Daniela Forever
Falling in love is euphoric, but losing it can leave a void. In Daniela Forever, Nicolás (Henry Golding) is drowning in grief when he’s offered a chance to escape through an experimental sleep therapy that recreates reality. As the lines between dream and memory blur, he’s forced to confront the true nature of healing and whether he’s ready to move on. From visionary filmmaker Nacho Vigalondo (Colossal), Daniela Forever is a mind-bending sci-fi tale of love, loss, and the illusions we cling to.
Vigalondo crafts a haunting cautionary tale about love, loss, and the agony of letting go. Using a striking visual approach, the film contrasts the real world in a 4:3 aspect ratio with the dream world in widescreen. As Nicolás’s perception unravels, these boundaries begin to shift, pulling the audience into his disoriented state, where neither he nor we can be certain what’s real and what’s imagined.
Henry Golding is mesmerizing as Nicolás, delivering a performance full of emotional nuance and intensity. He masterfully balances restraint and vulnerability, keeping the audience hooked as his character veers between grief, longing, and confusion. Golding’s portrayal invites a lingering question: is Nicolás driven by love for Daniela or by guilt? With quiet precision and raw honesty, Golding dares viewers not to feel deeply for his plight, and succeeds.
Beatrice Grannò complements Henry Golding beautifully, and together they deliver captivating performances. As Daniela, Grannò exists primarily as a memory, an echo of the past shaped by Nicolás’s grief and desire. Her portrayal carries a quiet complexity, as her character’s sense of self begins to shift with the evolving dreamscape, blurring the line between memory and identity.
Daniela Forever stands out for its honest, unflinching exploration of loss and healing. While moments of humour surface throughout, the film remains firmly rooted in drama, layered with a thoughtful dose of science fiction. It’s a deeply human story, with genre elements used not as spectacle, but as a lens to examine grief, memory, and the cost of holding on.
DANIELA FOREVER opens In Select Theatres July 11 and on Digital July 22
