Plot: What’s it about?
An assassin for hire (William Hurt) has been sent an unusual package. A group of toy soldiers has been mailed to him, with no explanation. But little does the killer know that these are no mere toys, though he soon finds out when the soldiers take on a life of their own. A young couple honeymoons in London, but they’re warned not to explore the area known as Crouch End. The man who tells them is a local cabbie however, so they assume he was just trying to spook them. But when they visit Crouch End for themselves, they begin to realize that they were warned for a reason. A writer (William H. Macy) has created a private eye character that is so good, he almost wishes he could trade lives with the gumshoe. In fact, he decides that he does want to trade places and does so, but was the switch a wise idea? In his final few minutes of life, a filmmaker recalls the path taken when his brother tried to make the world a more peaceful place. The elimination of violence couldn’t lead to the end of the world, or could it? A painting is just a painting, right? A writer (Tom Berenger) begins to ask himself that question when a mysterious painting haunts his life. But what mysteries lie within the painting and how can he end the chaos that his life has turned into? These are just five of the stories found within Nightmares & Dreamscapes, just a small glimpse into the horrors that await…
This eight episode mini-series brings us adaptations of Stephen King short stories, most of which come from his Nightmares & Dreamscapes book. The other three come from Night Shift and Everything’s Eventual, so despite the title, not all these stories are from Nightmares & Dreamscapes. I’ve read all these stories and as usual, even the better adaptations fail to capture what makes the stories click. It could just be the curse of Stephen King, whose work rarely seems to work when taken from the page to the screen. These eight episodes are a mixed bag, some are more than solid, while others never really keep pace. To be honest, only two or three of these episodes stood out as above average and that simply isn’t enough. By contrast, the Masters of Horror series has been able to produce much more bad than good, so television anthology horror of this kind can still work. I think better choices could have been made in regard to which stories were used, as the Nightmares & Dreamscapes book has more than a few superior tales, compared to those selected. You can’t knock the casting choices however, with William Hurt, Claire Forlani, Ron Livingston, Jeremy Sisto, William H. Macy, and others, not a bad assortment for a project of this kind. I wanted to like Nightmares & Dreamscapes, as I love the concept, but sadly, the episodes fail to live up to the potential. If you’re a fiend for Stephen King however, I suppose a rental wouldn’t be bad, just to see the show for yourself.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The mini-series made a quick move from the screen to home video, so as expected, the visuals look terrific. I only saw a few of these on television, but without question, the episodes look much better here. I saw no debris or marks on the print, nor were any kind of compression errors evident. The images look clean and refined throughout the episodes, with good clarity and deep detail levels. The colors were varied between episodes, depending on the visual design in place, but I never saw any kind of problems. I also had no complaints to lodge with the contrast, as black levels were consistent and accurate at all times. In the end, I was impressed with these transfers and I am sure fans will be as well, so kudos to Warner in this department.
Audio: How does it sound?
These are tense, suspense driven episodes, so there is good potential for the Dolby Digital 5.1 surround to show off a little. The overall impact might not rival the latest action movie’s audio, but for the material, these soundtracks are excellent. All the sound effects, subtle or powerful, have proper placement and execution, but never come off as forced or overdone. As such, the dialogue never suffers and we never miss a single line. So while not reference level soundtracks, the audio is more than up to par, so no complaints. This release also includes Spanish subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
You’ll find a host of featurettes here, one with cast interviews, another that examines the show’s special effects, and more general behind the scenes material.
