“Dream Script” review: a gritty allegory of instant fame with an unrecognizable Nicolas Cage

Over the past decade, Nicolas Cage has become an expert in unclassifiable roles. This is closer to experimentation in films than to the Oscars. From Pig, Mandy To Renfield And The unbearable weight of enormous talent. The truth is that the performer prefers to portray extravagant figures, full of winks and tics. Moreover, they allow him to explore the spirit of acting, bordering on a mixture of ridicule and drama. An element that over time became his calling card.

Maybe that’s why he Paul Matthews V Dream scenario Kristoffer Borgli seems surprisingly ordinary. This middle-aged university professor is already going bald and can barely boast of his knowledge of ants. The script, also written by the director, spends its first minutes exploring the fact that the character could be anyone. If there is something interesting on the tape, It is his refusal to explain or fully introduce the codes of the horror and fantasy genre.

What he really wants to emphasize is that his main character is an ordinary person. Without much meaning, unless it appears day after day in the dreams of the whole world. At first you will only do this with your family. Then in his own city and, finally, in the cities of every person who is able to sleep. What begins as an isolated event and witty platitude soon becomes a thrilling phenomenon that ultimately leads to horror. Almost involuntarily.

The man of the world’s dreams

In fact, the argument does not want to scare, nor does it want to provide an explanation of what gives rise to something like this. So he relies on his visuals—cold and Edward Hopper-like—to analyze his character’s surroundings. Paul appears in dreams as an elusive image, having no particular interest or significance in what happens in them. Just stand outside the door or walk while the fears, anxieties or hopes of the sleeper manifest themselves. However, the very fact of being there makes it a rarity.

The story carefully narrates how the daughter’s collective dream begins. Sophie (Lily Bird) who will set the tone for the rest of the experience. Paul He is neither a hero nor a villain. He neither saves nor kills anyone. He is only a passive figure, causing discomfort by the mere fact that he is a spectator of the dream scenario. The script strives to make its first part a kind of surreal mystery.

What she achieves is thanks to the successful performance of Nicolas Cage. His character is a man who has spent his entire life trying unsuccessfully to attract attention. The translator shows the nuances of this desire to win, such as the rare desire to be seen. Many of the best scenes from the first part Dream scenarioare based on the contrast between who Paul really is and what people think of him.

A rare form of glory

Having become a global phenomenon, Paul is now gaining the recognition he always needed. A kind of overnight fame, much like any content that goes viral on social media. The film emphasizes this parallel throughout the sequences that show Paul enjoying his sudden fame. He is greeted on the street, his image becomes a recurring one on television and in all media. So now he has the strength to admit that I always crave such fame.

Everything until the phenomenon becomes creepy. Gradually the film becomes darker and by the second half no one seems very happy about Paul being part of their nocturnal intimacy. Triumph turns to fear, and now the lonely and passive figure of the character is little less than a symbol of fear. The plot makes it clear repeatedly that Paul is just a projection of what others see in him. dthe meaning that they want to give to his lonely image, among horrors, tears and, in the end, terrifying scenes.

Great story with a boring ending

However, what a reasonable view of fame is, and how fickle collective recognition can be, loses ground when explanations are sought. Not about the phenomenon, which is already considered an ominous event that no one can fully predict or understand, but about how Paul insists on controlling it. At least take advantage of it. Gradually, the core message about celebrities and their dangers becomes tiresome and repetitive. The following are general and even unnecessary. As Paul struggles to survive to be loved and hated by everyone around him, the film feels like it covers more than it explores.

With a disappointing ending—with editing and storytelling errors that leave you baffled—“Dream Script” loses all of its charm. However, his experiment in turning dreams into a complex space for discussions of identity and modern celebrity is interesting. Not complete and not as promising as claimed. However, it is unique enough to make the film an unusual journey into modern anxieties.