‘Dream Café’ tells the story of Nick, a man with a dream. He works a nine to five job, has to cope with his boss who makes his life hard, has a wife, and besides everything, wants to open a café. He will do anything to get the money to pursue his dream, even if that implies working crazily for an extended period of time. He takes extra work, he cuts expenses, and he changes his life, anything for his dream. However, his road is not easy, and little by little, he will suffer the consequences, and the life he once knew will soon become a memory.
The story and its complexity or simplicity is what makes a great movie great. Without a story, you do not have anything except from maybe some effects, some action, perhaps some cute or clever sight gags and laughs, and hopefully, some emotion. ‘Dream Café’ shines above all others because it puts the dream in the first place, and as a result everything orbits around the goal. There has been some time since we last had a movie dealing with goals in this form. To wish for something is more than natural, and most of the time, this is what keeps us focused on doing our jobs properly. ‘Dream Café’ has the vibe of a musical comedy that hides a dark twist, and starting with this very thought from the beginning, we had one more reason to watch Dasha Khritankova’s film with high expectations, expectations that were fortunately fulfilled.
From the whole realm of characters in this film, we want to focus our attention on the boss as he is the key character of this story even though it does not seem like the boss is the one that pushes Nick to the edge of self-understanding. When Nick is playing with his picture in Photoshop, he feels the judgmental eyes of the boss looking at him taking a break. That was the spark that ignited the dream, which ultimately became the fire in Nick’s mind and heart.
‘Dream Café’ is nevertheless a surprising film – you won’t expect something that looks this simple to get inside your mind and rearrange your priorities. For us, this movie was a wake-up call, one that shows us that we can do anything if we are strong enough and if we are able to make compromises.
Written by Vlad A. G