Carl Stargher (Vincent D'Onofrio) is an ugly, utterly loopy weirdo of a serial killerand is a great scary protagonist.
He hides away his next victim in a booby-trapped cell, then conveniently falls into a coma before the FBI can determine where she is.
Cue psychologist Catherine Deane (Jennifer Lopez), working for a laboratory which has discovered how to enter the subconscious mind and interact with the slumbering psyche.
Forced to meld with the killer to save the life of his victim, Deane is drawn into a world of nightmares that, more so than any of the actors, are the true stars fo the film.