The written synopsis of the film Mirrormask, which looks like a nice bit of eyechocolate, reads like this

MirrorMask centers on Helena, a 15 year old girl in a family of circus entertainers, who often wishes she could run off and join real life. After a fight with her parents about her future plans, her mother falls quite ill and Helena is convinced that it is all her fault. On the eve of her mother’s major surgery, she dreams that she is in a strange world with two opposing queens, bizarre creatures, and masked inhabitants. All is not well in this new world – the white queen has fallen ill and can only be restored by the MirrorMask, and it’s up to Helena to find it. But as her adventures continue, she begins to wonder whether she’s in a dream, or something far more sinister.

I don’t see how this synopsis is compelling–do we need another white queen?–but the question of the diegetic world is brought into the mix here. The border of the story becomes confused with the space of reality. I liked Nightmare on Elm Street for its play with the real and dreamed. By the way, why is it up to Helena to find the mask? In addition, I just read the synopsis to Constantine. I don’t want to see the movie after reading the synopsis. I want to yawn . . . or weep.