‘Dreamin’ Wild’: An Immersive Journey About Delayed Dreams 

Alci Rengifo

A daunting consideration when embarking on any sort of artistic venture is the idea that it might not catch on until later. Everyone is familiar with writers becoming famous after death, but the same can be true of any craft. Brothers Donnie and Joe Emerson recorded an album titled “Dreamin’ Wild” in 1979 when they were teenagers. It was an impressively mature mix of rock, soul, R&B, country and funk. But it went nowhere until over 30 years later, when the album was rediscovered through one of those strange twists of fate. Bill Pohlad’s “Dreamin’ Wild” recounts this story with warmth and emotional complexity. “When I was first presented with the idea I listened to ‘Dreamin’ Wild’ the album and it just entranced me,” Pohlad tells Entertainment Voice. “It’s a story about second chances and it’s intriguing. Meeting the real Donnie and real Joe did it for me. I felt they were so authentic, so real. I wanted to capture that somehow.”

The Emerson brothers were both lucky in a melancholic way to see their work finally reach the spotlight. We meet them as older men in Fruitland, Washington in 2011. Donnie (Casey Affleck) runs a small, struggling recording studio with wife and fellow musician Nancy (Zooey Deschanel). Joe (Walton Goggins), who played drums on the 1979 album, mostly left music behind and has adopted the rural lifestyle of their father, Don Sr. (Beau Bridges). A collector and producer, Matt Sullivan (Chris Messina), soon arrives at their door and reveals that “Dreamin’ Wild” has become an underground sensation after collectors discovered the LP. After being passed around, it has managed to find airplay. The song “Baby” in particular is finding strong resonance. Would the brothers be interested in seeing the album get remastered and re-released on a new label? Soon publications like Pitchfork are praising the revived record. With the excitement there are also memories rushing back of the brothers’ youth, bringing out contradictions and insecurities that have been dormant until now.

As with his wonderful 2015 film “Love & Mercy,” about Beach Boy Brian Wilson’s struggles with mental illness, Pohlad approaches here a story about music where the individuals become more important than sensationalism. “I’m a frustrated musician myself,” says Pohlad. “Because of that I’m curious as to how they go about it. So that attracts me to exploring that area. Of course it’s kind of selfish because you also get to spend a number of years with Brian Wilson or the Emersons with their music playing in your head (laughs). And music is always playing in my head.” That love for the art form is evident in how Pohlad’s screenplay avoids the musician clichés of other films. That “Dreamin’ Wild” received a second chance is astonishing, but it’s also a gateway for the story to then explore how the songs came out of the experiences of Donnie, who was the real songwriter and prodigy, and Joe being teenagers (played by Noah Jupe as Donnie and Jack Dylan Grazer as Joe). The lyrics are passionate expressions of young longings, dreamy crushes and excitement. There’s an immersive quality to how the film likes to spend time with these characters which ring truer to life. Even the parents defy the typical, repressive adults who unintentionally turn their kids into rockers. Don Sr. believes so much in his sons’ talents that he builds them a professional recording studio, which is where they cut the album.

The acting in “Dreamin’ Wild” has an engaging sense of layered individuals. Donnie may seem reserved, but the newfound attention of the album brings out a perfectionist who threatens to isolate everyone when a tour is proposed. Casey Affleck isn’t playing a stereotypical movie “genius,” but a talented man living in his head who demands the music sound as he hears it (he also convincingly lip syncs during live performance scenes). Maybe Joe was never that great of a drummer, which raises new tensions. Donnie never stopped writing music, now the world wants him to return to songs written in the distant mindset of a 16-year-old. Walton Goggins and Zooey Deschanel, herself a notable musician, are strong supporting roles by keeping the performances grounded. These are small town Americans who kept living in their own zone after the hope of fame years ago dwindled. Only Donnie ventured out to California for promises from record labels that led nowhere. Because Joe is genuinely supportive and Nancy has her own hopes as a musician that she willingly tethers to Donnie, the emotional clashes and fears have a stronger impact when they manifest.

“Casey of course came with a great body of work and the ability to shift in character,” says Pohlad. “It’s the way Donnie actually is. He’s just this regular guy you’re talking to and then he can shift into this other world, like a fantasy world. I knew Casey could pull that off and not a lot can act that way.” Joe also comes with his own complexities. “He’s much more low-key. You can’t always tell what’s going on there. When Walton read the part he loved it and he told me had grown up with people just like this, and I believed him.” Pohlad also made sure the actors became immersed in the music world of the film. “We did do a sort of ‘music boot camp’ if you will,” he says. “We spent countless hours in the Bing Crosby Theater in Spokane, Washington. The younger actors and older actors began playing together. Noah Jupe and Jack Dylan Grazer became great friends during the process and still play music together. To be honest, Casey will admit it, he can’t carry a tune. He’s not musical at all but gave it his all being onstage holding the guitar. Sometimes he would try to play something. Admittedly it was not the best but even he will tell you that.”

Perhaps the most important theme in “Dreamin’ Wild” is the human need to create and express. The film never descends into a debauched rags-to-riches fable. It ends on stirringly quiet notes that celebrate the Emerson brothers’ journey. They made some great music when they were young and Donnie is still a magnificent songwriter. The story doesn’t have to end with them going triple platinum. What matters is that the music still touched quite a lot of people later rather than instantly. Some art is like that, waiting to be discovered like some buried treasure. Made with an indie spirit, “Dreamin’ Wild” might work the same way with audiences who will discover it beneath the clutter of big budget spectacles. “I myself am one of those guys who tend to get away from what’s instantly popular,” says the director. “If it’s popular I’m not there but I still like artists like Bruce Springsteen. Lately I’ve been inspired a lot by Radiohead, especially when I’m editing. That’s the power of music in general.”

“Dreamin’ Wild” releases Aug. 4 in select theaters.