Years later, the college-aged Luke (Miles Robbins) is paralyzed by anxiety over his future, his social life and his responsibility to his mother, who struggles with paranoid delusions and a hatred of her own reflection. it's hereditary, but we know from the beginning he never stood a chance. Surpassing similar attempts at capturing the retro-horror vibe like BEYOND THE GATES and THE VOID, DANIEL ISN'T REAL is an efficacious, if not a fair bit cheesy, exercise in psychological thrills and body horror. and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango. Stream Daniel Isn't Real uncut, ad-free on all your favorite devices. [11], 2019 film directed by Adam Egypt Mortimer, "Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sasha Lane Join Thriller 'Daniel Isn't Real, "Sasha Lane on gay awareness, reading minds and living her best life", "Pet Sematary remake to world premiere at 2019 SXSW Film Festival", "Daniel Isn't Real': Patrick Schwarzenegger Thriller Scores Samuel Goldwyn-Shudder Deal", "Spirits Were High for the Overlook Film Festival's Druggy, Devil-Worshipping Return to New Orleans", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Daniel_Isn%27t_Real&oldid=1006684039, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Griffin Robert Faulkner as Young Luke Nightingale, This page was last edited on 14 February 2021, at 05:53. All rights reserved. mystery and thriller, | Top Critics (16) Granted, he's still rather amateurish in the acting department, but his screen presence is undeniable. In a final confrontation with Luke, Daniel claims he has helped people for centuries, but none of them have deserved his help. Daniel Isn't Real is a 2019 American psychological horror film directed by Adam Egypt Mortimer, from a screenplay by Mortimer and Brian DeLeeuw, based upon the novel In This Way I Was Saved by DeLeeuw. | Rating: 4.5/5 |, October 14, 2020 Best Netflix Shows and Series To Binge (January 2021), The 100 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now (January 2021), 100 Best Movies on Amazon Prime To Watch (January 2021). Your AMC Ticket Confirmation# can be found in your order confirmation email. Dr. Braun makes a late-night house call in an attempt to separate Luke and Daniel, but only succeeds in allowing Daniel to take over Luke's body and banish Luke's consciousness to the dollhouse. The end goes a little off-piste, with much of the sweaty creepiness replaced by silly creature effects. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. 2019, Mystery and thriller/Horror, 1h 36m, Daniel Isn't Real, but the smart, stylish fun waiting for genre lovers in this well-acted suspense thriller is completely genuine. it's fight club, but we know from the beginning and are constantly reminded that daniel isn't real - the entirety of the film depends on that knowledge (hence it being the title). Cassie begs Luke to come back to reality; hearing her from inside the dollhouse, he summons the will to escape. Enjoyably ludicrous low-budget psychological-horror... What connects us to the movie is curiosity rather than suspense...At its most likable, this film is very Jung at heart. The image is an example of a ticket confirmation email that AMC sent you when you purchased your ticket. Adam Egypt Mortimer osaa pitää Daniel Isn't Realin tärkeimmän kysymyksen koko ajan katsojan käsillä mikä kaiken keskellä on totta ja mikä pelkää kuvitelmaa. This schizophrenic buddy pic is the real deal. We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your account. And yet, it isn't. This movie is a beautiful and sad look on mental illness and learning to cope. [5] It was released on December 6, 2019. However, he quickly starts exhibiting aggressive behavior, becoming enraged when Luke doesn't obey him. Coming Soon, Regal It looks cool, it's compelling enough to keep your attention, and you can tell a lot of passionate work was put into the set design, makeup, and script resulting in a film that has no right being as good as it is. The first is Right Said Fred. Club wrote that the film is "a slick and thrilling take on the intersection of mental illness and creative inspiration that also doubles as a commentary on toxic masculinity" and awarded the film a B. Coming Soon. When Daniel starts taking over Luke's body for even more chaotic depravity, Luke starts losing his grip on reality, and some really trippy horror fantasy stuff happens. 