Movies
‘Dream Scenario’ TIFF Review – Nightmare Comedy Transforms Nicolas Cage Into Dream Boogeyman for Cancel Culture Commentary
An entire horror franchise is dedicated to Freddy Krueger, a boogeyman who corners his prey in their own dreams to seek revenge against their parents for his murder. A24’s Dream Scenario, written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli (Sick of Myself), uses that familiar concept to spin a nightmare comedy that examines cancel culture in the modern world. Instead of a vampy dream demon, though, it’s Nicolas Cage’s oafish professor who finds himself thrust into the spotlight thanks to a bizarre phenomenon. Raucous comedy gives way to a different variety of horror as unsettling reflections of reality set in, to mixed results.
Paul Matthews (Cage) lives a rather ordinary life. He’s in a loving marriage with his long-time wife, Janet (Julieanne Nicholson). He has two precious daughters, lives in a nice neighborhood, and has a comfortable gig as an evolutionary biologist professor. Never mind that he has aspirations of writing a book that he’s made no steps toward achieving or that landing a coveted spot at a distant pal’s famous dinner parties comes with a heightened sense of social awkwardness from Paul, often to everyone’s embarrassment. The discomfort felt by Paul’s loved ones and friends only increases when he’s suddenly appearing in people’s dreams. But the novelty of Paul’s peculiar dream crashing turns nightmarish when those dreams start getting traumatically violent.
Photo Credit: A24
Dream Scenario offers heady commentary on the way ordinary people suddenly find themselves the center of the pop culture consciousness, struggling to navigate the unwanted attention as the public turns on a dime. Borgli tracks this chaotic journey by toggling between comedy and horror. At first, Paul’s life presents almost like a sitcom, with Cage more than up to the task of handling the self-deprecating humor and oddball quirks of his character. Even the start of Paul’s dream appearances plays for laughs as he passively watches from the sidelines as various dreams play out in fantastical ways. Borgli slowly strips away the humor as the dreams become more violent and harrowing, blurring the lines between the dream version of Paul and his waking self.
Despite the central conceit, Borgli surprisingly never gets as weird or as edgy as you’d expect. Bursts of violence, nightmare sequences, and even mentions of Rue Morgue magazine frequently acknowledge the horror of Paul’s plight, but it’s never pushed far enough to match the collective PTSD that Nightmare Paul inflicts. While a clever metaphor for the pitfalls of the social media age and how not to handle unwanted attention, Dream Scenario doesn’t delve deep enough beyond a superficial trajectory, robbing the narrative whole of some unpredictability.
Dream Scenario’s biggest asset, what sells the humor of this nightmare comedy the most, is Cage’s performance as Paul. Borgli’s script wisely never lets his protagonist fully off the hook for social faux pas or selfish choices made, and it lends complexity to the character that Cage makes wholly his own. Whether he’s farting mid-seduction or tormenting his daughter via cartoonish boogeyman movements mid-dream, Cage effortlessly lands every comedic beat. Even as Paul becomes more overtly selfish and deranged, Cage ensures the character doesn’t entirely evade sympathy.
Borgli’s latest makes for a propulsive watch that wields its comedy and genre conventions smartly. It’s bolstered by a captivating performance from Cage. While the commentary on cancel culture feels apt, Dream Scenario tends to rely too heavily on low-hanging jokes and references to Barack Obama or Tucker Carlson over a more profound examination. Even still, it makes for a brisk and frequently amusing spin on the Freddy Krueger-type for a modern, terminally online world.
Dream Scenario made its World Premiere at TIFF and will release in theaters on November 10, 2023.
The holiday weekend means a light week for new horror releases, but it does bring the return of Dark Castle Entertainment to select theaters. It’s being joined by 6 new horror movies.
Here’s all the new horror releasing June 29, 2026 – July 3, 2026!
For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.
You wished for it. The highest-grossing horror movie of the year (so far), Curry Barker’s Obsession, arrived on Digital on June 30.
In Curry Barker’s theatrical debut Obsession, after breaking the mysterious One Wish Willow to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.
Michael Johnston (“Teen Wolf”), Inde Navarette (“Superman & Lois”), Cooper Tomlinson (“That’s a Bad Idea,” Milk & Serial), Megan Lawless (The Death That Awaits), and Emmy Award-nominee Andy Richter (“Conan,” Elf) star.
Based on a story by director James Kondelik (Behind The Walls) and a screenplay by Canadian writer Victor Rose, survival thriller Pitfall headed home to Digital on June 30. Family is murder in this Cineverse release.
