Dreamin' Wild
Roadside Attractions | Release Date: August 4, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
9
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
ObserverRex ReedAug 4, 2023
A fact-based film about the life-altering pain of failure, the thrill of belated success, and the challenges inherent in both, Dreamin’ Wild is a testament to a musical family who epitomize the old saying “No matter how long it takes, if you wait long enough, your dream will come true.” Read full review
80
TimeStephanie ZacharekAug 7, 2023
This isn’t just a movie about reawakened ambitions, but about how our teenage hopes inform our grownup selves, or perhaps haunt them. It’s a lot to pack into a seemingly unassuming little movie, but Pohlad—who also directed 2014’s superb Love & Mercy—pulls it off. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithAug 4, 2023
Dreamin’ Wild is an elegant appreciation of the many textures of aging, balancing the feel of rhapsodic memories and shuddery regrets. Read full review
80
The New York TimesClaire ShafferAug 3, 2023
While it can occasionally seem as though Pohlad is eking out conflict to support a narrative, the film’s restraint ultimately works in its favor, offering a thoughtful meditation on music, creativity and what it really means for talent to be “overlooked.” Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comMarya E. GatesAug 4, 2023
Dreamin’ Wild is a rich and evocative portrait of the weight of broken dreams and the strength one can find in a family as unwaveringly supportive as the Emersons. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperAug 3, 2023
This is a true story, and it’s now getting the feature film treatment in Bill Pohlad’s warm and elegiac and lovely Dreamin’ Wild, with Casey Affleck doing his disheveled-restless-socially awkward thing in a searingly strong performance as the brilliantly talented Donnie, and the versatile Walton Goggins making the most of an opportunity to play a genuinely nice regular guy in Joe, who always knew he was at best the Ringo to Donnie’s John. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineWes GreeneJul 30, 2023
The elegantly underplayed performances ensure that the film never succumbs to melodrama. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleAug 4, 2023
A well-cast, modestly affecting drama of the kind studios regularly programmed in the before-IP times, it boasts a generous heart gently dusted with life’s complications as it beats a familiar rhythm of easygoing redemption. Read full review
67
Original-CinKaren GordonAug 25, 2023
It’s a quiet, thoughtful movie that aims to be sensitive to the family, while plumbing some of the darker feelings that this late success wrought. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriAug 4, 2023
Dreamin’ Wild, as I’ve noted, has its issues: There are lines of dialogue so blunt that I actually found myself bursting out laughing during some pretty serious scenes. But great performances don’t happen in a vacuum, and credit should go to Pohlad for knowing exactly what to do with Goggins. Read full review
58
The Film StageDan MeccaAug 1, 2023
Dreamin’ Wild is a kind film about kindness. While comforting in some respects, it lacks a certain amount of punch. Pohlad’s intentions are noble, and the talent of the Emerson brothers is clear enough. One can be happy it exists without fully embracing the film itself. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerSep 22, 2023
That feelgood story of a long dormant musical dream finally realized was enough to earn major press attention, but is it enough for a feature-length film? Probably not, which is why writer-director Pohlad piled on the melodrama and leaned into clichés. Read full review
50
Screen RantAlex HarrisonAug 4, 2023
The material is not lacking in thematic depth, but how the filmmakers choose to express these themes makes for an inconsistently engaging experience. Dreamin' Wild is sometimes too caught up in its own artfulness, and all that weighted form ends up trapping its ideas rather than giving them heft. Read full review
50
TheWrapTomris LafflyAug 3, 2023
That miscalculated manner that often transposes Dreamin’ Wild into an overtly psychological zone works against the rest of the film’s gentle demeanor. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawApr 11, 2025
However earnest and heartfelt, the film doesn’t tell us nearly enough, or really anything, about Joe. Read full review
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