around the consciousness of a curmudgeonly elder named Coleman Ettinger (Jason Robards) being transferred into the body of punk-esque teen named Bobby Keller (Corey Feldman).
Dream a Little Dream is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films' Vestron Video Collector's Series imprint with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. As tends to be the case with these Vestron Video Blu-ray releases, there's little to no technical information imparted, other than a generic "digitally restored" emblazoned across the back cover. This presentation offers a mostly nicely robust looking palette (I'll mention a couple of exceptions in a moment), though expectedly the opening optically printed credits sequence looks rough and a bit faded. The dream sequences are all graded toward a very cool ice blue color, and fine detail can suffer just a bit as a result at times. There are some kind of odd downturns in general suffusion not related to any opticals that I could discern, and some of these moments also offer less clarity and fine detail than the bulk of the transfer (see screenshot 19 for one example). There are a number of small but still noticeable blemishes that have made it through whatever "digital restoration" gauntlet was undertaken for the film. Grain resolves naturally.
Dream a Little Dream features a nice sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. The inimitable Mel Tormé contributed vocals to the film (lip synched at times by Jason Robards), and those source cues along with glut of other music (including a cover version of Rock On which became a Number 1 hit in the wake of the film's release) all sound nicely full bodied and distortion free. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.
It's perhaps just slightly unintentionally humorous to hear a now middle aged Corey Feldman talk about how he took on Dream a Little Dream to prove his acting chops, since the part here is, by Feldman's own admission, kind of an older if no wiser version of the character Feldman played in The Goonies. There also seems to be more than a bit of subtext as Feldman recounts how Haim got involved in the project, though that said, Haim's part is really a throwaway here. There are some interesting elements to the screenplay at times, but unfortunately they're buried beneath some pretty hoary "body swap" clichés. Video encounters a few hurdles but is certainly watchable, and audio is fine. The supplements are also enjoyable, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.
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Captive Hearts
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