Netflix‘s latest animated feature, In Your Dreams, ventures into familiar dreamscapes but struggles to offer fresh enchantment. Developed by talent seasoned at Pixar, including director Alex Woo, the film attempts to charm with a dazzling visual display. However, its reliance on well-trodden tropes makes it feel like a rerun rather than a groundbreaking fantasy, leaving audiences yearning for something truly imaginative.
A Familiar Journey
In Your Dreams introduces us to Stevie, a sharp 12-year-old voiced by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, who uncovers that her parents might be splitting up. The once-local indie music duo, Hypsonics, is torn between Mom (Crisin Milioti) pursuing an academic career and Dad (Simu Liu) clinging to his unfulfilled musical dreams. Stevie, sharing her space with her pesky brother Elliot, tries to bridge this familial divide.
Dreams That Echo the Past
In a bid to escape reality, Stevie enters a dream world that feels eerily reminiscent of Pixar’s Inside Out. The character Baloney Tony, a stuffed giraffe voiced by Craig Robinson, offers comedic relief much like Eddie Murphy’s Donkey from Shrek, while the possessed bed frame evokes nostalgia akin to Disney’s Bedknobs and Broomsticks. The Sandman, played by Omid Djalili, adds a mystical element but emerges as a predictable archetype.
Florid Yet Unengaging Set Pieces
The siblings’ shared dreams unravel as spectacles filled with whimsical lands and animated foods, but lack narrative depth. Each dream predictably morphs into a nightmare, constrained by arbitrary movie rules. These sequences serve more as visual indulgences rather than integral story components, leaving viewers questioning their significance to the characters’ real lives.
The Illusory Happy Ending
The Sandman’s grand gesture—to mend the family through a dream—poses an existential query: Is living in an illusion preferable to reality? This quandary, overlooked by the film’s whimsical approach, could have driven a more substantial narrative. Clocking in at just 77 minutes, In Your Dreams is embellished with vibrant dreamscapes yet lacks the imaginative might of its Pixar predecessors.
