Life Could Be A Dream: A Compelling Aussie Drama About Family & Abuse

Life Could Be Dream is a dramatic film which depicts a woman’s fractured mental state owing to the emotional and financial abuse she has suffered from her abusive husband.

Sarah is 40 years of age and seeks refuge with her teenage son in a mansion she’s selling and ponders whether a life free from her violent husband is possible. She is a strong woman who seeks new beginnings and a safe and happy environment with her son. Sarah laments; “I don’t feel safe at home.”

But is this just wishful thinking? She is silently struggling – will her husband stop stalking her? Is it difficult to let go and start over again?

Filmed in Sydney this film is directed by Jasmine Tarasin and stars Maeve Dermody as Sarah, the ever-tormented woman who has slowly watched the relationship with her husband deteriorate from wedded bliss to trauma. Alexander England portrays the husband, a possessive man who cuts his wife off financially when she eludes his clutches.

Sonny McGee stars in his breakout role as Otis the son who feels his mother’s anguish. When he asks his mother why she married his father she sadly responded; “I thought he’d be a good dad”.

The mother/son relationship is explored as she attempts to be a model of strength. Is it irrational for the son to believe that he may inherit his father’s darker traits and treat his future wife in the same abhorrent manner?

There is something quite unique about this Australian film which concerns a very real social issue. Whereas most similar themed dramatic films display graphic scenes of violence, sometimes gratuitous, Courtney Collins who wrote the script has wisely omitted such scenes.

Audiences don’t need to see the violence that occurs behind closed doors – astute direction and a layered performance from Maeve Dermody successfully conveys fear, vulnerability and ultimately, resilience.

The husband is prominently seen through flashbacks and doesn’t share any scenes with his wife in real time. Sarah’s perspective drives the narrative maximising the empathy audiences feel for the character.

The slow-paced nature of the film works in its favour as this technique defines the character’s reality – audiences will feel her entrapment and isolation. The soft musical score also amplifies the silent tension – the empty house, the friends who stopped calling and the intoxicating loneliness.

Life Could Be A Dream is compelling viewing, especially for women who have lived this reality. It’s a cautionary tale which stresses that women should not live in toxic relationships, as it doesn’t just mentally scar the women, but also the children.

Life could be a dream for these women if they choose to escape to safety.

***1/2

Life Could Be A Dream is in cinemas from May 14.