Life Could Be A Dream (M) – 82 minutes

A woman psychologically tormented and traumatised by her husband is at the heart of the debut narrative feature for Australian filmmaker Jasmin Tarasin.

Sarah Smilie (Maeve Dermody) feels trapped in a coercively controlling marriage.

She lives in a beautiful home with her well-to-do husband, Jake (Alexander England), who is frequently away on business.

And so is the case on her 40^th birthday, which she spends with their 13-year-old son, Otis (Sonny McGee).

Clearly all is far from right for Sarah, as the film features continual flashbacks to the emergence of and evolution of her relationship with Jake. 

At first, it is apparent that Jake was besotted with Sarah, but his taunting was even on show in the early days, in the throes of passion.

Although Sarah was aware of the alarm bells, she hoped that Jake would change, just like Mr Darcy does in Pride and Prejudice, the book she is reading.

But Jake is no Mr Darcy. 

And then Sarah became pregnant, which appears to have led to the pair tying the knot.

Now his actions have escalated to the point where Sarah knows she has to get out.

She tries her best to shield their son from her true feelings about his father. 

With Jake about to return early from his trip, Sarah pulls Otis out of school to spend a few days at a mansion she is preparing for sale (she is a real estate agent).

When Jake finds out that Sarah has left with Otis, he is livid.

He shuts down their bank accounts and cancels credit cards.

With Otis anxious to return home, Sarah has to find a way to explain to Otis just what is going on.

And then Jake tracks them down.

Told from a female perspective, Life Could Be A Dream is a distressing film to watch.

It is an exploration of self-liberation, motherhood and the courage to dismantle destructive narratives. 

Given how often we hear about domestic violence and emotional turmoil in relationships, the subject resonated strongly for writer Courtney Collins.

While the messaging in the movie is critically important, I felt there was a decided awkwardness in the way the story was told.

While that ungainliness may have been a deliberate choice, I saw it as clunky.

The flow was frequently compromised or disrupted.

Displays of anger seem to be stage managed rather than natural.

That isn’t to say that the way Maeve Dermody carries herself through most of the film isn’t believable. Simply that other shows of emotion appear more authentic. 

There was too much restraint in Sonny McGee’s portrayal of the son, who is wrestling with his adolescence.

Alexander England comes across as quite a piece of work – scheming and villainous – as Jake.

The film overplayed the use of metaphors, specifically drowning, waking with a start and incessant swimming. Surely, less would have been more in that regard. 

I have no doubt the filmmakers’ hearts were in the right place in making such a pointed movie, but to me is was too obvious and heavy handed.

Rated M, Life Could Be A Dream scores a 6 out of 10.