Dream Lover (1986)

Directed by Alan J. Pakula
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Director Alan J. Pakula and cinematographer Sven Nykvist, two masters of their craft, create a Hitchcock and Nightmare on Elm Street hybrid film. Kristy McNichol is well-cast and gives a great performance, maybe the best I've seen from her. Nykvist's cinematography is precise and lush, taking many cues from his days with Ingmar Bergman. The main problem is the story. I actually stayed with it for most of the film, but after the "dream rape" sequence it lost all credibility in my eyes. McNichol was forced to literally sleepwalk through the last 15 minutes and the ending just collapsed into cliche. It's not a disaster, but one gets the feeling it could have been much more.