In Pitfall, a young man becomes separated from his friends in the woods and plunges into a ten-foot pit lined with spikes, impaling his leg and leaving him helpless. As reality sinks in and his situation grows dire, he realizes the fall wasn’t an accident.
The film stars Richard Harmon (Final Destination: Bloodlines), Alexandra Essoe (The Pope’s Exorcist), and UFC champion Randy Couture (The Expendables) as the ruthless killer who stalks his prey in the woods. Marshall Williams (The Ice Road), Jordan Claire Robbins (The Umbrella Academy), and Matt Hamilton (Murder for Sale) also star.
The Amityville IP leans into Jaws with Amityville Shark House, just in time for the Fourth of July holiday too, as it released on Digital June 30.
Will Collazo Jr. (Amityville Thanksgiving) and Shawn C. Phillips (Amityville Karen) co-direct from a script they wrote with Julie Anne Prescott.
In the movie, after discovering an ominous shark idol hidden beneath the decaying floorboards, Richard unknowingly awakens an ancient and savage force. As the entity begins to merge with him, a quiet coastal town descends into blood-soaked chaos.
With each victim claimed, the monstrous predator grows stronger, fueling a cult’s belief that their dark god has been reborn. Now, the race is on to stop the carnage before evil consumes everything in its path.
Phillips and Prescott also star alongside Tasha Tacosa, Maritza Brikisak, Gigi Gustin (The Retaliators), Adam Marino, and Carl Solomon.
Available on Digital, Blu-ray, and DVD as of June 30 is Jacked, directed by John Fucile from a script he co-wrote with Simon Fraser.
The synopsis: “Set in the summer of 1987, JACKED follows two small-town teenagers whose day at the lake turns into a fight for survival after their car breaks down and they encounter a violent stalker.”
Marla Jean Robison, Tom Koch, Anthony Cipriani, Wynn Reichert, Kam Perez and Bella Marie star.
Get ready to work up a killer sweat and maybe spill some blood with Slashercise, a workout meets slasher hybrid that arrived exclusively on Bloodstream on July 1.
Written and directed by Ama Lea (Deathcember), the retro-styled feature follows “a masked killer known only as Meathead as he stalks the fitness clubs of Los Angeles, turning workout sessions into blood-soaked nightmares. As the city’s top trainers are picked off one by one, a group of determined fitness fanatics must fight back before they become the next bodies on the mat.”
Vanessa Decker (Stiletto), John Bloom (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Spencer Charnas (Ice Nine Kills), Sarah French (Blind), Kelli Maroney (Night of the Comet), Sarah Nicklin (V/H/S/Halloween), Diana Prince (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Jared Rivet (The Once and Future Smash), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), Tiffany Shepis (Victor Crowley), and Lisa Wilcox (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master) star.
After a record-breaking box office run, A24 and director Kane Parsons’ feature debut is heading back to theaters with bonus footage. AMC Theatres is unleashing Backrooms: Everything Must Go Editiontoday, July 3.
In the film written by Will Soodik, the owner of Cap’n Clark’s Ottoman Empire discovers a strange doorway in the basement of the furniture showroom. He sets out to explore the mysterious, liminal space, walking headfirst into a creepypasta nightmare.
Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsvestar.
AMC describes this release as a “theatrically exclusive post-credit” with additional footage from Kane Parsons. Expect 16 minutes of bonus footage, with the new version clocking in at 2 hours and 6 minutes.
The Last Exorcism director Daniel Stamm and Dark Castle Entertainment are back with Lockbox, in select theaters July 3. It adapts Soren Narnia‘s Knifepoint Horror Podcast story “Winthrop” by Emmy-winning playwright Justin Yoffe.
In Lockbox, “Seeking peace after her mother’s death, Ellen retreats to a rural town and takes in her severely traumatized cousin Winthrop. Their fragile domestic balance shatters when an erratic neighbor warns that Winthrop is dangerous. As strange phenomena escalate, Ellen must put everything on the line to defend Winthrop from a dangerous otherworldly entity determined to track him down.”
Lou Taylor Pucci (Touch Me, Evil Dead), Carla Gugino (The Haunting of Hill House, Gerald’s Game, The Fall of the House of Usher) and Katharine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps, Backrooms) star.
This week’s new release roundups are presented by Lockbox.
Be careful who you let in. Carla Gugino and Lou Taylor Pucci star in Lockbox, only in select theaters this Friday. Get tickets.
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