Film

Movie theaters, reviews and showtimes in New York, plus articles, trailers and more
 

Beautiful Dreamers (1988)

Director: John Harrison

Average user rating
No reviews

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

In 1880, progressive doctor Maurice Bucke invited American poet Walt Whitman to London, Ontario, where he was superintendent of the mental asylum. Whitman, whose brother was mentally ill, was a source of spiritual enlightenment for the doctor: they formed a lifelong friendship, and Bucke eventually went on to write the poet's biography. Writer-director Harrison uses these facts to develop a tale primarily of emotional rediscovery and sexual awakening. Bucke (Feore) finds his strait-laced wife (Meldrum) antagonistic to Whitman, until she too throws convention aside and goes skinny-dipping with the guys. Where the film drags is in its earnest attemptto convey the doctor's euphoric response to Whitman's message: applying the tone of Bucke's writings to the screen doesn't always make for credible exchanges. More involving are the scenes within the asylum which indicate the value of compassionate treatment, and Torn's glorious performance as Whitman.

Author: CM 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide

  • Print this page
  • Send to a friend

What do you think?
Post your review now

clear rating
Min 1 star. Zero stars will be treated as unrated.

*mandatory fields


Cast & crew

Director: John Harrison

Producer: Martin Walters, Michael Maclear

Cast: Colm Feore, Rip Torn, Wendel Meldrum, Sheila McCarthy, Colin Fox, David Gardner, Marsha Moreau full cast

Duration: 108 mins


Features

Making a name for himself

Making a name for himself

Sin Nombre's Cary Joji Fukunaga learned his lessons well.

To the letter

Forty years later, Costa-Gavras's Z still brims with fury.

Mind over matter

David Cronenberg reflects on a most bizarre body: his own corpus of work.

Fool's gold

Can an Oscar win lead to a cursed career? Here are five stories of postaward professional meltdowns.

We are the championed

Terrorists and teens abound in this year's "Film Comment Selects."

A history of violence

Matteo Garrone's kaleidoscopic Gomorrah wallops you with Italy's crime crisis.

True romantic

James Gray exchanges urban amorality for amour in Two Lovers.

Playing in the dark

MoMA salutes pianist Stuart Oderman's 50 years as the one-man sound of silents.

Junk bonds

Cast and crew recall the making of the classic NYC drug drama The Panic in Needle Park.