by Austen Terry, Contributing Writer
Dreams have always been something I am interested in — whether they’re just your subconscious mind recalling the day, or whether they have true meaning. Have you ever wanted to travel into your dreams and explore that world? Well the 2022 film, Slumberland,will let you do that. I knew nothing about this film until I searched it on IMDb and saw Jason Momoa was in it, and had a long purple coat and horns. I didn’t even watch a trailer — I was sold on this movie based solely on Jason Momoa looking weird. I haven’t seen this movie being talked about, though, which makes me wonder if Netflix is promoting it enough, or just throwing it on the service, hoping people see it. It is based on a comic strip series, Little Nemo by Winsor McCay, and I hope they explore this world more. But this is a great standalone film.
Slumberland tells the story of Nemo (Marlow Barkley), who lives in a lighthouse with her father, Peter (Kyle Chandler). When he is lost at sea, Nemo is forced from her home to live with her estranged uncle, Philip (Chris O’Dowd). The first night after arriving in Philip’s apartment, Nemo has a dream where she is taken back to her lighthouse, and she finds Flip (Momoa) ripping through her home and looking for a map to the dream world know as “Slumberland.” Once they can locate the map, Nemo, Flip, and Nemo’s stuffed pig (who is named Pig, and who comes alive in Nemo’s dreams) have to go on a journey through other people’s dreams to find the Sea of Nightmares, where magic pearls can be found. Dream hopping is illegal, and chasing down our outlaws is Agent Green (Weruche Opia), an agent of the Bureau of Subconscious Activities.
This movie is pretty out there, and it has a lot going on in its almost two-hour runtime. But it is beautiful to look at, and has heart. Director Francis Lawrence and writers David Guion and Michael Handelman work well together in bringing this story to the screen. Grief and loss weigh on you throughout this film, as Nemo and Philip deal with this sudden loss. If you are someone who has ever lost someone who you were extremely close with, then this film will be as hard for you as it was for me. I am not ashamed to admit it I was bawling by the end because of how emotional this film can get. It is an absolutely fun little adventure movie, but at it’s core, it’s about dealing with grief and loss, and finding ways to move on and live your life.
Barkley absolutely kills this role — she works well with every actor she is paired with. For example, in the beginning when she and Chandler are together, you can see a father/daughter relationship there that almost guarantees something bad is about to happen. In the scenes they share, O’Dowd shows how much the two are characters are alike, and that they both can help each other as they are struggling with this loss. Momoa and Barkley together is where this movie truly shines brighter than the lighthouse itself. They pull the best and worst out of each other; that makes some reveals so heartbreaking, but others you can see from a mile away. Momoa was clearly just having a blast in this role, and he really takes on this character. This is one of two movies that Barkley has coming out this weekend (the other being Spirited), and now I’m going to check the other out, even though I wasn’t planning to before.
The fantastical dream sequences that you get to see are marvelous. Slumberland itself is all colorful and bright, and it looks exciting, while the waking world is grey and dull. This movie explores the five stages of grief really well, and the scenes play through them all the way through. Nemo, Philip, and Flip truly go through it to finally find their acceptance and happiness. I was not expecting to fall in love with this film, or that it would have me as emotional as it did, but I was pleasantly surprised.
This film is rated PG, and is an excellent film for the family to enjoy together. I wish Netflix was advertising it more so people would know about it. There are some faults to it: some of the reveals are definitely predictable, but Barkley and Momoa take those clichés and predictability and make it great. Even O’Dowd, who I mostly know for his comedy (mostly from The IT Crowd), makes you feel for his character and the pain he goes through. I will definitely recommend this film to pretty much anyone who asks.
I leave you with this question: what is the lighthouse for?
Score: 8/10
Slumberland is currently streaming on Netflix
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