Taglines: After life there is more. The end is just the beginning.
What Dreams May Come movie storyline. While vacationing in Switzerland, pediatrician Chris Nielsen (Robin Williams) meets artist Annie Collins (Annabella Sciorra). They are attracted to each other, and bond as if they had known each other for a long time. They marry and have two children, Ian (Josh Paddock) and Marie (Jessica Brooks Grant). Their idyllic life ends when the children die in a car crash. Life becomes difficult: Annie suffers a mental breakdown and the couple contemplates divorce, but they manage through their losses.
On the anniversary of the day they decided not to divorce, Chris is also killed in a car crash. Unaware that he is dead, and confused that no one will interact with him, Chris lingers on Earth. He sees Annie’s attempts to cope with his loss and attempts to communicate with her, despite advice from a presence that this will only cause her more pain. When his attempts cause more sorrow, he decides to move on.
Chris awakens in Heaven, and learns that his immediate surroundings can be controlled by his imagination. He meets a man (Cuba Gooding Jr.) he recognizes as Albert Lewis, his friend and mentor from his medical residency, and the presence from his time as a “ghost” on Earth. Albert will guide and help in this new afterlife. Albert teaches Chris about his existence in Heaven, and how to shape his little corner, and to travel to others’ “dreams”.
They are surprised when a Blue Jacaranda tree appears unbidden in Chris’ surroundings, matching a tree in a new painting by Annie, inspired by Annie’s belief that she can communicate with Chris in the afterlife. Albert explains that this is a sign that the couple are truly soul mates. Annie decides that Chris cannot “see” the painting, however, and destroys it. At the same time, Chris sees his version of the tree disintegrate before his eyes.
What Dreams May Come is a 1998 American fantasy drama film, starring Robin Williams and Cuba Gooding Jr. The film is based on the 1978 novel of the same name by Richard Matheson, and was directed by Vincent Ward. It won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and the Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design. It was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction. The title is from a line in Hamlet’s “To be, or not to be” soliloquy.
What Dreams May Come (1998)
Directed by: Vincent Ward
Starring: Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding Jr., Annabella Sciorra, Max von Sydow, Jessica Brooks Grant, Josh Paddock, Rosalind Chao, Lucinda Jenney, Maggie McCarthy, Carin Sprague
Screenplay by: Ronald Bass
Production Design by: Eugenio Zanetti
Cinematography by: Eduardo Serra
Film Editing by: David Brenner
Costume Design by: Yvonne Blake
Set Decoration by: Cindy Carr, Josh Fifarek
Art Direction by: Jim Dultz, Tomas Voth, Christian Wintter
Music by: Michael Kamen
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements involving death, some disturbing images and language.
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: October 2, 1998
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