Review: ‘Dreamland’
Finn Cole and Travis Fimmel are phenomenal in this gorgeously shot yet narratively half-baked coming of age drama.
Eugene Evans (Finn Cole), the central character of Miles Joris-Peyrafitte’s sophomore feature film Dreamland, is a dreamer. Between his attempts at evading his strict stepfather’s (Travis Fimmel) careful watch and daydreaming over a life in Mexico, where his father abandoned his family to when he was a child, he pours over outlaw comics that he steals from the local market alongside his best friend Jo (Stephen Dinh), imagining himself in place of their main characters, rescuing “damsels in distress” and evading the law.
His uneventful routine is interrupted by the sudden emergence of outlaw Allison Wells (Margot Robbie), who is wanted for the alleged murder of a child after a botched bank robbery alongside her partner Perry Montroy (Garrett Hedlund). Allison manages to convince the naïve Eugene to help her escape local law enforcement, including his stepfather George Evans, and plan an escape to Mexico together but they soon realize they may both be in way over their heads when tragedy ends up striking.
Dreamland is not the romance movie its marketing campaign would have you believe it is. It is very much a coming-of-age drama centered around the emotionally stunted Eugene, who desperately dreams of a more eventful and exciting life instead of the dull and repetitive one he has. With a chip firmly slotted into his shoulder thanks to the sudden departure of his father, who left the family for a new life in Mexico, Eugene is not the most likeable of characters. He constantly mistreats his younger sister Phoebe (Darby Evans), lying to her in order to protect Allison, and spends most of the film sulking around over his circumstances, daydreaming for a better life instead of actively searching for one. But thanks to a revelatory performance from Peaky Blinders star Finn Cole, who manages to bring some much-needed pathos and soulfulness to the role, Eugene cuts a much more sympathetic figure than he had any right to be. Cole manages to portray the grey area between childhood and adulthood perfectly, capturing the naivety of youth and the weight of impending maturity with a searing authenticity. As Eugene’s overbearing stepfather George, Travis Fimmel manages to add layers and nuance to what could have very much been a one-dimensional character in another actor’s hands.
Margot Robbie, who also produced the film, isn’t given much to work with. Much like the legendary outlaws of yesteryear, her character isn’t given any semblance of a backstory, perhaps in an attempt to maintain the air of mystery surrounding the character. But it eventually ends up backfiring in the film’s third act when her character finally lets down her carefully constructed guard to show some semblance of emotion. The film goes to great lengths to establish Allison as a grifter who has no qualms with deceiving others to get what she wants, so it’s difficult to muster up any sympathy for a character who could very well be lying this time too. Robbie also has a difficult time pinning down an accent for her character, spending most of the film alternating between a watered down version of her Harley Quinn voice and her best attempt at a southern accent. Kerry Condon, who plays Eugene’s mother Olivia despite only being older than Cole by a mere 12 years, doesn’t fare much better, her character terribly underwritten and only used as a plot device to further the male characters’ narratives. Darby Camp is surprisingly the heart of the movie, turning in a warm and headstrong performance as Eugene’s younger sister Phoebe (who also narrates the film’s proceedings).
Gorgeously shot by DP Lyle Vincent, Dreamland’s cinematography is its real draw, the sprawling images of Americana scenery carrying shades of Terrence Malick and David Lowery. Vincent frames the small town that Dreamland takes place in as a fiery force of nature that not only complements the film’s proceedings but adds to them as well. Unfortunately, the film is let down by a half-baked script that takes its time building tension and atmosphere only to land with a whimper instead of the intended bang.
Despite its narrative shortcomings, Dreamland is still worth checking out for Finn Cole, Travis Fimmel and Darby Camp’s impressive performances, as well as its gorgeous visuals.
Rating: 3/5
Dreamland will be released on November 13.