The screening room

Craig and Weisz’s ‘Dream House’ might be a nightmare

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It’s not much of a spoiler to say that“Dream House” had a happy ending for Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz: Thestars, who fell in love on the set, were married this summer in upstateNew York. D

But the fate of the project that broughtthem together — that may not be much of a cause for celebration. “DreamHouse,” in which Craig and Weisz play a couple spooked by weirdgoings-on in their newly purchased New England home, began shooting inFebruary 2010 and has since been what’s known in the film industry as a“problem picture.” The cast was called back for reshoots almost a yearafter the film was supposedly finished. The movie also had a tough timegetting its PG-13 rating: Its violence had to be toned down to appeasethe Motion Picture Association of America board.

Universal Pictures has now more or lessconfirmed that “Dream House” is a nightmare by scrapping anypre-release press screenings, almost always an admission that the movieis a bomb just waiting to go off. While it’s not uncommon for studiosto veto previews of schlock like “Shark Night 3-D” or “Bucky Larson:Born to Be a Star,” it’s rare to see a project with headliners of Craigand Weisz’s stature being rolled into theaters under a bushel. Afterall, “Dream House” co-stars Naomi Watts and it’s directed by JimSheridan, the man who made the Oscar-winning “My Left Foot.”

But even if “Dream House” ends up beinga disaster, Craig and Weisz won’t exactly be drummed out of thebusiness: Weisz stars in three upcoming films that were shown at theToronto International Film Festival earlier this month — “360,” “PageEight” and “The Deep Blue Sea,” a story about illicit love inpost-World War II England that’s already prompted talk of a possibleOscar nomination for her splendid performance — and Craig has a littlemovie coming out this holiday season called “The Girl With the DragonTattoo.” You might have heard about it.

And, of course, they have each other, right? 

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