Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts star in Dream House, a slightly eerie, intense thriller directed by Jim Sheridan. Craig plays Will Atenton, a successful publisher in Manhattan who decides to leave the fast paced lifestyle to spend more time with his wife Libby (Weisz) and two young daughters, Trish and Dee Dee in suburbia. At first all seems well, he appears to be living the dream of working from home on his novel while spending quality time with his loving family and their new home. The newly moved occupants spend time renovating the quaint house which has many secrets and an horrific past, all it appears is not what it seems, as they continually feel they are being watched. The chemistry between Craig and Weiss is good (which is appropriate as the couple reportedly fell for each other in the making of this movie) and the two girls played by real life sisters Claire and Taylor Geare. (They previously appeared on our movie screens in Inception) create a likeable family atmosphere. The twist in the movie is quite unusual as it is not at the end like you would expect but about an hour or so in. From then on the movie takes another couple of turns but is somewhat predictable, no spoilers here but you can see from the trailers where this movie is heading folks as it is far too revealing.
The movie promised much but sadly failed to deliver, the admirable cast let down by a predictable plot, at one point it looked on the verge of being a proper somewhat refined thriller but takes a turn for the worse when the story unfolds and Will comes to a realisation about his life. The movie is well shot, the locations are great and there are some genuinely scary moments within but ultimately it fizzles out. While the film was ok, it is a shame because it could have been so much more. Not a bad movie but not a great one either, this would suit as a DVD rental but not box office fodder. Naomi Watts is vastly underused here but puts in a good performance as the neighbour from across the road, living alone with her daughter with the shadow of her ex husband looming over her. This movie isn’t going to be doing big business, overall it is worth a watch but you’re not going to be blown away here.
