Insomnia (2002)

Al Pacino stars as a Los Angeles homicide detective sent along with is partner Martin Donovan to the small town of Nightmute, Alaska to help with the investigation of a brutal homicide. They have partly been sent because local police chief Paul Dooley is a retired LA cop, but also because Internal Affairs has been investigating them and their boss wants them out of town. Donovan reveals to Pacino that he's been considering cooperating, a move that would ruin Pacino. While tracking down the murderer, a brutal accident puts Pacino in the hot seat. He tries to cover up his involvement, while suffering from insomnia due to the 24 hour daylight in this part of the world. Local rookie cop Hilary Swank, a great admirer of Pacino's, starts to realize something is wrong ... and the murderer (Robin Williams) himself contacts Pacino, revealing he knows what really happened and that he can help them both. This seems to be the least talked about of Nolan's films, which is a shame because it's a sharp and interesting remake of the 1997 Norwegian film that starred Stellan Skarsgard in Pacino's role. It's not a carbon copy of the original film, going different places with the same material. It's also one of the last really strong performances we got from Pacino.

Al Pacino is one of the greatest character actors in the past 40 years, and while not every one of his films have been met with the same level of success, he still tries to give it his all regardless. His performance in 'Insomnia' is a good example of this.The film finds him as an LAPD detective who is nearing retirement and is called up to investigate a murder of a teen in a small Alaska town where there is 24 hours of sunlight for months at a time. The premise itself is really intriguing, and with an all-star supporting cast of Hilary Swank and Robin Williams, it's hard to go wrong. That said, the execution of 'Insomnia' is a bit clunky, as the screenplay is a major letdown. The twist is pretty easy to spot from a mile away regardless of the curve balls that are thrown into the mix. Also, it's hard to take Williams seriously in a serious role, considering he always shined when dishing out one-liners in comedies.Still, there's plenty to like about 'Insomnia.' For one, the setting in the wilderness of Alaska (or, British Columbia, to be more accurate) is a nice change from the cityscapes we're used to seeing in these kinds of thrillers, and the inner battles that Pacino's character fights while in the midst of everything else adds another dynamic to things, in addition to the lack of sleep in the midnight sun that causes even more chaos.'Insomnia' is not Christopher Nolan's best directing effort, but his signature style comes through in the thriller and it's worth a watch.

Impossible to sleep while watching this movie! Why? Its a thriller for one thing full of a good story with fine acting and directing. To make it even more interesting, it takes place in Alaska and has story within story dynamics something that if done right is most satisfying to viewers. This is done right. It takes a short while to get used to Robin in a serious role but it works so well. Pacino is worth the price of a ticket on his own too. He makes such a good cop because he is an experienced actor. Small town life here is worth noting with everyone knowing everyone else and complications don't exist. Life is predicable and repeats itself making you wonder if that is what everyone has in common who lives there? The entire little town seems to be fenced in with mountains but does have ferry boat, waterway and sea plane access as well as long stretches of highway all scenic as a plus. I bet the air there is as clean as you can get it. Good movie to snack on as the story unfolds or have a sandwich ready to go with a tasty drink. One thing that bears noting is the way Pacino has trouble literally keeping his eyes open as he is acting out not being able to sleep for days. If you watch his expressions, I warn you upfront, you may get a little drowsy but do finish the movie at all costs. Then nap if you can

Christopher Nolans filmography in his short career is very varied and different he's done Sci Fi, superheros and Phycological thrillers yet this film seems much more straightforward than his other films while it's easily his worst film under Nolans hand it's solidly entertaining with some truly fantastic performances. The best thing about this film is how atmospheric it is, the touch of having the town in constant daylight reflected Pacinos inability to sleep and set this location out as different. Al Pacino gives one of his better performances in this film he's completely convincing in his gradual decline through his lack of sleep and brought a conflicted nature to his character. Robin Williams also gives one of his best performances in this film because he is so creepy and unstable in this film so he's always entertaining and engaging to watch. I will say this for the film it did do a good job at being engaging, the mystery was pretty interesting, even though we get the reveal of the murderer fairly quickly the battle between Pacino and Williams was always engaging. This film succeeds at being entertainment in its action sequences, there extremely gritty and life like. However this film does have flaws that stem mostly from the script, for one it's a fairly standard murder mystery at its core, had it not included the insomnia plot thread nothing about this film would have been truly unique. However probably my biggest issue with this film is the decisions made by Al Pacino character, we get all this build up towards him being an honest cop but after his one mistake, though fairly large, he seems to just flip 180 into a completely different person who comes across as corrupt and is in complete contradiction of itself. A fairly interesting sub plot of Williams blackmailing Pacino looked like it could be fantastic but is barely focused upon and quickly grazed over and is ultimately dropped. I know this is a fairly short review but there just not that much to talk about in this film, it's got two very good lead performances, Nolan directs to action brilliantly, it's an atmospheric film and one that is at least entertaining. The script however lets this film down with its clichés, contradictions and dropped sub plots. It's not a bad film but far from Nolans finest work. 75%/B