Daniel Isn't Real

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domino harvey
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Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Daniel Isn't Real

#1 Post by domino harvey » Tue Dec 03, 2019 2:45 pm

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Childhood wonderment meets the horror of the adult world in Daniel Isn’t Real, director Adam Egypt Mortimer’s (Some Kind of Hate) darkly twisted take on the “imaginary best friend” concept, critically acclaimed as “one of the year’s most disturbing out-and-out horror films” (Kim Newman).

Luke Nightingale, a lonely young boy with an emotionally unstable mother, invents a friend named Daniel who leads them both into a world of fantasy and imagination. After Daniel tricks Luke into doing something terrible, Luke is forced to banish him to the bottom of his subconscious. Twelve years later, Luke (Miles Robbins, Halloween 2018), now a college freshman, brings Daniel (Patrick Schwarzenegger, Midnight Sun) back — and he now appears as a charming, manipulative young man with a terrifying secret agenda.

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.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS
• High Definition Blu-ray™ (1080p) presentation
• Original lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo soundtracks
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• New audio commentary by co-writer/director Adam Egypt Mortimer, exclusive to this release
• Beyond the Garden of Earthly Delights, an exclusive video essay on the film and its themes by author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
• Deleted scenes
• Alternate ending
• Cinema of Anxiety, an exclusive video interview with Adam Egypt Mortimer
• FrightFest premiere introduction and Q&A
• FrightFest TV interviews with Adam Egypt Mortimer
• Theatrical trailer
• Stills galleries

FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Katie Rife

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swo17
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Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:25 am
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Re: Daniel Isn't Real

#2 Post by swo17 » Wed Mar 23, 2022 5:46 am

For shame that the specs for this release didn't advertise its biggest selling point (for me): I was just catching up with Chris Clark (aka Clark)'s last few albums and was wondering where I'd heard of this film that he'd done the score for a few years ago. I will now have to check it out post haste, because the soundtrack rules. To wit

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brundlefly
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 12:55 pm

Re: Daniel Isn't Real

#3 Post by brundlefly » Thu Mar 24, 2022 5:15 pm

Don't remember the score making much impression, but may have been too busy getting whiplash between promise and frustration. The set-up is pretty perfect, but I recall a lot of blunt, clunky reinforcement, performances all over the map (you will long for the range and nuance of the elder Schwarzenegger), and some redemptive bursts of f/x.

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swo17
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Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:25 am
Location: SLC, UT

Re: Daniel Isn't Real

#4 Post by swo17 » Sat Apr 09, 2022 8:42 am

Hmmm...I thought Schwarzenegger was good for the role (and I'm just learning the other lead is the son of Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon!) and that the film was generally rather well done for just a sophomore feature (some of the f/x initially felt cheap but eventually won me over). Knowing the score pretty well it's a great fit to the material, but worth noting that the album is very much its own thing, with a great seamless flow and significant passages that are either buried in the film or completely absent. The biggest attention grabbers from the album (like the track I linked above, "You're Pulling My Face Off", or "I'm Pulling My Face Off") seemed to be missing from what I could tell, which I suppose fittingly suggests a life to Daniel (who, I might add, isn't real) outside of the film. Anyway, I've been a fan of Clark's for like 20 years (obligatory link to my go-to favorite song) and this is seriously some of his best work. I hope he keeps getting opportunities like this!

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