Dream House (2011)

Soon after moving into their seemingly idyllic new home, a family learns of a brutal crime committed against former residents of the dwelling.

Director:

Jim Sheridan

Writer:

David Loucka

Stars:

Daniel Craig, Naomi Watts, Rachel Weisz

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Craig	...	Will Atenton
Naomi Watts	...	Ann Patterson
Rachel Weisz	...	Libby
Elias Koteas	...	Boyce
Marton Csokas	...	Jack Patterson
Taylor Geare	...	Trish
Claire Geare	...	Dee Dee (as Claire Astin Geare)
Rachel G. Fox	...	Chloe Patterson (as Rachel Fox)
Jane Alexander	...	Dr. Greeley
Brian Murray	...	Dr. Medlin
Bernadette Quigley	...	Heather Keeler
Sarah Gadon	...	Cindi
Gregory Smith	...	Artie
Mark Wilson	...	Capt. Conklin
David Huband	...	Officer Nelson

Storyline

Some say that all houses have memories. For one man, his home is the place he would kill to forget. A family unknowingly moves into a home where several grisly murders were committed...only to find themselves the killer's next target. Successful publisher Will Atenton (Craig) quit a job in New York City to relocate his wife, Libby (Weisz), and two girls to a quaint New England town. But as they settle into their new life, they discover their perfect home was the murder scene of a mother and her children. And the entire city believes it was at the hands of the husband who survived. When Will investigates the tragedy, his only lead comes from Ann Paterson (Watts), a neighbor who was close to the family that died. As Will and Ann piece together the disturbing puzzle, they discover that the story of the last man to leave Will's dream house will be just as horrifying to the one who came next.

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Plot Keywords:

amnesia | immolation | house fire | extension ladder | last day on job | 

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Taglines:

Once upon a time, there were two little girls who lived in a house.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, terror, some sexuality and brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [fr]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 September 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Detrás de las paredes

Filming Locations:

Brampton, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$8,129,355 (USA) (30 September 2011)

Gross:

$21,283,440 (USA) (11 November 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cliffjack Motion Pictures, Morgan Creek Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Even though it's set in New England, USA, none of the principal actors are American. Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig are both British and Naomi Watts is Australian.

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Goofs

Will is walking in town and looks into the café as a man and a woman - the woman is wearing red boots - walk towards him. He goes in, talks to the police officers and leaves a few moments later. When he does, the same couple are walking towards him again in the same direction.

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Quotes

Will Atenton: Once upon a time, there were two little girls who lived in a house.

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Connections

Featured in Great Movie Mistakes IV (2012)

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Soundtracks

"You're Still With Me"
Written by Rachael Lawrence and Deborah Ellen
Performed by 'Mavis Campbell'

User Reviews

Once again, "Studio Heads" ruin the Artist's Work

I went to see this film with great expectations as I'm a great fan of Sheridan's body of work and also happen to enjoy Psychological Suspense/Horror films (NOT slasher film trash). So I was really quite disappointed with this effort by a team that seemed to have so much potential.

But now it all makes sense to learn that the final effort was yanked away from Sheridan; which has resulted in a homogenized and generic thriller made up of (and the result of) idiotic random behind-the-scenes "creative decision making" by Test Audiences(?) and less-than-passionate-about-the-story/genre Studio Heads whose primary involvement was solely in getting a "Horror/Thriller" into theaters by October in order to cash in on the Halloween audience.

Seeing this happen again and again, I doubt they will ever learn. This is the only industry in the world where one (as a Producer) can "fail upward" just because you got something (anything) produced (in the can).

As a final note: There was a fantastic Spec Script floating around a couple of years ago with nearly the same title... "The Dream House." It was somewhat similar, as it involved an Architect & his family who rehab & remodel an abandoned mansion by a lake; but THAT script was a truly terrifying Horror/Ghost Story along the same lines as Shirley Jackson & Robert Wise's quintessential B&W Horror Classic "The Haunting."

With this Dream House turning out to be such a dud and a nightmare, hopefully that spec script will resurface in the near future to make up for this failed effort.