When it comes to horror and supernatural movies, I love most of the stuff directed by Mike Flanagan. So, for this post, I'm going to share one of my supernatural movies from my favorite director called "Before I Wake".
Before sharing my thoughts on the movie, allow me to share what it's all about.
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In the movie, a couple, Jessie and Mark, lost their son after he drowned in the bathtub unattended. They're both struggling to move on, but they're trying to do so.
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One day, they decided to adopt an 8-year-old boy named Cody. He's sweet, loving, and respectful. However, he's scared of falling asleep.
At first, the couple thought that this might be because of Cody's experiences in his previous foster homes. However, they then discovered that he had an entirely different reason for not wanting to sleep.
Every time Cody sleeps, his dreams become real. At first, it was fascinating. He dreams of stunning and mystical butterflies, which his new parents enjoyed. However, his dreams turned into nightmares. The butterfly dreams turned into what he calls the "Cankerman", which he claimed to be the horrific entity that devoured his biological mom.
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With the hopes of becoming a new family, Jessie and Mark took on the dangerous quest to find out the truth behind the little boy's nightmares.
It's such a fantastic movie for me. I'm interested in dreams because I sometimes have lucid dreams, although at times they're questionable and even scary.
There was even a time when I woke up, but I found myself in a different position, and I realized I was still in another dream. I tried pinching myself in my sleep, but I only felt the pain and still stayed in that dream for a while.
I had to calm myself before I could finally wake up. It actually happened last night, too. I had another lucid dream and woke up to another dream before finally waking up to reality. XD
Just like in the film, dreaming can be amazing. You can experience things that are impossible in real life. You can encounter mystical creatures or visit beautiful places. However, dreams can also be a part of your subconscious.
They can be the things you're trying to suppress at the back of your brain because they're either insignificant or cause you anxiety and hurt.
It's what happened to the child in the movie... he had fragments of hurtful things in his subconscious that made him dream of dreadful things. The scary part in the film, though, was that his dream became reality, which affected the people around him.
Some people in his life vanished to the point of nonexistence, and only those directly related to them and the boy are aware that they ever existed.
I love how selfless the boy is. He's trying to stop himself from sleeping, despite it being damaging to his health, to save the people around him. But, he's just a child, and he's to be protected.
In life, we also encounter things that can be likened to nightmares. Of course, we can try to run away from it. We can even deny its existence, but doing only these won't make them disappear.
Sometimes, we have to stand our ground and face them head-on. It could be challenging, unbearable even. However, we can always ask someone for help. Having a significant support system matters.
Another thing I like about supernatural movies like this is how they can relate to the human psyche. Sure, they're beyond the ordinary... but they help us better realize or understand reality.
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I love this movie... It's way more than just the jumpscares. The actors were so effective, even the young ones. The flow of the story and effects were also to my liking. Mike Flanagan has become my standard for films like this.
The way his films connect the supernatural to people's psyches has always fascinated me. There are other films directed by him that I haven't checked yet, but I surely will someday.
That's it for this post. Thanks for reading, and I hope you give this film a shot if you haven't already! :)
See you around! (^^,)/
PS: This is my entry for Cine TV Contest 146: Favorite Supernatural Movie. Feel free to check it out and submit your entry while you're at it! ^^
