No More Fairy Tales: ‘In Your Dreams’ Gets Real About Family

The age of the perfect, conflict-free family in animation is being challenged by “In Your Dreams,” a new film that star Simu Liu praises for “getting real.” The adventure-comedy, which opens in theaters on Friday, centers on a family struggling with marital strife, a topic Liu says is “important” for kids to see.
“The way that families are depicted… is this idea that families are always happy… It’s just not true,” said the ‘Shang-Chi’ star. Liu, who voices the father, was “fascinated” by director Alex Woo’s pitch to show a “real family that argues.” He believes children need “imagery of families that aren’t perfect.”
The plot of the Netflix film follows the children, Stevie (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) and Elliot (Elias Janssen), on a quest. They travel to a dream world to find The Sandman, whom they believe has the magic to save their parents’ marriage. This fantastical journey, animated by Sony Pictures Imageworks, is set against a deeply realistic emotional backdrop.
The cast includes Emmy winner Cristin Milioti as the Mom and “The Office” star Craig Robinson as the stuffed animal Baloney Tony. Milioti, a Grammy-winning singer, highlighted a “really great” duet with Liu, which she called a “beautiful moment” that shows the strained couple in harmony.
The film’s ultimate lesson is one of acceptance. Stevie, the protagonist, “grapples with the discovery that there is no magic solution to real-life problems,” according to Hoang-Rappaport. “In Your Dreams” bravely trades a simple fairy-tale ending for a more complex, honest, and valuable truth.