How others will see it. Most will consider the plot a bit far-fetched, and the special effects aren't up to the latest computer-generated standards. But most will enjoy the sci-fi action nonetheless. Quaid is dreamy enough for young female viewers, and Capshaw makes an adequate love interest.
How I felt about it. There are problems with the characters. Since Alex is the protagonist, we'll start with him. In early scenes, he's a cynical and selfish gambler and ladies man. Once he's in his first dream, though, he's a courageous hero who wants to save construction workers, little boys, little old ladies, and U.S. Presidents, while fighting the psychopathic villain Tommy Ray and the megalomaniac villain Christopher Plummer.
The new Alex doesn't resemble the old Alex, who was in it for himself. No motive is given for his change in personality, except perhaps a need to impress (and therefore possibly seduce) the semi-hot Capshaw. But even with her, he was having more fun playing unpredictable bad boy instead of dreamscape action hero. If he has to save the President's life to get to first base with her, imagine what he'll have to do to get engaged.
While Alex's personality inverts halfway through the film, there's no such luck for von Sydow and Plummer. Plummer will always be a creepy, ruthless bastard willing to kill the President if it will keep him from scrapping the nation's nukes. Likewise, von Sydow will remain his opposite, a scientist and researcher who knows where to draw the line between rascal and scoundrel. He'll threaten Alex with an IRS audit, but he won't stand by while the President is murdered by an evil, power-hungry intelligence agent.
If it wasn't a film, of course, von Sydow would know better than to confront Plummer if he opposed him. Instead, von Sydow would pretend to agree completely with his plans, while plotting an opportunity to double-cross him. Similarly, Plummer wouldn't make it so obvious that he is evil. He'd distance himself from the dirty work, he'd deliver orders with charm instead of threats, and he would feign sorrow for the very acts he is causing.
Although the movie is all about what can happen in a dream to the dreamer, it is dismissive of the relevance of the dream itself. Eddie Albert presides over a nuclear wasteland. The little boy is attacked scrolling="no" frameborder="0"