Dreamscape poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Dennis Quaid, Max von Sydow, Christopher Plummer, Eddie Albert, Kate Capshaw ... see more see more... , David Patrick Kelly , Timothy Blake , Kendall Carly Browne , George Caldwell , Larry Cedar , Kate Charleson , Trent Dolan , Larry Gelman , Redmond Gleeson , Ernest Harada , Peter Jason , Betty Kean , Virginia Kiser , Ben Kronen , Brian Libby , John Malone , Madison Mason , Carl Strano , Jana Taylor , Bob Terhune , George Wendt , Chris Mulkey , Alan Buchdahl , Marii Mak , Cory "Bumper" Yothers , Fred M. Waugh , Andrew Boyer , Carey Fox

Great special effects do not always make for a great film, but Dreamscape comes awfully close. Dr. Paul Novotny (Max Von Sydow) and Dr. Jane Devries (Kate Capshaw) run a clinic for the study of dreams... read more read more.... Hoping to alleviate the pain of those plagued with recurring nightmares, Novotny hires a team of psychics to "inhabit" the subconsciouses of the patients. Alex Gardner (Dennis Quaid), a small-time hustler who uses his ESP gifts for financial gains, is hired to work at the clinic. He helps to disperse the fears of a young nightmare-plagued boy, then reverts to type by "raping" the thoughts of the lovely Dr. Devries. Things come to a head when one of the patients, the American president (Eddie Albert), decides to purge himself of his apocalyptic dreams by making a lasting peace with the Soviets. Bob Blair (Christopher Plummer), the political reactionary who finances the clinic, decides to assassinate the president by acting upon Dr. Novotny's pet theory: if a person dies in his or her dream, he/she will die in real life. The finale pits Gardner against psychic assassin Tommy Ray Glatman (David Patrick Kelly). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flixster Users

45% liked it

7,939 ratings

Critics

78% liked it

27 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 39 min.

Directed by: Joseph Ruben

Release Date: August 17, 1984

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: June 6, 2000

Get It:
 

Stats: 324 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

Dreamscape Dreamscape
Upload a Photo | View All Dreamscape Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (324)

  • jmanard52
    August 22, 2010
    jmanard52
    Classic 80s sci fi . . amazing cast when one looks at it . . Quaid, Von Sydow, Albert, Plummer, Capshaw .. Crazy how many people they got on board for this one. Was a fun movie for sure.
  • ajv2688
    January 17, 2011
    ajv2688
    A great adventure filled sci-fi thriller all about dreams and psychics. I really liked this movie, and I highly recommend it.
  • yona71
    July 28, 2010
    yona71
    "Dreamscape" is an overlooked little film from 1984. Surely it's a bit dated, but that's part of it's charm. The visual effects are brilliant in this capturing vivid dream sequences and various images from troubled individual's psyche which help this film hold up quite well.
    De... read morennis Quaid portrays a young psychic(Alex Gardner) who is coerced by his old friend and mentor Dr. Novotny(Max Von Sydow) into a research project that involves a new process known as "dreamlinking".
    Talented psychics such as Alex are able to hook up to troubled subject's dreams via electrodes in which they are not only able to view the dream, but are able to participate, and possibly effect a remedy.
    When the president of the United States comes into play as a troubled subject, things take a turn for for the worse as serious dreamscaping becomes called for. As a result, the process evolves into much more than ways to evade the "boogeyman".
  • ythelastman89
    June 18, 2010
    ythelastman89
    Psychic movies donā??t come any better than this, one of the most fun sci-fi movies from the 80s. Dennis Quaid plays a great anti-hero in Alex Garner making you completely involved from the start. Add that to the awesome nightmare premise and government conspiracy cover-up and yo... read moreu have yourself one fun movie. It has a great sense of humor, but also a perfect sense of suspense throughout. The dream sequences are so interesting, especially the nuclear holocaust ending with David Patrick Kelly as a dream assassin with Bruce Lee fighting skills. The cast is great, Kate Capshaw is the hottest scientist known to man and Max Von Sydow delivers his usual excellence. I think this gets brushed over a lot, but itā??s really one of the most original and interesting sci-fi movies to come out of the decade.
  • puffchunk
    October 10, 2009
    puffchunk
    Dennis QUaid's Han Solo like character is about all that I can say I liked in this one. I fell asleep about the time that the claymation snake came around.
  • garyX
    July 14, 2007
    garyX
    Daft but enjoyable sci-fi thriller that's basically Scanners crossed with A Nightmare On Elm Street. The strong concept of psychics who can invade your dreams as assassins is a strong one, and its reasonably well done with some nicely surreal imagery (dodgy effects aside.) Would'... read moreve been even better if they'd ditched the sappy happy ending and ended it a scene earlier...
  • webalina
    May 21, 2007
    webalina
    Don't know why, but I LOVE this movie! I guess the idea of being able to go into people's dreams sounds like fun.
  • Beefy
    February 21, 2007
    Beefy
    Ahhhhh! A snake man!!!!
  • deano
    December 6, 2006
    deano
    Enjoyable fantasy stuff.
  • Godless
    March 9, 2006
    Godless
    For an 80's movie its amazing! Watch Innerspace battle the Warriors guy!

View All Dreamscape Reviews

Critic Reviews

May 30, 2007
Variety

Film [from a screen story by David Loughery] centers on 'dreamlinking', the psychic projection of one person's consciousness into a sleeping person's subconscious, or his dreams. If that sounds far-fe... Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Most movies that try to crowd so much into an hour and a half end up looking like a shopping list, but Dreamscape works, maybe because it has a sense of humor. Full Review

Janet Maslin
May 20, 2003
Janet Maslin, New York Times

Mostly maladroit, without the kind of high gloss or confidence that might help carry its audience along. Full Review

May 30, 2007
TV Guide's Movie Guide

A perfect B movie for the 1980s: light and trashy, with political overtones and a blend of science fiction and paranoia, all calculated to provide fun for an audience disinclined to take matters serio... Full Review

Lori Hoffman
May 25, 2006
Lori Hoffman, Atlantic City Weekly

Underrated, extremely fun genre picture

January 26, 2006
Time Out

This is as good a piece of solid, down-the-line schlock as anything to come along since Halloween III. Full Review

James Plath
October 24, 2005
James Plath, Movie Metropolis

Pretty solid thriller with Quaid in his element.

Douglas Pratt
November 6, 2004
Douglas Pratt, DVDLaser

A perfect piece of escapist entertainment

Steve Crum
October 24, 2004
Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan

Intrigues still, fascinating inside-the-brain experience

Rob Thomas
May 8, 2003
Rob Thomas, Capital Times (Madison, WI)

An imaginative sci-fi thriller, even though the effects don't hold up today.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Sucker Punch
    Sucker Punch (33%)
  • Joey (Making Contact)
    Joey (Making Contact) (100%)
  • TRON
    TRON (73%)
  • Innerspace
    Innerspace (67%)

More Movies like Dreamscape

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

Dreamscape : Watch Free on TV

Dreamscape Trivia

  • Where does Max Von Sydow take Dennis Quaid for dinner in the movie Dreamscape?  Answer »
  • What actor played in the following movies? A Beautiful Mind, Dracula 2000, Cold Creek Manor, and Dreamscape  Answer »
  • Which movie DIDN'T real-life couple(at the time) Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid star in together?  Answer »
More Dreamscape Trivia

Movie Quizzes

No quizzes for Dreamscape. Want to create one?

Video Clips

No video clips yet. Want to upload one?

Meet Other Fans

Add Dreamscape to favorites

Recent News

No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

No skins yet. Interested in creating one?