Parents' Guide to

Before I Wake

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Weird horror-fantasy has some scary stuff, some sour notes.

Movie PG-13 2018 97 minutes
Before I Wake Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 6 parent reviews

meydiana.rizki
meydiana.rizki Parent of 16-year-old
October 29, 2020
age 13+

I scored it 10. Let me tell you why:

Original, Beautiful Film- Not What You Expect Rarely does a film surprise me at all but this film certainly did. Mike Flannigan created an enigmatic speculative on childhood love, loss, fear and death that is both uniquely interpretive and otherworldly fantastical. For those who go into this film anticipating a run-of-the-mill horror film with gruesome effects and bloody deaths, you will be exceedingly disappointed. This film is provocative in that it makes you think and feel throughout. It is at times vastly uncomfortable, but magnificently redemptive. What it achieves is a rare feat- one I would classify more in the realm of Pan's Labyrinth than something like The Ring. What it suffers from is completely misdirected and misleading marketing which has done this gem a huge disservice. I'd watch it again. I'd recommend it to friends. Refrain from judging it based on the posters or the trailer. It's far greater than it's packaging and will probably be better received by audiences who expect more substance.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
2 people found this helpful.
Sarah M.
Sarah M. Parent of 8-year-old
January 17, 2023
age 7+

Great horror movie don’t think that it’s that violent. Pretty scary but not R scary. Great horror movie I think it’s good scare some kids because when the kid goes to sleep what he dreams about comes alive in the real world five out of five go watch it it’s on Netflix

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 6 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In BEFORE I WAKE, grieving parents Jessie (Kate Bosworth) and Mark (Thomas Jane) decide to take in a foster child after losing their biological son in a tragic accident. The boy, Cody (Jacob Tremblay), seems polite and sweet, although both he and Jessie are having trouble sleeping. Then, at night, as Cody dreams, Jessie and Mark start seeing butterflies in their living room. This is followed by manifestations of their departed son, Sean, who appears in the house and seems very real. Jessie tries to tell her grief therapy group about the visits, but her therapist insists it's only her imagination. Things take a turn for the worse when Cody begins seeing a monster, the Canker Man, and a social worker (Annabeth Gish) poses a threat to the new family's happiness. It's only when Jessie starts to investigate Cody's true past that things begin to add up.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (6):
Kids say (35):

This long-delayed fantasy-horror movie comes from a very talented director, Mike Flanagan, and has some interesting aspects, but it gets off to an awkward, nonsensical start and barely recovers. Flanagan (Oculus, Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil, and Gerald's Game) ordinarily knows how to build a spooky, tense world, often within limited spaces. But in Before I Wake, nothing seems nailed down. The main couple's grief isn't dealt with -- she's in therapy, he isn't -- and it's unlikely that they'd be ready or allowed to adopt a foster child in real life.

This sour note hangs over the entire movie; not even the sweetness of fine child actor Tremblay (who has also starred in Room and Wonder) can lighten Before I Wake's unpleasant sense of fatalism. Essentially, Cody is in jeopardy, and no adult is in a position to help him, certainly not brooding Mark or the snap-judgment social worker. It's not until late in the movie, when Jessie swings into detective mode -- as opposed to parental mode -- that the movie's thriller aspect kicks in and things start clicking into place. On a technical level, the movie's CG effects are colorful but chintzy looking, although the "Canker Man" monster is actually pretty frightening.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Before I Wake's use of violence. Does the movie seem cruel or sympathetic? Is it thrilling or shocking? What's the impact of media violence on kids?

  • Is the movie scary? Is it more of a fantasy or a family drama? Why?

  • How is the school bully depicted? How is he handled? Are there other/better ways of handling bullies?

  • How does the movie view a child taking stimulants, such as soda, pills, and coffee? How does it view a child being given sleeping pills?

  • Does the central couple seem ready to adopt a foster child? What things should be considered before taking such a step? How does the movie depict adoption overall?

Movie Details

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