After identifying the body of his daughter, Warren suffers from debilitating and frightening sleep paralysis. In an effort to help his father get some rest, his son moves him into an assisted living facility. But his sleepless nights continue — with exceedingly terrifying consequences. Into Nightmares is the tale of an elderly man forced to face his demons, as well as a ghost clinging to his trauma.
An old man suffers from sleep paralysis after a mysterious trauma. A creepy female figure holds him on his bed every time he goes to sleep. Because of this condition he is sent to a home for the elderly. His new roommate has strange and disturbing behaviors that the old man is forced to witness during his sleep paralysis. When he finds out that many other guests of the hospice are beginning to disappear, he must fight the demons in his room alone.
Into Nightmares, IMDB
Part A Cure for Wellness, part The Nightmare, Into Nightmares doesn’t make light of insomnia or how trauma can ravage your body and mind. This Italian production is a slow burn, making sure to take wide, long pauses on characters and settings. It feels both relaxing and ominous as we know the reason why Warren dreads going to sleep every night.
Although Into Nightmares is a slower pace, it still fits in scares that can startle you out of a sleepy half-awakeness. The entity haunting Warren is dark and gruesome — but not bloody — and a the perfect stand-in for the “shadow people” that sufferers of sleep paralysis often see. There are moments where he is trapped in a semiconscious state and we feel the same hallucinatory ambiance as he does. Warren also deals with a Nurse Ratchet-type character, and we as an audience are compelled to decide if she is a friend or foe. Just as Warren dreads going to sleep, we wait anxiously to see what each night has in store for him.
Behind Warren’s cold and often deadpan delivery hides a man who is scared and traumatized, not knowing who it is safe to talk to. Esther, another elderly hospice resident is such a colorful addition, bringing light and life to the situation. It is easy to imagine yourself in such a predicament. Into Nightmares excels in lulling you into a false sense of safety during the daytime, not holding back when darkness falls. As the story progresses, we learn how not even the daylight is safe.
Into Nightmares blends a golden Italian atmosphere, one perfect for a restful afternoon nap, with paranoia and nightmare-fodder — just as the title suggests. A mystery to be solved, Into Nightmares takes bedtime and makes it something to be feared.
Into Nightmares is available to stream on Mometu.
