Dream Lover (1993)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Nicholas Kazan

Writer (WGA):

Nicholas Kazan (written by)

Release Date:

6 May 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

If you think you know your lover. Think again. Especially if she's your wife.

Plot:

Ray is young, charming, successful and the owner of a prosperous architect company. However, he has recently gone trough a very painful divorce...

Plot Keywords:

Marriage | Divorce | Architect | Suspicion | Deception

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

James Spader	...	Ray Reardon
Mädchen Amick	...	Lena Mathers
Fredric Lehne	...	Larry
Bess Armstrong	...	Elaine
Larry Miller	...	Norman
Kathleen York	...	Martha
Kate Williamson	...	Mrs. Sneeder
Tom Lillard	...	Hank Sneeder
William Shockley	...	Buddy
Carl Sundstrom	...	Officer
Irwin Keyes	...	Officer
Joel McKinnon Miller	...	Minister
Joseph Scoren	...	Martha's Lawyer (as Joseph Scorsiani)
Archie Lang	...	Judge #1
Clyde Kusatsu	...	Judge Kurita

Also Known As:

Álmaim asszonya (Hungary) [hu]
A Mulher dos Meus Sonhos (Brazil) [pt]
Ahava Zdoneat (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Amante de Sonho (Portugal) [pt]
Dream Lover: el amante ideal (Spain) [es]
Efialtikos erotas (Greece) [el]
Incubo d'amore (Italy) [it]
Nightmare Lover (Germany) [de]
Une épouse trop parfaite (Canada: French title) [fr]
Unelmien rakastajatar (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

103 min | 108 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:M | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Germany:16 | Ireland:15 | Norway:15 | Spain:13 | UK:18 | USA:R

Company:

Edward R. Pressman Film

Quotes:

Ray: [showing photos] Do you know her?
Buddy: Sissy. Hope she's nothin' to you.
Ray: She's my wife.
Buddy: Figures. Did she run off and leave you?
Ray: No.
Buddy: Well, give it time.
Ray: Is that what she did to you?
Buddy: She did things to me I can't even pronounce.

Soundtrack:

JUST YOU

An intriguing psychological melodrama.

DREAM LOVER is a nicely made, well-acted little film about a man who meets and marries the girl of his dreams but begins to wonder who she really is. This film marks the directorial debut of screenwriter Nicholas Kazan, the son of Elia Kazan. He did a very impressive job. The cleverest touch is having a framing device which has a crazed clown at a carnival who explains the major plot developments to James Spader's character and to us as well. Spader plays a very successful businessman who just got a divorce and is very lonely. But a chance encounter with a beautiful young woman named Lena (Madchen Amick in a very incisive performance) changes that. She is perfect in every way. I can't reveal much more story than that. The plot twists and turns like a pretzel. It's not always plausible, especially the ending, but it is entertaining all the same.