MrGKB ..."Dreamland" showcases a number of rising young talents both in front of and behind the camera. Neophyte director Jason Matzner (who is this guy and why isn't he at work on a new project?) breathes life and beauty into Tom "nobody's heard of me, either" Willett's freshman screenplay with grace and love, ably assisted by DP Jonathan "The Omen 2006" Sela's evocative camera-work and a winning cast. Agnes "Blood and Chocolate" Bruckner plays Audrey, a young writer fresh out of high school who seems tied to her role of caregiver to a grief-paralyzed father (John "Northern Exposure" Corbett) and her best friend Calista (Kelli "Thumbsucker" Garner), who suffers from MS and dreams of being the next Miss America. The arrival of Mookie (Justin "Live Free or Die Hard" Long), gives rise to a love triangle that eventually leads to Audrey's freeing herself from a self-imposed martyrdom. Though perhaps overly sentimental and a little too neatly wrapped-up at story's end, "Dreamland" remains an effective coming-of-age film, and one that is significantly superior to most of its big-budget competition. Bruckner and Garner shine as young adults aching to shed their adolescent skins, Long rises above his physical miscasting (UNLV basketball prospect? I think not), and Corbett and the rest of the supporting cast handle their roles with an easy naturalness. I found myself drawn into the unlikely trailer park community of "Dreamland" despite myself, and wanting to know what happened to its residents after all was said and done. Though far from a classic, "Dreamland" is certainly worth a watch, if only to see Bruckner and Garner strut their stuff amidst the gorgeous New Mexico scenery.

bwdude Last night I was in the mood for a movie - any movie - and so I popped "Dreamland" out of the unseen stack of my DVD collection.I did not expect all too much, so I was very pleasantly surprised to find out that it was actually very good.The first thing I noticed was the beautiful photography. There are some really breathtaking shots, at least if you watch it on a big enough screen.Secondly the story, while slow paced, is kinda nice and comes in several layers. Sort of a "feelgood-movie", even if all of the characters have their problems throughout the movie.The acting was pretty good, but especially John Corbett blew me away. No more nice guy like in Sex and the City or the Greek Wedding. Instead he sometimes reminded me of Jeff Bridges in "The Big Lebowski". Which in fact is a big compliment, coming from a guy who watched Lebowski for Idontknow how many times.Definitely a well-earned eight on my scale!

vorazqux Who cast this movie? First off, Justin Long seems like a nice enough fellow, but a college basketball prospect? He's about 30 years old, 5'6'' and 125 pounds. And how come a trailer park has so many nice looking residents around? I'd move there! I don't mean to trash trailer parks, but statistically speaking, over 50% of the residents could not be that attractive in just about any place. It's a shame the casting is so poor because the film had potential. I love how John Corbett suddenly overcomes his "ailment" at the end of the film without a hitch. I wonder why the actors did not tell the director about altering some of these scenes, but then, if you're going to have Justin Long cast as basketball stud, I suppose no one either cared or was paying attention. Still, if you can get by all of the setbacks (maybe a miraculous intervention or drunken flurry?), Dreamland just might be entertaining enough for you.

ArizWldcat This is an introspective film about a young girl named Audrey. Her mother has died, her father is agoraphobic, and her best friend is struggling with her health as well. They live in a beautiful area of New Mexico, but their home is a dismal trailer park. Audrey would like to escape this dead end life but sees no way out since most of the people she loves depend on her. This movie is about her (and their) journey to discover how they can escape their ruts.The film is well made; the characters are all well developed, and Agnes Bruckner, John Corbett (in a big departure from his usual persona) and Justin Long (among others!!) all do a great job portraying their respective characters.Unfortunately, this film won't reach a wide audience, but for what it's worth, I enjoyed it.