Don't listen to the negative reviews

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Sort of a send-up of "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Dream Demon" must be the only horror flick that references the Falklands War. The plot is pretty routine - woman starts having nightmares and it turns out that they relate to her past - but I liked the gag that they pulled in the opening scene; seriously, not even the Evil Dead movies thought of that! The only cast member whom I recognized is Timothy Spall (Wormtail in the Harry Potter movies). His character got to experience the REALLY ugly stuff, and I suspect that it was fun to create those makeup effects. Overall, this movie is probably worth seeing once.PS: at the 1988 Fantasporto festival (held in Porto, Portugal), "Dream Demon" got nominated for Best Foreign Film.

The last thing you expect from a low-budget 80's horror film with the word 'demon' in its title is complexity and confusion, and yet all you get from "Dream Demon" is complexity and confusion. This British production tries to be more intelligent than the classic it obviously imitates (Nightmare on Elm Street) with a very intricate "what's-a-dream-and-what's-reality"-structure. The highly ambitious script (co-written by director Cokeliss) intertwines the premarital nightmares of young virgin Diana with the blurry childhood traumas of punk-girl Jenny and, most of the time, you haven't got a clue what's really going on. Diana's dreams, revolving on dark secrets inside the mirrors of her house, connect her to Jenny, who lived there as a kid and returned to Britain to find out who her real parents were. In the meantime, Diana's dreams cause the violent deaths of some persistent journalists that are interested in her upcoming marriage with a local army-hero. Maybe if he had a little more budget (or talent...), director Cokeliss might had worked out the interesting ideas more carefully. The story really does have potential and there are obvious moments of ingeniousness, but the wholesome is shaky and unappealing. Too bad, because "Dream Demon" definitely has style! The atmosphere is often uncanny and the camera-work is very inventive. The acting performances are far above average and the gruesome make-up effects (although nearly not enough in my opinion) look very convincing. All in one...not recommended.

"Dream Demon" features some imaginative visuals and clever camera shots, but is doomed by its terribly confusing, almost indecipherable plot. When it's all over, few answers have been given to the viewer and the rules of the dream-vs-reality game are never explained. This picture remains a blurry enigma from beginning to end. (*1/2)

I was very pleased when I saw this film. I rented it thinking it would be a cheesy, unlikable horror film, but it is a lot better than that. I'd say it is a gem in its own right.Made in 1988 but not released on video until 1993, Dream Demon is about an English bride-to-be who begins to have terrible, horrifying dreams. Not sure why she is experiencing them, and not able to find help from those close to her, she confides her trouble to an American woman (played by Kathleen Wilhoite, who is a very underrated actress) visiting London, who seems to be connected to the dreams in some way. It is then that the dreams turn more serious, as anyone unfortunate enough to be around the bride-to-be when she falls asleep can be pulled into the dream itself!From the opening scene (I was caught by surprise there, a rarity for me) this movie grasps you. It is a clear and rare case of a movie that could have been done extremely poorly done very well thanks to fine performances by the two female leads and a director who knew what to do when others would flop. It isn't an edge-of-your-seat horror film, but it is freaky and well-done; worth checking out. Zanatos's score: 7 out of 10.