It’s a shame if you missed the San Diego International Film Festival this year. Aside from all the great foreign films and indies, there were some big pictures that will get well-deserved Oscar nominations; The Holdovers and Dream Scenario are two.
It’s nice to see Nicolas Cage getting away from the straight to video/streaming garbage he had done for years, and giving us quality pictures lately. A few years ago he did the interesting “Pig,” and this year the underrated vampire movie “Renfield” and one of the best comedies last year, “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.” Now he’s in a Kafkaesque movie, or is it Kaufmanesque (as this does feel a bit like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich, and the one with Nic Cage – Adaptation).
Cage plays Paul Matthews, a slightly boring, slightly nerdy professor at Osler University (his unusual voice is hard to take at first). His daughter Sophie (Lily Bird of “Beau is Afraid”) has a dream about her dad, and he soon finds out others are having dreams about him, too. An old girlfriend (Marnie McPhail Diamond) runs into him and his wife Janet (Julianne Nicholson, who is incredible in this). She mentions the dreams she’s having, as the wife looks on side-eyed. When those two meet at a coffee shop to discuss this further, it’s an interesting awkwardness that made me think of Marge in “Fargo” meeting an old classmate at a diner.
As Matthews starts to embrace his newfound fame, the film is brilliant. The second half of the movie isn’t as good, but still works (and it has an amazing ending).
Norwegian writer/editor/director Kristoffer Borgli (“Sick of Myself”) subtly tackles the pitfalls of fame, cancel culture, herd mentality…all while giving us plenty of dark comedic moments that make this an enjoyable ride.
There are metaphors and parallels from Matthews’ lectures in class that relate to his real life.
It’s interesting how things play out with his wife Janet. And we’ve seen similar scenes on screen before where a publisher or agent is trying to schmooze someone, but the way Michael Cera plays a guy wanting to capitalize on everyone dreaming of Matthews is hysterical. Matthews wants to write a book on ant colonies. The agent wants him to do a Sprite commercial.
There was a nice role for Tim Meadows, who I enjoy seeing on screen (such a great principal in “Mean Girls” and band member in “Walk Hard”). He’s the dean of the college trying to deal with the ensuing chaos.
It has the most awkward seduction scene (with Dylan Gelula of “Sh**house”) since Matthew Broderick losing his virginity in Neil Simon’s “Biloxi Blues,” and the funniest fart scene since “Step Brothers.”
It’s a shame that every review I glanced at, seems to give away what starts happening in the second half of the film. Even the trailers give it away. It’s much more fun for audiences to experience that on their own.
The movie could be somewhat scattershot at times, and my wife and I were surprised many around us disliked it. We had a blast with it.
I thought they should have found a place for the song “Dream Weaver” by Gary Wright, who died last month; but ending it with the Talking Heads “Dream Operator” was perfect.
3 ½ stars out of 5.