I’ll See You in My Dreams – Blu-ray Movie Review

This movie was surprisingly poignant and had me enraptured in the first 10 minutes. A widow of 20 years has fallen into a routine (rut) and was comfortable, until her companion canine up and dies. Having had a dog put down myself, I could feel her anguish. But isn’t it still better to have love and lost, then never loved at all? Then one day she meets a pool cleaner named Lloyd and develops a platonic friendship that helps to draw her out of her shelf. Her self- discovery allows us to see that the process of aging doesn’t have to dull and monotonous. Even getting another man in her life (played wonderfully by Sam Elloitt) can be fun, yet bitter sweet…but isn’t that how life can be? I don’t want to make the movie sound like a downer, it is not. It is also full of great and humorous performances by Rhea Perlman and others and the “speed dating” section is hilarious. Still, this movie falls or rises on the performance of Danner, and she is well nigh perfect for this role. My wife was teary-eyed at the end, but I found myself well satisfied with a very thoughtful and engaging movie. Recommended.

The opening sequence in the early hours of a bedroom looked a bit grainy and soft, but the film quality went up considerably in the day-lit scenes. Skin tones were natural (though some of the older women’s make-up was a bit too thick for my tastes), colors solid and vibrant and shadow details exquisite. Sound was appropriately solid with dialog well centered. Not much in the surrounds and sub. The Karaoke scenes were well fleshed out with ambient sounds, as though you were actually seated in the audience. All-in-all, a well produced production.

A bit of a disapointment here. Only a “behind the scenes’ extra.