Gather 'round kiddies, it's Mike Flanigan time again!
In 2017 alone, Mike Flanigan gave us two films: Gerald's Game (which I previously reviewed for my Fright Fest) and Before I Wake. In Before I Wake, we follow Jessie (Kate Bosworth) and Mark (Thomas Jane), a couple who are still grieving over the accidental death of their son. In an attempt to heal and move on, they agree to adopt Cody (Jacob Tremblay), a foster kid with a troubled past and an incredible gift. Whatever Cody dreams come to life, unfortunately that means his nightmares do too. Naturally, this spells trouble for our three leads as they will have to find a way to confront the horrific nightmares and hopefully find a way to end them.
Before I wake is a film with a troubled history. It spent a good five years in development hell, wrapping filming at the end of 2013, but never being released until Netflix swiped it up for distribution this year. Watching Before I Wake, the only clue you really get to the trouble behind-the-scenes is a short reference to XBOX Kinect (which isn't in production anymore).
Maybe the sole reason to see this film is for the performances within. Kate Bosworth believably plays an unlikable character who starts out as a sympathetic grieving mother and fairly quickly turns into a child abuser as she attempts to manipulate Cody's gift for her own emotional needs. Thomas Jane is great as her troubled husband, who genuinely cares for Cody and is understandably upset when he finds out what his wife has been up to. Unfortunately, he is missing for most of the third act. Jacob Tremblay is (as usual) the shining star of the film. Mike Flanagan has always had a knack for coaxing the best possible performance from child actors, and he does so again here with Tremblay (though I would argue that Tremblay just is a naturally superb actor, as he gave the best performance of 2015 in Room). In Before I Wake, Tremblay plays a deeply troubled kid who is all too aware of his gift and the great good and great harm it can do to others. He resorts to chugging energy drinks, drinking coffee, and even minor self-harm to keep himself awake. He is aware his dreams have hurt others, and doesn't want anyone else to fall victim to his gift. His is a heartbreaking performance, but is still a joy to watch. Before I Wake was filmed well before Room, so technically you could say this was Tremblay's first breakout role.
As for the film itself, Before I Wake sets itself up as a horror film (It does have some horror elements to it, but it is never scary. I will say there are some creepy parts, and one disturbing part. I'll also admit the CGI used in the "wonder" scenes in the first act is effective and beautiful) but is in reality more of an attempt at exploration of/at being a musing on grief, loss, guilt, and fear. As such, it's not fully fleshed out and it's ideas don't feel fully formed. The first two acts are the strongest parts of this film, the third act grows sluggish though (and even kind of boring) and the ending feels a little too schmaltzy. Everything is more-or-less tied up in a neat bow by the end, which left me feeling kind of mixed on the film overall.
Before I Wake was surprisingly a hard film to watch due to all the child abuse Bosworth's Jessie willingly and selfishly doles out, that doesn't necessarily make it a bad film though. In fact, I would actually categorize this as a fairly strong-ish film. I'd definitely say that Before I Wake is certainly worth a watch for our three leads performances alone and it's interesting plot/story, just don't expect it to be Flanagan's best work (That's still Oculus IMO). Flanagan continues to be a promising filmmaker and despite it's flaws, Before I Wake continues to show his potential.
3 STARS
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