Mick Jordan hits the right note with his review of Dreamtown.
Steven McKenna’s Dreamtown tells the story of Mickey Richards (Anthony Murphy), a middle-aged would-be (but wasn’t) rock star. Mickey is a man still holding on proudly to his past. Every day he puts on the clothes, jewellery, and persona of his youth. He boasts to his circle of—much younger than him—friends about playing with Thin Lizzy, The Blades, The Hothouse Flowers. They don’t actually believe any of it but they still urge him to perform at the bar where they all hang out. They chant ‘Mickey! Mickey!’ at the open mic nights, but he never takes the bait, refusing to take to the stage.
One member of this group, Gina (Michelle Lucy), works behind the bar. She is closer to Mickey than the others. At least, she is the only one to whom he feels he needs to explain his reluctance to perform: “I can get up there if I want to. I just…don’t…want to.”
Meanwhile his adult son Alan (Cian Hyland) begins to forge his own career in music. Mickey and Alan’s relationship is, to put it mildly, estranged. He has been the classic neglectful father, fully living up to that aspect of the Rock and Roll lifestyle at least. It’s clear that Alan wants a relationship with his father, as does Mickey with his son, but Mickey keeps messing up, letting Alan down at every turn. Perhaps on some level he is jealous. Alan is a real talent and when Mickey sees him on stage he is struck by how good his son is. What we see in his eyes is more shock than pride. Mickey isn’t ready to pass the baton onto the younger generation—he’s not finished just yet.
This is a film that moves along at a cracking pace, aided greatly by a tight and efficient script. The dialogue is well observed—each character talks like people actually talk. There is one beautiful scene between Gina and Alan when they meet for the first time. Their conversation starts politely and quickly moves into witty banter followed by mutual slagging. This is just a few short moments but is utterly convincing—a warm portrait of two people falling for each other. Mickey observes this too, which flares his jealousy once again. Mickey’s gut reaction is a rough attempt to set his son up with two young girls in the pub. This excruciating beat once again is word-perfect with embarrassment.
In a film like this, the music is a crucial element. So it is lucky that the director has a good source to draw on. His own dad. Mick McKenna was in the band Shaine and in the 1990s had a hit with the song: Dreamtown. While many other of his songs appear on the soundtrack, it is, of course, this title track that dominates. Early on the sound mix features the original recording which gives way to a very different synth version. This is the version performed by Alan on stage, as Mickey watches on. In another lovely moment for Alan and Gina he plays her this song. As she listens on headphones, he watches her, hoping she will like the song as much as he likes her.
There are excellent performances throughout the film; everyone clearly giving their all to get this independent film across the line. Anthony Murphy manages to make Mickey sympathetic despite his outward arrogance and fecklessness. We can clearly see vulnerability underneath and the explosive pain he’s desperately trying to hide. Cian Hyland authentically conveys Alan’s desire to have a relationship with his father as well as his desperate need to protect himself from being hurt again—and failing. Meanwhile Gina, Michelle Lucy’s performance is particularly accomplished. While she is a major part of both Mickey and Alan’s arcs she maintains an independent sense of agency. Much like Mickey, her brash exterior hides vulnerability and her fear that her life is going nowhere. In her scenes with Hyland, Lucy layers a wealth of nuance into one look, conveying just how much Gina likes Alan and how wary she is of frightening him away.
The photography by Jaro Waldeck provides a series of contrasts perfectly reflecting the different worlds that make up Mickey’s life. The striking bright neon of the bar is very different from the simple normality of the outside world. There is an even greater shift again with the grey bleak scenes of the schoolyard where Mickey works, cleaning up after the kids that go there.
At its core, Dreamtown tells a simple story of a man trying to accept his past while working on getting acceptance from his son, and it tells it extremely well. Through engaging characters, this narrative draws you in early on and remains engrossing throughout.
Dreamtown premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh 2024.
Fleadh Focus Podcast: Steven McKenna, Writer & Director and Jaro Waldeck DOP of ‘Dreamtown’