Film: Slumberland

There is so little on at the cinema I’m relying on Netflix again for the Friday film.

I tried another film first that didn’t grab my interest and this one seemed a bit dicey at first and then I warmed to it.

As the name suggests, Slumberland is about the world of dreams (even though it sounds like a bed brand). An isolated young girl, Nemo, who loved growing up with her dad in a lighthouse, is mourning his loss. We had already been introduced to her dreams, but once he’d gone, there was no one to emphasise with her. She was sent to live in the big city with her uncle, whom she’d never met. Here, on top of enduring a new city soundscape and living with a stranger, she has to endure school for the first time.

Uncle Philip has his own demons to bear. Despite running a successful business and enjoying the trappings, being estranged from his brother, whom he was so close to, has affected his adulthood. One of the most touching scenes is when he shows Nemo a film of her dad in their younger days. However, my favourite part of the film is when in Nemo’s dreams, her cuddly toy pig comes to life, just how I imagine all cuddly toys do.

Slumberland is a good study of how our imagination and waking thoughts affect our dreams. In this case, it’s what Nemo needs to go through to accept her loss.

Understandably, tugs at your heartstrings.

7/10

Netflix from 2022