Overview
A man becomes a celebrity in the dreams of strangers, but the nightmare of fame is all too real.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- witty
- surreal
- uncomfortable
- late night viewing
- a24 movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as an inventive, funny, surreal, and sharply executed satire of fame and contemporary groupthink, while finding its final act overloaded and indecisive.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Paul becomes recognizable to strangers through their dreams, transforming ordinary visibility into a surreal form of unwanted celebrity.
Multiple people experience Paul in their dreams while the film presents dream scenes with the visual treatment of waking events.
Paul's dream-related notoriety evolves into backlash, groupthink, and cancel-culture consequences.
Kristoffer Borgli shoots dreams similarly to waking scenes, making the audience question the status of each encounter.
Films like Dream Scenario, and why
Being John Malkovich
surrealist comedy about ordinary social life becoming destabilized by an uncanny phenomenon and collective anxiety
The Truman Show
darkly comic critique of fame, public attention, and identity with a heightened surreal premise
Sorry to Bother You
absurdist horror comedy using an implausible social contagion to satirize contemporary culture and group behavior
Under the Skin
uneasy surrealism, bodily and psychological discomfort, and escalating consequences from private desire
Movie Details
- Director
- Kristoffer Borgli
- Release Date
- 2023-11-10
- Runtime
- 102 min
- Rating
- 6.7 / 10 (1461)
Cast
- Nicolas Cage
- Julianne Nicholson
- Michael Cera
- Tim Meadows
- Dylan Gelula
- Lily Bird
- Jessica Clement
- Dylan Baker
- Kate Berlant
- Star Slade
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Dream Scenario about?
- An overlooked professor becomes an accidental dream celebrity, forcing his family and society to confront the darker mechanics of attention, desire, and collective judgment.
- What is Dream Scenario like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Dream Scenario as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Dream Scenario violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Dream Scenario as moderate.
- What did critics think of Dream Scenario?
- Critics broadly praised the film as an inventive, funny, surreal, and sharply executed satire of fame and contemporary groupthink, while finding its final act overloaded and indecisive.
- Which films are like Dream Scenario?
- Films with a similar feel include Being John Malkovich, The Truman Show, Sorry to Bother You, and Under the Skin.
- How long is Dream Scenario?
- Dream Scenario runs 102 minutes.
- Where can I watch Dream Scenario?
- In United States, Dream Scenario is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex.
