Alexa: I’m not typically a big horror person, so I didn’t have particularly high expectations for “Before I Wake,” but I was pleasantly surprised. I had never heard of the movie before Jason picked it (apparently it was a casualty of Relativity’s bankruptcy), but it’s an intriguing little film worth discovering. I wouldn’t even necessarily classify it as a horror movie. It has some disturbing imagery and a handful of jump scares, but it’s more of a dark fantasy. The general premise of dreams and nightmares coming to life offers plenty of captivating possibilities, but I wasn’t expecting it to be as layered as it was. What could have just been a middle-of-the-road thriller evolved into an emotional exploration of the different ways people process grief. The weaker parts of the movie are some of the standard tropes that populate many other PG-13 thrillers - the highly polished house, the obligatory visit to a hospital/mental institution to discover the truth behind the mystery. But the character exploration elevates it above similar genre fare. Kate Bosworth does an admirable job in the lead role, but the movie belongs to Jacob Tremblay, who broke out with his performance in “Room” a few years ago. He has such a magnetic screen presence and adds depth to a character that could have faltered in the hands of a lesser actor.
Joel: This is the kind of movie that feels kind of perfect for the Netflix model. It’s a movie that I’ve never really heard anything about, but it’s got a few bigger names and the director is someone who’s work I’ve liked in the past, so while it may not have been a movie I would have ever known to seek out, It’s one that I was interested in checking out. Director Mike Flanagan has shown a talent for making interesting horror movies and Before I Wake fits right in with his other works. The movie manages to make a monster that looks terrifying in the shadows, but still manages to look creepy when it’s fully revealed (something that other movies tend to drop the ball on). Visually, the movie is able to dance between beautiful and unsettling with the magical dreams that come and go throughout the movie. The movie isn’t afraid to go long periods of time without anything scary happening. It allows for characters and emotions to develop and in turn this helps to make the actual “horror movie” parts of the movie work that much better. Before I Wake is a movie that knows when to push and when to hold back. There are great moments that play with tension as the boogeyman creature stalks the main kid, but some of the best parts are when the movie lets your mind fill in parts of it. Probably the most upsetting moment of the movie would be the moment that Cody’s earlier foster parent saw a thing that was almost-but-not-quite his wife walk into the room for the first time. It’s a moment that’s not even shown, due to the way the scene plays out, but it’s one of the moments that stuck with me the most by the end of the movie.
Flanagan is, once again, able to make a movie that is not only tense but compelling as well. It’s able to weave a good story, one with characters and moments that it’s easy for the audience to get invested in. This movie is a good example of how the horror genre is capable of creating a movie that strives to be something more than a string of non-stop jump scares while still being a good horror movie.
Chris: I’ll echo the thoughts of everyone else and say that this was a movie that exceeded my expectations. I did like the reveal that everything horrible that Cody dreamt had a logical origin and how it was simplified in a child’s nightmare. I’m also okay with the source of Cody’s ability was never revealed because it ultimately doesn’t play a part in the overall plot. One gripe I have is that there wasn’t an explanation of where the people that disappeared ended up and how weird it is that Kate Bosworth’s character seems cool with by the end. Yes, she ultimately solved the problem that was Cody’s nightmares but she seemed pretty content that her foster child essentially killed off three people, one of which was her husband. I kept waiting for some revelation to be had or something but Cody made a pretty butterfly in the end while he was awake so I guess all is forgiven.
Jason: The director of this movie has done some good work in the past. Oculus and Hush (both of which are on Netflix) are more of his “horror” type fair. One is a supernatural haunted thing movie while the other is a tense home invasion thriller. So he’s clearly shown he has breadth in his ability. But along comes Before I Wake. According to the IMDB trivia on this film, Flannigan did not want to market this on as a horror movie at all. Instead, he considers it more of a fable or fairy tale. I can’t say I disagree with him. It does play with some of the old and tired tropes of horror: misunderstood kid in the foster system, loss of a child, loss of innocence, that sort of fare, but it is able to make more out of it than just a creepy set piece. It also falls into another storytelling camp, the “weird tale.” Because so much is left unexplained at the end, we are forced to either try and fill in the gaps with our own imagination or just accept things for what they are. I do so love a good bit of weird fiction. And I think that’s what makes this movie so strong. It’s in the unexplained. It’s in the acceptance. Jessie was able to cope with the loss of her husband through the love she felt for Cody. And he was able to resolve his nightmares through her love as well. The introduction to the horror is subtle and builds at a nice pace. The creature is quite scary but then you come to understand it. All around, this is a good movie.
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