Sweet Dreams (1985)

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

It is impossible to hear Patsy Cline sing without being emotionally involved. Few singers have this ability to transcend the Art and make it an Epiphany. Anyone who is not moved by listening to this Earth Angel's Voice is immovable. It is so Heavenly, in fact, that one might even question why a such an Inspirational Talent was taken so soon.A Diva with Talent as Divine as any Humans could be. So it was a given that no one, no matter how talented, could convincingly stand in vocally. That is one of the strengths of the Movie, the Songs, all original recordings.Also, there are three Actors that are remarkable with Jessica Lange, Ed Harris and Ann Wedgeworth all giving memorable Performances. It is top heavy on Marital Affairs and Home Life making it far too Soapy for Music and Industry Fans, because the choice here is to portray this Story like a Country Music Song. But in the end it is the Singing Voice of Patsy Cline that is absolutely unforgettable.

When King Kong stripped her of her top in the 1976 remake, I was breathless. I don't know how many times I went back to see that movies hoping to see more. Jessica Lange was not a great actress then (She became one), but she was so hot! I went to see "Sweet Dreams" when it came out because, by that time, Ms. Lange had become a great actress. It looked like a wonderful story. And she's always exciting to see.I never walked out of a movie faster. My wife concurred.When we got into the car, I turned to her, and said, "If you had told me I would get bored watching Jessica Lange take her clothes off, I would have said your crazy. I just got bored watching Jessice Lange take her clothes off!" How bad is that?

This is a really good movie. I'm not sure of it's accuracy to Patsy's life, but I was pretty stunned at Patsy's crudeness. She always seemed so lady-like. Jessica Lange was the perfect choice for Patsy, not Beverly DeAngelo. I did not like Ed's portrayal of Charlie simply because I never liked him until recent years. He's grown on me. I watched this movie for the first time several years ago and was shocked at how her death was portrayed. I was born and raised in Camden, Tennessee (where the accident happened- NOT Dyersburg!) and there are no mountains. When the plane crashed, it was night and there had been a severe thunderstorm in the area.

SWEET DREAMS was the 1985 film biography of country and western singing legend Patsy Cline, magnificently portrayed by Jessica Lange, who delivers one of her most charismatic performances as the singing legend who rose from humble beginnings to become a country and western legend. Lange imbues a fire and spirit into Cline that is quite endearing and allows us a perhaps partly speculative look at the fire that drove Patsy to become what she did. There is a great moment when Patsy is meeting with a record producer and she is describing the kind of career she wants and he says, "Oh you want to be Kitty Wells?" and Patsy replies, "Hell no, I wanna be Hank Williams!" According to this film, Patsy didn't want to be a country singer, she wanted to BE country music. I also love the scene where Patsy is introduced to the song "Crazy" and says she can't sing this man's song and the producer explains, "Sing it the way you always do, Patsy...your way...let the words tell the story." Patsy slows the tempo, does it her way, and it became her signature song. Lange not only delivers a wonderful performance in this film, but she does one of the best jobs I have ever seen on screen of an actor lip-synching to another voice. Her lip-synching to Cline's voice is practically flawless. Lange also gets solid support from Ed Harris as Patsy husband, Charlie Dick and from Ann Wedgeworth as Patsy's mom. I don't know why this has always bothered me but I noticed that in COAL MINER'S DAUGHTER, Patsy seemed to be a major character in Loretta Lynn's story but Loretta is not even mentioned in this film. Nevertheless, this is a warm and entertaining film, definitely a notch above the average film biography, thanks mostly to an extraordinary performance by Jessica Lange.