Edge of Dreaming

In a setup that feels like a Stephen King plot, 47-year-old Scottish filmmaker Amy Hardie—a mother, wife of a therapist, and a specialist in scientific subjects—dreamed her cherished old horse spoke to her about its dying, after which she awakened to find the animal lifeless in the field. But then she dreamed that a deceased ex-lover apologetically informed her she wouldn't live past 48. A sense of ominous wonder hangs over Edge of Dreaming as Hardie chronicles her anxious year and sudden health crisis with a mysterious lung ailment. Along the way, the formerly non-superstitious Hardie delves into the nature of dreams, uncertain whether hers is dire prophecy or not, as she goes from neurologists to treatment by a shamanic hypnotist. A metaphysical mystery tour that blends interviews and video diaries with trippy visual poetry and imagery, Edge of Dreaming offers no solid answers, and its New Age environmentalist-leaning conclusion seems too pat, but the viewer does get to meet a likeable heroine, learns a terrific word of the day not coined by J.K. Rowling (“adumbratio,” the approaching shadow of death), and comes away feeling a bit spellbound. DVD extras include an interview with Hardie and deleted research interviews. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)