In full transparency, I must admit that I started watching In Your Dreams convinced that I would hate it. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised and it kept my interest to the end with its well-developed sibling characters, artful animation, relatable family problems and possibly the best-ever movie use of Metallica’s epic “Enter Sandman.”

 

When the story begins, we learn that Stevie had loving parents and the perfect life before her little brother Elliott came along to mess things up - and boy, as an older sister of a little brother, can I relate to that!

 

The thing is, life isn’t perfect anymore for the siblings. Their parents are clearly having money and marriage woes, and this stresses Stevie out to the point where she can’t sleep. The grown-up issues are handled well, and Stevie’s anxiety and stress is relatable and authentic - as are her little brother’s wacky antics.

 

The movie makes a central point clearly known early on: that dreams are the mind’s way of trying to fix your real-world problems while you sleep. This is soon escalated to cartoonish proportions with the help of a magical book, wild dreams and the mystical Sandman character, taking the kids on a wild ride.

 

In Your Dreams is somewhat derivative, in that it reminds me of pieces and parts of several other animated films. That said, I truly enjoyed the sibling relationship and the way it develops throughout the story. Stevie comes to realize that maybe Elliott doesn’t just “mess things up” after all - maybe they make an excellent team and he is an important part of their family just as she is.

 

Stevie and Elliott manage to work with the Sandman to create their “perfect” family - only to realize that’s not what they want after all. This reminded me of aspects of CORALINE - the alternate/perfect family is just a hair too creepy, although no one has button eyes, thankfully.

 

In Your Dreams may not cover much new ground, but the story is told well and there are enough chuckles and heartwarming moments to make this wholesome family viewing. Kudos to the voice cast, all of whom were excellent.