Film Review

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

In a Dream
Directed by Jeremiah Zagar
IndiePix 04/09 DVD/VHS Documentary
Not Rated

In this unusual and compelling documentary, our eyes are immediately held hostage by shiny, exquisitely colored murals with startling images of heads and bodies in all shapes and sizes. We know before we are introduced to artist Isaiah Zagar that we are in the presence of a gifted person. For nearly five decades, he has covered the interiors and exteriors of buildings in his hometown of Philadelphia with mosaics of tile and mirrors that tell the stories of his life and those of his wife Julia and his sons Ezekiel and Jeremiah. He is a man obsessed with his art and even now at 70, he rises early to climb a ladder and work on the side of a building fashioning new works of wonder.

In a Dream takes an intimate look at this eccentric and committed artist. The documentary is directed by his son Jeremiah and consists of interviews and footage of family members, old home movies and photographs, and film of the buildings that have been so imaginatively adorned by his father. While Jeremiah was making the documentary, his brother Zeke left his wife of ten years, returned home, and entered rehab for drug addiction. Then Isaiah startled everyone with his admission that he was having an affair with his assistant. His wife — including many images of her face and flesh — had been the center of his art. He called her his soul mate. And through the years she handled business matters and grounded her moody husband who had several breakdowns. Julia asks Isaiah to leave, and he plunges into depression. It is also obvious that he has never been able to shake being sexually molested as a boy by a man he trusted.

In a Dream is a thought-provoking documentary that offers a rich and varied portrait of an artist who is filled with energy and willing to give full vent to his imagination. Although he and his family are hobbled by setbacks and disappointments, Isaiah refuses to slow down or cut back on his creative output. He and Julia work out their differences and return to take on an exciting project together. Writer Robert Sardello suggests that we really bring our souls alive with "the discipline of daily clothing the world with imagination." After experiencing In a Dream, you will appreciate Isaiah Zagar as a spiritual teacher in this arena.

Films Now Showing
Recent VHS/DVD Releases

Reviews and database copyright © 1970 – 2009
by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat