Mike Flanagan delivers not the horror film that we want, but the supernatural lullaby that we deserve

“I don’t like to sleep…”

Horror director Mike Flanagan is progressively making a name for himself. Whether you were aware of his independent offering, Absentia, there’s no denying that Oculus is one of the more successful, original horror films to come out in the past decade, and his recent film, Hush, has continued to show the director’s acumen. Add to that the fact that the director is on the short list to helm the latest chapter in the Halloween series, as well as his upcoming film, Ouija 2, sounding like a serious horror contender, and Flanagan simply exudes horror. I mean, I even opened this review by referring to him as a “horror director.” Whether this is a title that Flanagan likes to invite or not, there’s no denying that that’s already how so many people view him, which might end up being Before I Wake’s biggest problem. Before I Wake has a heavy skeleton of horror, with the genre coursing through its DNA in some very big ways, but this is not a horror movie. And regardless of that fact it’s going to be continually held up to horror movie standards.

I think it’s a little understandable to see how Flanagan, a growing horror auteur, vehemently fought for this film to not be marketed as a horror film, but rather a “fable” or “supernatural drama,” as well as it being telling information that all audiences should be made aware of. The film’s original title, Somnia, has much less of a horror connotation as the rebranded Before I Wake does, too. It’s a prime example of someone early enough in their career getting pigeonholed into a certain niche before it might be too late for them to escape it. But more importantly here, if this film doesn’t jive with you as a piece of horror or you don’t view it to be particularly scary, well…great, that was never its intention in the first place. That being said, this is a scary film and something that functions as very acceptable horror fodder—even if it’s not supposed to be—acting more as a testament to Flanagan’s overall ability as a filmmaker. This stuff is scaring you and effectively getting under your skin because Flanagan knows his shit.

Before I Wake tells the fragile story of Jessie (Kate Bosworth) and Mark (Thomas Jane), two healing parents who take in Cody (Jacob Tremblay), a child who has severe sleep issues due to the trauma he went through with his previous family. Jessie and Mark have also themselves lost a child, putting them in a similarly damaged place. It’s kind of this bizarre, touching shared survivors story. It’s a little surprising to see the conversation that the film opens up in the areas of trauma, being a victim, and PTSD in a very real, effective way. Just like how Hush works hard to make you feel like you’re as deaf as its protagonist is, Before I Wake strives to make you feel fragile. It’s these small touches of empathy that push Flanagan’s filmmaking to a higher level. It’s a great way to make the audience feel helpless, which can be a crucial asset in horror.

The film does a great job at making you root for Cody right from the jump. It’s genuinely touching when Cody experiences moments of being comfortable and expresses joy in his new surroundings. You really want to see him be okay, while hoping that his new parents won’t have to undergo another loss, too. Horror is also just more unsettling than usual when it’s a child that’s the main sort of prey. Other films like Insidious and Sinister tap into this feeling really well and the scares cut through you even harder when you see the struggle that Cody is going through. Moments where he’s inflicting pain upon himself, purely to stay awake, are examples of the brutal gauntlet he puts himself through. Yes, there’s an obvious degree of A Nightmare On Elm Street to all of this, but the film also adds to this basic idea in a lot of interesting ways.

One of the more complex ideas that the film digs into is using its heavy focus on dreams to provide a commentary upon memory and how memory can pervert reality. There’s a rich mythos going on with Cody’s situation that the film only scratches the surface of. I love the idea of using cloudy memory or hazy dreams as a means of terror. It’s such a simple thought that can be pushed so far.

Part of the fun here is also in the small touches in how Cody’s dreams work, like the subtle power of influence on what he creates. For instance, the butterflies in his dreams early on are antennae-less, but then after he learns about them more and is told about their anatomy, in their next dream appearance they now have antennae. It’s great attention to detail showing how his “condition” works.

Another rich vein that the film taps into is the idea of Cody’s parents almost treating his ability like it’s a drug. Jessie definitely builds an addiction to seeing her dead son through her new child. This unintentional manipulation of him makes this concept a lot more complicated than it would be otherwise. Seeing the rift that the topic drives between Jessie and Mark is gripping.

Watching Cody’s dreams come to life is all sorts of beautiful, as is the veracity at which they sharpen their fangs and morph into nightmares. More than anything this reminds me of a really good Fringe episode and Flanagan’s description of the tone that he’s going for fits that bill perfectly. With certain horror voices like Brad Anderson (Session 9) getting to helm a number of episodes of the series, it’s a shame that Flanagan wasn’t as established then and able to turn out some episodes.

Watching Before I Wake’s boogeyman develop in Sean’s dreams is a nice, new sort of horror for Flanagan. A monster that can assemble himself through butterflies and still be menacing is a real feat. The fact that this threat plays by dream logic makes him even more unpredictable and frightening, especially when he’s inhabiting and distorting the memory of Mark and Jessie’s dead son. The film’s final act goes the furthest with this and there are some really disturbing images (not to mention an on point sound design) that Cody’s dreams bombard us with.

On the whole Before I Wake might be a little slower than it probably needs to be, but that actually fits more with the fable-like aesthetic that Flanagan is going for. It’s like a lullaby. At the same time, this is still a short movie that has slow patches throughout that are definitely felt. I think it’s also worth indicating that the severe turnaround hell that this film was caught up in has nothing to do with the quality of this film and everything to do with the chaotic place that Hollywood is. Believe it or not, this was filmed back in 2013! Flanagan made this before the now-released Hush. Jacob Tremblay even filmed this before his career-making performance in Room, which is kind of insane and just a reflection of how long ago this was made.

When it comes time for Before I Wake to begin tying it’s threads together, it’s appreciated that the film’s ending doesn’t play out exactly in the way that you might expect, while still utilizing an intelligent, restrained style of storytelling for it all. Once more the sort of inner beauty of this story becomes the focus, which allows the full scope of this haunted fairy tale to become clear. Before I Wake is far from Flanagan’s best work, but is still more fulfilling than Absentia, and shows yet another side of the growing filmmaker.

Sweet dreams.