Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
Publisher Will Atenton quits a lucrative job in New York to relocate his wife, Libby, and their daughters to a quaint town in New England. However, as they settle into their home the Atentons discover that a woman and her children were murdered there, and the surviving husband is the town's prime suspect. With help from a neighbor who was close to the murdered family, Will pieces together a horrifying chain of events.
Dream House is a competently made psychological thriller that starts with an intriguing premise—a family discovering dark history in their new home—but squanders much of its potential. The plot twist involving Will's identity is revealed awkwardly and too early, deflating tension rather than building it. The acting from Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, and Naomi Watts is serviceable but constrained by a script that doesn't give them enough to work with. Cinematography is functional winter-New England atmosphere without distinction. The film feels derivative of better psychological thrillers and haunted-house mysteries, recycling familiar genre beats without a distinctive voice. The ending is rushed and emotionally unsatisfying, failing to capitalize on the groundwork laid earlier.