Dream House [Blu-Ray]

Reviews DVD Feb 03 2012

By Serena WhitneyDream House is a film surrounded by intrigue and mystery despite the fact that it has nothing to do with the sub-par thriller's plot, but rather how such a highly talented A-list cast and crew were attracted to making such a bland and out-dated film in the first place. Viewers are introduced to a promising start when writer Will Atenton (Daniel Craig) quits his job to work from home so he can spend more time with his wife (Rachel Weisz) and his two young daughters in their new home. Unfortunately, Will's blissful new family life takes a quick turn for the worse when his daughters tell him about a man staring at them through windows at the middle of the night. After befriending a beautiful, yet peculiar, neighbour (played by Naomi Watts, in a thankless role whose only purpose is to provide the film a lazy form of exposition) and a half-assed investigation, it's revealed to Will that a wife and her two daughters were murdered five years ago by the hands of the husband, who has just "conveniently" been let out of a nearby mental institution. Even those who haven't witnessed the spoiler-heavy trailer will be able to spot the so-called "twist" that occurs halfway into the film as soon as the story glorifies the idea of female family members being dependent on having the patriarch providing safety and security in a home. It's after the twist where Dream House becomes a mismatched hybrid of genres, resulting in a mangled mess of a film. The fact that the cast refused to do press and Jim Sheridan tried to take his name off the finished product should be enough to deter smart filmgoers. Unfortunately, there are many others that will be too blinded by the star power to avoid temptation. The Blu-Ray features include short featurettes on the making-of, and the burning of, the actual dream house and interviews with the cast and crew lying through their teeth about how fun the making of the film really was.
(eOne)

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