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, Rachel Weisz, Naomi Watts

2 nominations.

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 scene of the murder 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 neighbour 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:

psychiatric hospital | real life sisters playing sisters | last day on the job | father daughter relationship | closet | 

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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 [France]

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 September 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Detrás de las paredes

Filming Locations:

Lakeview Restaurant, 1132 Dundas St. W, Toronto, Ontario

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,129,355, 2 October 2011, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$21,283,440, 13 November 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cliffjack Motion Pictures,Morgan Creek Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the shooting of this film, Daniel Craig (Will Atenton) and Rachel Weisz (Libby) met and started an affair, in which their relationship was publicly announced several months later. They married in a discreet ceremony. When asked about the movie, Craig said, "The movie didn't turn out great. But I met my wife. Fair trade."

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Goofs

At the end of the movie, when Will is being dragged further into the front lawn away from his burning house, Emergency Services asks, him," Is there anybody else in the house?" Will answers in the negative. When Emergency Services found the two bodies inside the house, there should have been an investigation which would have ended most likely with Will being incarcerated and not seeing himself on a book standing outside on the sidewalk. He was already convicted of multiple murders so he would have been found guilty either by pleading or by jury even with the testimony of Ann.

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Quotes

Greenhaven Mental Patient: [off-screen] I knew he'd be back.
Police Officer: The even numbers always come back.

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Connections

Featured in Great Movie Mistakes IV (2012)

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Soundtracks

Dancing with a Ghost
Written by Thomas West
Arranged by John Debney

User Reviews

A bit confused but good after all

This begins to look like the story of a successful publisher that decides to quit his job and retire to the house of his dreams to live there peacefully with his wife and children. But the story gets complicated while it develops itself and the dream house soon becomes a nightmare one after husband and wife know that terrible murders had taken place there five years before and strange events still related to it are still happening there and scaring them. But from then on the story loses itself in a lot of loose ends making it very confusing although most of them get tied up in the end in a somewhat fanciful outcome. After a certain time we understand that the story mixes up reality and imagination or even dream. The end of the movie may be considered an open ending, happy or unhappy according to the viewer's interpretation of the surprising final scene. The acting is good, the thrilling scenes are good enough and the plot confusion doesn't spoil the movie whole after all.