2019. It was released on December 6, 2019, by Samuel Goldwyn Films in select theaters and digitally. He attempts to banish Daniel back to the dollhouse but is unsuccessful. | Rating: 4/5 He then resurrects his charismatic childhood imaginary friend Daniel to help him cope, not realizing how dangerous Daniel is. |. Daniel Isn't Real was introduced as 'a cross between Drop Dead Fred and Hellraiser'; if you are immediately wondering how that could ever play out, then rest assured, this is as good an approximation as you are likely to get. |, February 10, 2020 Your Ticket Confirmation # is located under the header in your email that reads "Your Ticket Reservation Details". Don’t worry, it won’t take long. Daniel then kills Braun. Please reference “Error Code 2121” when contacting customer service. We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future. By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy 1 hr 40 mins. | Rating: 5/10 By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. Featuring star-making turns from a young cast, and co-starring Sasha Lane ('American Honey') and Mary Stuart Masterson ('Skin'), 'Daniel Isn't Real' is a visually stunning, thought-provoking exploration of mental illness, entitlement and childhood trauma, perfectly tailored for our troubled times, and one of the most unique and captivating independent horror movies of recent years. Sidney Poitier’s 7 Most Memorable Performances, All Harry Potter Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer. [9] Katie Rife of The A.V. Just below that it reads "Ticket Confirmation#:" followed by a 10-digit number. Read critic reviews When Luke decided to leave his mother's home and face emancipation, he never thought it would be so complicated. I'm guessing we'll be seeing more of him in future genre outings. Daniel Isn’t Real, produced by the same team as Nicolas Cage acid horror Mandy, sees Patrick Schwarzenegger – Arnie’s son – play the demonic influence on another young man’s shoulder. You're almost there! It’s all style and very little substance. The best thing I can say about Daniel Isn’t Real is that it’s a promising early feature made by young artists who haven’t yet worked out how to express and/or synthesize what they like about their favorite artists and their work. Daniel Isn’t Real is another horror movie from Elijah Wood and Daniel Noah’s production house, SpectreVision, the company that brought us Mandy, The Greasy Strangler and most recently, The Color Out of Space. This is an hallucinatory ride with a striking sense of style and a sweat-inducing atmosphere, a ride that'll keep you off your balance in a way that's both uncomfortable but very hard to tear away from. This is only relevant because I'm pretty sure DANIEL ISN'T REAL is just a gritty remake of that critically panned, spastic cult classic. He meets another boy among the onlookers at the scene: cool and confident Daniel, who invites him to play and quickly becomes his friend. He decides his next target will be Cassie. But the physical aspect to Luke’s alter ego allows the film to maintain a middle ground between psychological and body horror as it evolves into a distinctly disturbing story. Get the freshest reviews, news, and more delivered right to your inbox! Coming Soon. There's enough before that, though, to elevate Adam Egypt Mortimer's film above the bog-standard psychological horror. and the Terms and Policies, Adam Egypt Mortimer's second feature ... offers a novel convergence of mental health issues, toxic masculinity and occultish vibes. Copyright © Fandango. It is a thought-provoking story that uniquely tells the story of past trauma, the inability to escape the inevitable, healing, and desire. Daniel, surrounded by an otherworldly darkness, reverts to his true monstrous form, implying he will now seek out a new host. He then resurrects his charismatic childhood imaginary friend Daniel to help him cope, not realizing how dangerous Daniel is. Daniel Isn't Real immediately puts the viewer on edge. There, we get shocking transformations and a bloody showdown that briefly jar the movie to life. |, February 7, 2020 [2], It had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 9, 2019. Don’t get left behind – Enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Shudder's full library of films and series for 7 days. Daniel Isn’t Real most reminds me of two distinctly different films. Aside from the fact that I had horrible taste when I was a small person, Phoebe Cates is hot, and what child doesn't want an unholy hybrid of Jim Carrey and Doctor Who wreaking havoc in their life with whacky hijinks? Official Selection at the SXSW... Read more . Don't have an account? | Rating: 3/5 Luke becomes increasingly unstable, convinced that Daniel is taking over his body while he sleeps. | Rating: 3/5 Sign up here. He confides to his therapist, Dr. Cornelius Braun (Chukwudi Iwuji), that he is afraid he will eventually become just like her. | Fresh (66) Daniel Isn’t Real 4 stars ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 16th December 2019 by Sarah Cartland Leave a Comment This is an electrifying and unforgettable film, a psychological thriller … Daniel Isn't Real has a positive first act with a good general plot and introduction. The boys become close playmates, and their connection helps Luke cope with his