The of the French New Wave directors mentioned in the movie. A detailed character study of Isabelle, Théo, or Matthew. AI responses may include mistakes. Learn more

The film is about cinephiles who worship physical film reels and the Cinémathèque . Watching it on a blurry, pirated stream with mismatched subtitles would horrify the characters. But it also proves their point: cinema finds a way. Even a banned, NC-17 film from 2003 will be dug up, re-encoded, and shared by passionate fans on the digital underground—just like the twins shared contraband film reels in their Paris apartment.

Together, they embarked on a journey to create a film that would be a love letter to Paris and its people. They spent countless hours researching, writing, and rehearsing, pouring their hearts and souls into the project.

While their parents are away, Matthew moves into the twins' bohemian apartment.

If you are searching for this film because it is "new" to you, prepare yourself. The Dreamers is not pornography, but it is explicit. Bertolucci (who directed Last Tango in Paris ) deliberately pushes the audience to feel uncomfortable. Key themes include:

The MPAA (American rating board) gave it an NC-17 for “explicit sexual content.” It was banned in several countries. But critics hailed Eva Green’s fearless performance and Bertolucci’s lush, nostalgic visuals.

: The film is a "love letter to cinema," frequently referencing classics like A bout de souffle and Band of Outsiders . The characters often re-enact famous scenes, blurring the lines between their lives and the silver screen.

Critics often highlight the film's "cheerfully erotic" nature and the "unselfconscious conviction" of its young leads—Michael Pitt, Eva Green, and Louis Garrel. While some see it as a "brutal and realistic re-creation" of 1968, others view it as a nostalgic, metaphorical tribute to the power of cinema. University of Waterloo Viewing Options

Upon its release, critical reception to The Dreamers was mixed but leaned positive. On Metacritic, it holds a score of 67 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews". The Dallas Observer gave it a perfect score, calling it "a real humdinger, at once an intimate romance, a glimpse into a rather unconventional friendship and a beautifully focused celebration of cinema itself". The New York Times described it as "disarmingly sweet and completely enchanting".