When you look at Netflix’s original animated films (not to be confused with the ones it only distributes like KPop Demon Hunters), you can split them into two clear groups. There are the inventive projects that let well-known filmmakers explore their ideas such as Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, Apollo 10½, My Father’s Dragon, The Sea Beast and Wendell & Wild, and there are the others that give new directors, often with a history in major studios, a chance to prove themselves. This second group began with two wonderful surprises, Klaus and The Willoughbys, but lately, with films like Leo, Over the Moon and The Magician’s Elephant, they increasingly feel like echoes of Pixar, DreamWorks or Disney, both narratively and visually. They entertain children but rarely stay in memory for long. In Your Dreams clearly belongs to that second group.
The film is directed by Alex Woo, who worked as Story Artist and Story Lead on six Pixar films before leaving the studio and founding his own, Kuku (which means “cry”). His feature debut follows a young girl and her brother who become linked after reading an enchanted book and start having shared dreams. These dreams are filled with colorful worlds, strange creatures, and reflections of their real fears and passions. Together, they must find the Sandman, who can grant their wish to keep their parents together.
Visually, the film recalls works from other studios, and you will likely be reminded of Wreck-It Ralph, Inside Out, Trolls, Moana, and even Sausage Party in one surprising scene that somehow made the final cut. The constant sense of déjà vu keeps the film from feeling immersive, as you keep trying to remember where you’ve seen each idea before. There is even a moment that feels lifted from Five Nights at Freddy’s, and the overall arc mixes Boss Baby, Inside Out and last year’s Spellbound. Little stands out once it’s over. The sand creatures, the Sandman himself, the tired animal sidekick, and even the siblings all blend together into something generic.
Even so, the adventure spirit and the sibling bond are mildly effective, and there is one touching scene when the girl learns to love and accept the younger brother she once despised for his gross and strange behavior. That moment might even bring a tear to your eye and could have worked as the film’s emotional core.
Yet instead, the film tries to have a more mature conversation and makes the divorce arc the engine of its story. [Skip this paragraph if you want to avoid spoilers.] More than in Spellbound, it sugarcoats marriage and oversimplifies the parents’ conflict. It stays with the children’s point of view, turning their growth into a lesson about not blaming themselves or each other, while ignoring how little the father supports the mother. The issue is framed as the parents not putting their children first, and like in Inside Out, it insists that kids must accept that bad things happen and that sad feelings should not be repressed. But it avoids showing the effort and sacrifice any marriage requires. In the last scene, it tries to fix that by showing the couple making an effort and the father letting go of his selfishness, but it comes across as rushed and unearned.
In the end, In Your Dreams has a few funny lines and bursts of imagination, mostly through the younger brother’s creativity, and one touching scene. But in borrowing so much from other films, it never truly engages. It is admirable that it reaches for serious emotions, yet that ambition needs more nuance than it delivers. The result is pleasant but shallow, a film that fades quickly from memory and will not visit you in your dreams.