parents' divorce. Read full review Elijah Wood, Daniel Noah, Josh C. Waller and Lisa Whalen will produce the film, while Timur Bekbosunov, Johnny Chang, Emma Lee, Peter Wong and Stacy Jorgensen will serve as executive producers, under their SpectreVision and ACE Pictures banners, respectively. A troubled college freshman resurrects his imaginary friend to help him cope with a violent trauma. A film which navigates sensitive issues with care, intellect, imagination, and brutality at times, this second film from Adam Egypt Mortimer is a stunning ride through university life (and Hell). Which tells the story of a young girl with an imaginary friend, that comes back when she is older. With both Arnold's facial features and Bobby Kennedy's hair, his mannerisms and vocal inflections come straight out of an uncanny abyss of famous genetics, and it's difficult to disregard this fact every minute he's on screen. In July 2018, it was announced Miles Robbins, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sasha Lane, and Hannah Marks joined the cast of the film, with Adam Egypt Mortimer directing from a screenplay he co-wrote with Brian DeLeeuw, based upon a novel by DeLeeuw. |, July 16, 2020 Daniel Isn't Real . [3][4] Shortly after, Samuel Goldwyn Films acquired distribution rights to the film. Daniel Isn't Real Patrick Schwarzenegger Miles Robbins Sasha Lane (2019) A troubled college freshman resurrects his imaginary friend to help him cope with a violent trauma. This 10-digit number is your confirmation number. Luke calls him a parasite. Traumatized 8-year old Luke invents an imaginary friend named Daniel who leads them both into a world of fantasy and imagination. For now, the film seems custom made for him and Miles Robbins - two skinny, dapper, emo, poster boys of Hot Topic-branded white privilege. |, February 5, 2020 When Luke won't have sex with a psychology student named Sophie (Hannah Marks) on a date, Daniel forcibly takes over his body, has rough sex with Sophie and attacks Luke's roommate. | Rotten (14). Anyway, Luke (Robbins) decides to free his imaginary friend/alter ego from the dollhouse he resigned him to years before when his mother's psychosis takes a turn for the worse. After Daniel tricks Luke into doing something terrible, Luke is forced to lock him away. |, July 12, 2020 Although adults such as Luke's mother, Claire (Mary Stuart Masterson), cannot see Daniel, he appears physically real to Luke. Featuring star-making turns from a young cast, and co-starring Sasha Lane (American Honey) and Mary Stuart Masterson (Skin), Daniel Isn t Real is a visually stunning, thought-provoking exploration of mental illness, entitlement and childhood trauma, perfectly tailored for our troubled times, and one of the most unique and captivating independent horror movies of recent years. Just leave us a message here and we will work on getting you verified. Coming Soon. This unfortunately applies to the makers of “Daniel Isn’t Real,” a new horror movie about a college student who’s menaced by an imaginary friend from childhood. Adam Egypt Mortimer’s 2019 horror film Daniel Isn’t Real features an ending that is thought-provoking & surreal; here is the ending & Daniel explained Cinemark SpectreVision, It is the second feature from director Adam Egypt Mortimer and is based on the novel In This Way I Was Saved by co-writer Brian DeLeeuw. It's light fare for seasoned horror vets, but a few sequences would have scarred me for life if I'd done a double feature of this with DROP DEAD FRED when I was a little guy. The introduction to a young Daniel is also positive and it's enjoyable to see this new friendship develop only to … |, December 20, 2019 One of my favorite movies as a child was DROP DEAD FRED. Read critic reviews. Company 3, 13 Oscar-Worthy Genre Performances Awards Voters Should Consider, The Indie Fresh List: A Killer Dress, A Missing Teen, and A Menacing Imaginary Friend, February 13, 2020 Luke wanders out of their home to escape the shouting. Twelve years later, Luke brings Daniel back -- and he now appears as a charming, manipulative young man with a terrifying secret agenda. Daniel Isn’t Real. A troubled college freshman, Luke, suffers a violent family trauma. The final act of Daniel Isn’t Real is a neon-soaked torture chamber of weird that I liked more the longer I sat with it. Daniel Isn’t Real Review. "[7] On Metacritic, the film holds an averaged score of 61 out of 100 based on 11 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Claire convinces Luke to send Daniel away by symbolically locking him in her mother's old dollhouse. The problem with Daniel Isn’t Real is that it wants it both ways in terms of mental health. The poster preamble "From the producers of MANDY" is probably enough of a selling point for fans of last year's phantasmagorical Nic Cage schlockfest to give it a watch at the very least.