'Before I Wake' is a Muddled Horror-Drama

Ensign Lestat's Film Log, 15.08.2016

I am a horror movie fan, always have been. But most horror films that I come across do not scratch that niggling itch. The last really good one I saw was 'The Woman in Black', and it worked because of its cohesive, heart-felt storyline, some effective acting and subtle use of jump scares.

Most horrors do not tick any of the above boxes and come across as tonally confused, gory, unnecessarily R-rated or with poor CGI. Going into 'Before I Wake' I expected most of this and I wasn't wrong.

The film starts off with a desperate adult training a gun on a little boy. Next, we're in the cosy office of a social worker making the dreams of a couple come true. But the couple, Jessie and Mark, played by Kate Bosworth and Thomas Jane, are in for a surprise when they meet their foster child Cody Morgan (Jacob Tremblay). Not all is right with Cody, and we soon find out what it is that's made him move from foster home to foster home.

Created by the same team behind the 2013 horror 'Oculus' and other horror-dramas 'Absentia' and this year's 'Hush', 'Before I Wake' is a film not quite sure of itself. Mismarketed as an out-and-out horror, the dramatic nature of the story is its stronger attribute. I likened it to the English version of 'Dark Water', a film I caught in passing several years ago, and which stayed with me because it wasn't as scary as it was melancholic. I believe the original Japanese versions are actually scary, but the English one, especially its ending, has a greater psychological depth. 'Before I Wake' attempts the same, but loses its effective pacing near the end to give it enough of a punch.

What works in the film is the young couple's desperate reconciliation with the past and the present. Much like the underrated 'Rabbit Hole', this film's couple have to deal with each other and what happened to their son. It's done effectively, especially when Cody's special abilities come to the fore. How Jessie and Mark cope when their deepest desire briefly comes true hits harder than the ridiculous CGI creature at the centre of the story. Honestly, every time the film felt accomplished, the CGI thing would turn up and ruin the experience.

The acting, for the most part, is pretty top-notch. Tremblay is particularly good and it is no wonder he is showing up in a lot of projects now. It helps that he gets to play a character unlike most other children on screen - a polite, reserved and independent young child. Most on screen children are so annoying they take you out of any experience, but this one, for story purposes, is mostly likeable, not hysterical and very in control. Tremblay was excellent in 'Room', and continues his good work in this film.

[There are little things that I liked in this film. For one, the film lets people get along with each other - Jessie and Mark are genuinely happy to have Cody in their lives, and Cody, despite his fear of what will happen to his new parents, enjoys spending time with them. The scenes between Mark and Cody are especially good - showing a bonding we sometimes miss out on in genre films.

Cody also fits in at school and quickly makes a friend. There's a bully in the mix, which doesn't feel tacked on - but almost a necessary addition to the story.

The dynamic of how Jessie and Mark react to Cody's dreams becoming reality is also well-handled. As mentioned above, it is one of the better parts of the film, with Mark wanting to live in the present, with Cody as their son, and Jessie still hanging on to the nocturnal illusions of her son Sean being back with them. It also works because of the blame dynamic that is showcased later - Jessie blames Mark for Sean's death, and it's a conversation/argument that they've definitely had before.

How the family is handled by the police and the social worker after Mark is abducted by the monster is one of the poorer parts of the film. Cody's taken away and people keep asking about Mark's behaviour, yet no signs of abuse are prevalent till much later. Granted, Cody being given sleeping drugs is a sure shot reason for removing the child from foster care - but it's a muddled sequence which betrays the pacing of the film.

The fact that the central monster is Cody's imagination of his cancer-riddled mother is both innovative and contrived. I think the fact that we had to deal with a CGI monster for the entire film detracted from any revelation about the character's origins.

One thing that stood out for me was the foreshadowing of Cody's warped imaginings. When Jessie goes to meet Cody's former foster father at the asylum, he mentions to her that once his wife is taken by the monster, Cody dreams her into reality at night but he was too young to correctly remember his wife's face. It's a creepy moment which explains why Cody's dying mother has turned into this unreal creature.

The film should have been written and directed as a psychological drama, featuring special abilities. It's over-reliance on jump scares and scary images for three quarters of its runtime detracts from the dramatic impact of the interpersonal relationships in the final act. Marketing it incorrectly is the studio's fault, but writing it incorrectly? I think the writers needed more focus.]

The climactic finish isn't well-handled. In an effort to include an expository denouement, the film sacrifices coherence in the ultimate showdown. As Jessie faces off against the monster, it feels like a scene has been lost in between - a better director would have segued better into the conclusion, but we do not get that in this film.

The ending harks back to its psychological drama roots and is both thought-provoking and anti-climactic. It is a full-on exposition scene which adds to its detriment. Three-quarters of the film feels like it knows its itself, and then the last quarter wants to be all mysterious and loses track. The film is worth a watch, and tows a similar line to 'Oculus' - inventive and innovative, but always short of good. If writer-director Mike Flanagan could get out of the exposition phase of his writing, he could be making some extraordinary psychological horrors. One can only hope for better with his future projects.