A story of three budding cinephiles, "The Dreamers" is full of lively, proto-Film Bro rants, arguments about Chaplin versus Keaton, and impressions of famous actors. Of course, the film also deals with some racy subject matter, so it drummed up controversy upon its release (who could have foreseen?). A few venerated critical voices were smitten nonetheless; A.O. Scott marked "The Dreamers" a New York Times Critic's Pick, and Roger Ebert gave the film four stars. Today, "The Dreamers" has a 60% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Perhaps owing to the influences of critical taste — or audiences' desire to see some titillating taboos on-screen — "The Dreamers" netted $15.3 million worldwide, making it a sizable box office draw for an NC-17 movie.
With its inclusion on Max, "The Dreamers" is as accessible to watch as it has ever been — just don't count Eva Green as one of its viewers. Although she speaks about the experience affectionately, the actress hasn't watched the movie since its release, and she doesn't plan on doing it again. "I prefer to keep the memories," Green said in the same Vulture interview. "In every movie, actually, I prefer the experience rather than watching it. If it's a really bad movie and you had a great experience, you can keep the experience; it's a great movie in your head."
