Film Review: In Your Dreams

In Your Dreams
Director: Alex Woo
Netflix Animation, Kuku Studios
Streaming on Netflix: 11.14.2025

While Disney’s Pixar isn’t quite soaring to the heights it once did, where each new movie was embraced as an instant classic by critics and audiences alike, their impact and influence on animation as a whole is indelible. In recent years, as artists and executives from the studio start to branch out and work elsewhere, Pixar is becoming not just a studio, but a genre. Even if you don’t see the name on In Your Dreams, you’ll see the mark and spirit of Pixar everywhere.

In Your Dreams – A Magical Family Adventure

Twelve-year-old Stevie (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Adventures in Wonder Park, Head of the Class) and her eight-year-old brother Elliot (Elias Janssen, Jane The Virgin, The Mindy Project) sense their parents’ marriage is falling apart. When Mom (Cristin Milioti, Palm Springs, The Penguin) interviews for a job out of town, Dad (Simu Liu, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) drops the bombshell that he’s not sure he’s willing to move, as the ensuing tension is palpable. The scared siblings stumble upon an old picture book about the Sandman, a mythical figure said to grant any dreamer’s greatest wish.

After reading a passage aloud, they find themselves sharing the same dream world, a surreal landscape of candy skies, zombie breakfasts and a menacing queen of nightmares determined to wake them. Guided by Elliot’s wisecracking stuffed giraffe, Baloney Tony (Craig Robinson, The Office, Hot Tub Time Machine), the pair journey through their subconscious, hoping to reach the Sandman and save their family. But as they chase the fantasy of perfection, Stevie and Elliot discover that what truly matters isn’t magic or wishes — it’s the imperfect love that binds them, even when dreams fade.

Pixar Veterans Bring Heart and Humor

Director Alex Woo (Go! Go! Cory Carson) and his co-writer Erik Benson (The Good Dinosaur, Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation) are both Pixar veterans, and it’s very apparent from the word first frame that while they are making their own movie, they aren’t about to stray too far from the time tested formula, both visually and tonally. That may mean that we’re not seeing anything new or groundbreaking with In Your Dreams, but fortunately, it also means that these guys know how to make captivating and magical family entertainment that has a heart and soul, which is apparent from the very beginning.

Stevie and Elliott won me over very quickly, and not just because they are cute kids. Their interplay often delivers humor, and the film establishes the family dynamic clearly, raising the stakes. Once we care about the real world, the story plunges us into the dreams and the world of the Sandman. The setup for this feels a bit labored, and it’s the biggest tell that this is not actual Pixar. From Toy Story to Inside Out, the studio has always concentrated on the “what” (toys are alive, our emotions are anthropomorphic), knowing that wasting time on the “how” and “why” is just going to get in the way.

Dream Worlds and Fairy Tale Elements

The use of the Sandman and the magic book is pretty standard fairy tale stuff, and it plays, but it’s the least convincing and engaging aspect of the movie. The result is some plotting that feels a tiny bit messy and just a touch too dark. When Stevie becomes trapped in the dream world and cannot wake, and Mom and Dad rush their inexplicably comatose child to the hospital, the scene could work in a tween fantasy, but it feels slightly too upsetting and morbid for a Disney-style animated family movie. At the same time, after setting up the important theme of how kids survive a divorce, I felt a bit disappointed that the ending ended up playing things so safely.

Overall, the movie gels strongly enough that I easily got over my misgivings and thoroughly enjoyed In Your Dreams. The terrific voice cast, especially Baloney Tony, who reminded me so much of my stuffed monkey, Moose, made me instantly like the film. The strongest element is the heartfelt relationship between the kids and their realization of just how much their bond as siblings means to them, and that alone is enough for me to give it a strong recommendation

In Your Dreams Delivers a Heartfelt Family Story

In Your Dreams is largely a formula film, but it’s a formula that works. There’s enough love put into it to make it one of the year’s better family films. It may not be anything life changing, but it’s magical, funny and sweet, and there’s nothing wrong with pleasant dreams. —Patrick Gibbs

Read more film reviews by Patrick Gibbs:
Film Review: Predator Badlands
Film Review: Christy