LIKE A DREAM

 
I had to laugh at this film and the timing of when I saw it.  Straight before this film I had gone to see “Inception” and then I came out to see this and realised that it was another film about dreams and I thought “Oh no! How is it going to compare against “Inception””.   

At the start of the film, when the majority of the dreams occur, it didn’t compete well at all and I thought I was in for a long ride.  I’m happy to say that the film picked up after the poor opening.  The story is about a guy who has a recurring dream about a girl, who he ends up falling in love with.  Convinced that she is real, he heads to Shanghai to find her.  While in Shanghai, he meets another girl who is the spitting image of the girl in his dreams, however she isn’t as sophisticated as that girl.  The girl decides to help the guy find his “dream girl”, all the while though, they continue to get closer.  By the end of the film, the guy must choose either to be with the girl that is real and right in front of him, or to continue chasing for the girl of his dreams.   

The film is ultimately frustrating because some parts (especially the drama sections) are so well done, while other parts just fall flat (like the “comedy” of the girl pretending to be the dream girl – embarrassing).  Overall, I do not think that I would re-visit the film in the future, but when the film starts to go a little deeper (and slightly darker, with allusions to Hitchcock’s “Vertigo”), it is definitely worth a watch.

2.5 Stars - Viewed at the 2010 Melbourne International Film Festival