I Had a Dream (2019)

• 70%
• 2019
• Tim Atzinger

The short-feature documentary, I Had a Dream, is an ironic portrait of the life of self-described "Dream Expert" and so-called "talented person" Michael Lennox. Through the application of a psychological gaze, the filmmaker takes the audience on a journey into the secret mind of the protagonist and his ardent desire for admiration, acclaim and love - and in doing so begins to peel away layers of artifice to show the tenderly beating heart of a wounded gay man. Gradually it becomes apparent that Michael is, perhaps unconsciously, working through the extensive early trauma inflicted upon him by a homophobic society and family. By subtly weaving Michael's story together with original animated sequences and Michael's own archival footage, the viewer - as Michael's "enlightened witness" - is lead to a simultaneously humorous and ultimately moving meditation on the prospect for recovery and rehabilitation of the "wounded child" in all of us.