Nightmare in the Daylight (1992 TV Movie) User Reviews

A nail-biting tele-thriller

[jamiecostelo58 · 7/10 · 7 January 2005]

An interesting concept that works rather well. This film may have worked as a theatrical release because it is one of the better TV movies I have witnessed.

Christopher Reeve was well chosen to play the provoking and thoughtless Sean Farrell, who will stop at nothing to determine whether or not Megan Lambert is his long-lost wife. Reeve certainly portrays well a dark and perhaps mad character in a role very different to Superman.

The wonderful Charlie's Angel Jaclyn Smith is a pleasure to watch (as always), and certainly proved her worth as an actress taking on a quite demanding role.

When viewing Nightmare in the Daylight, a lot of questions enter your mind - why didn't Megan do a particular thing; is Sean simply out of control or is he actually on the right track? Great twists and turns throughout certainly raises the suspense in a TV movie that proves small screen drama/thrillers do actually work. TV movies are not always the badly prepared and melodramatic humdrum that some people believe they are. 7/10

Evil Christopher Reeves

[jmataachi · 29 December 2005]

Incredible!

I also first watched this Christopher Reeves movie on TV and I was totally knocked out by his performance.

I could never quite enjoy his other films after this performance because they all felt so fake and like he was not giving his all as he did in Nightmare in the Daylight.

I think it's a shame he never got to act more roles that challenged his abilities as this one must have. For my money if i ever had to choose one Reeves movie, this is the one I'd go with as his best.

The moment it starts, you're totally glued!!! And I have tried not to watch it again but have ended up on the edge of my seat unable to leave yet again when it came on either on TV or player.

I think its a great shame Reeves never got to act in more such roles. A great talent was lost to tagging and stereotype.

and then of course his accident happened and that was that.

ugh... tedious!

[JamieWJackson · 3/10 · 15 November 2013]

I saw the good reviews here and decided to give this a try. However, from very early on, I just kept wanting something to move ahead! We spend the entire movie wondering "is she or isn't she?" and IMO that's not enough to hang everything on. All the actors do well enough in their roles, but this story could have been told in about 10 minutes.

If this story had more rich plot development it would have been better; as it was, everything just kept feeding us back to that nagging question, which for me became more tedious than intriguing as the movie dragged on.

Reeve was somewhat enjoyable as the heavy; it was a good change of pace for him and he was credible. I also liked seeing a priest portrayed as a normal human being; Hollywood doesn't always have the attention span for that.

In parting: my namesake character here is going to need a whole lot of counseling, I think. :-)

Nightmares Can Happen In Daylight

[Noirdame79 · 8/10 · 25 January 2005]

I recall seeing this movie on TV several years ago. I remember how creepy that Christopher Reeve's character was - a far cry from his famed "Superman" role! And Jaclyn Smith, best remembered for her role in the TV series "Charlie's Angels" proves that she can handle this challenging and dramatic role.

The story of a man whose wife had "died" and who sees another woman bearing a striking resemblance to his dead spouse, and begins to stalk her. Megan (Smith) is a newly married woman with a five-year-old son from a previous relationship. She and her husband, who gave up the priesthood to be with her, are delighted to learn that she is pregnant. However, Sean (Reeve) infiltrates into their lives, not only convinced that Megan is his wife, Jean, but that Megan's boy, Jamie, is his son. Megan does everything possible to protect herself and her family, but Sean only grows more determined and obsessive, and his past abusive behavior toward his wife and the fact that she was leaving him at the time of her "death" are revealed. The late Reeve is so compelling and frightening as this madman, who, speaking of his wife and Megan, says, "You know what happens to bad little girls!" The scene where he demands that Megan strip for him is repellent yet watchable. He says that a man has a right to "look" at his wife. How far will this demented man go? Let's just say that there is a bit of a twist ending. Things are not always what they seem. This is one of the better TV movies that aired at that time. Check it out, but don't watch it at night or alone.

Quite good for a TV movie

[tommyuk · 8/10 · 27 November 2000]

This is well worth a watch. You are guaranteed to be kept in suspense to the end of the story. Jackie Smith and Christopher Reeve are both excellent as the leads . The characters in the story have lot of depth. Very Good !