Set during the Great Depression, 2019’s Dreamland offers a period take on the “coming of age” drama. In the midst of the 1930s economic struggles, teenaged Eugene Evans (Finn Cole) wants to escape from his small Texas town and find bigger things.

Into Eugene’s midst comes Allison Wells (Margot Robbie). Wounded during a bank robbery she committed, Allison needs time to recuperate.

This throws Eugene into a quandary. On one hand, the reward for Allison’s capture would allow him to leave town for good, but his developing love for her complicates matters.

Normally I’d suspect that a 2019 movie that didn’t make it past film festival screenings until late 2020 offered a dud, but the complications connected to COVID-19 allowed a little more leeway. The pandemic so disrupted release patterns that the old rules don’t necessarily apply.

Except in this case, they do. Despite some potential for drama, Dreamland seems like a character drama that fails to fulfill it aspirations.

By that, I mean Dreamland offers a human drama that never gives us much beyond basics. We fail to connect to Eugene, Allison or anyone else, so the stabs at plot fall flat.

A character-based drama with dull characters struggles to turn into anything memorable, and that becomes the case here. Dreamland does generate some appealing scenery, as it depicts the stark Dust Bowl setting well.

The actors try their best to wring meaning out of this tale as well. They dig into their parts with the most emotional honesty they can, and they occasionally add some substance to the tale.

But only a little, as the end result feels like an awkward mix of Bonnie and Clyde, Days of Heaven, ET the Extraterrestial and Thelma and Louise. Contrived and sluggish, the movie lacks real drama or impact.

Dreamland appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Expect a strong visual experience.

From start to finish, the film looked great. Nary a sliver of softness arose here, so the film appeared accurate and well-defined at all times.

Jagged edges and moiré effects remained absent, and I saw no signs of edge haloes or digital noise reduction. Print flaws also failed to impact this clean presentation.

In terms of palette, the film opted for a concentration on amber/orange – with a Dust Bowl lean at times – along with teal. The Blu-ray depicted these well and gave them appropriate range and impact.

Blacks seemed deep and dense, while shadows looked smooth and clear. This turned into a solid image.

In addition, the film’s Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack brought a fair amount to the package as well. This meant the mix still managed to form a fairly broad, involving sense of the environment.

A few violent scenes broadened the best, as did moments of storms and nature. Music also spread to the various channels in an appealing manner to help make this a pleasing soundfield.

Audio quality held up well, with speech that seemed natural and concise. Music came across as lush and rich as well.

Effects delivered strong range, with clean highs and deep bass. The audio suited the film.

The disc lacks any extras – not even previews.

Though it boasts some potential as a spin on the “coming of age” genre, Dreamland fails to walk down intriguing paths. Instead, it seems oddly dull and inert. The Blu-ray brings terrific visuals and good audio but it includes no bonus materials. This turns into a fairly blah character piece.