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All rights reserved.Insomnia (2002, DVD)
Daylight Film Noir: InsomniaReview created: 03/19/03
by: George_Chabot-- a member of Epinions and Advisor in Movies
Pros:
Al Pacino, Hilary Swank, dialog, direction
Al Pacino, Hilary Swank, dialog, direction
Cons:
S-l-o-w pace. Robin Williams as the heavy? Hmm.
S-l-o-w pace. Robin Williams as the heavy? Hmm.
It's all about small stuff. You know, small lies, small mistakes. People give themselves away, same in misdemeanors as they do on murder cases. It's just human nature. Det. Will Dormer
You have to pay close attention watching Insomnia, as the director inserts lots of little seemingly unrelated flashes into the story that make sense when the film finally plays out.
A pair of experienced homicide detectives Will Dormer and Hap Eckhart (Al Pacino and Martin Donovan) travel from Lost Angeles to Alaska to help solve a particularly vicious murder. Local detective Ellie Burr (Hilary Swank) worships Dormer and even wrote her college thesis on his work in LA. True to his reputation, Dormer wows the locals with some high-speed detective work and finds out who the killer is in record time. Catching him will take a little longer
It just so happens that there is an Internal Affairs investigation going through the LAPD and the two detectives are targeted for questioning - their boss sent them away to turn down the heat. Hap (Donovan) tells Dormer (Pacino) he is going to turn state s evidence in return for probation, which drives a wedge between the two men. The next day, during a stakeout for the killer, Pacino accidentally shoots and kills his partner in the fog. Pacino neglects to mention this when the inevitable questioning arises so the murderer gets another charge added to his warrant.
The investigation, accidental shooting, and unfamiliar location - not to mention the 24-hour midnight sun - disturbs Pacino s sleep and he begins to suffer auditory and visual hallucinations. Compounding the matter, the murderer saw and heard everything when Dormer (Pacino) accidentally shot his partner. He phones Dormer and tells him so, which leads to a meet, negotiations, etc.
Journeyman actor Al Pacino did an excellent job as Will Dormer. The way he played the dog tired detective who was unable to get any sleep because of the disorientation or maybe guilt was a joy to behold. Still, Al is a professional with over thirty years in front of the camera so I expect good things from him. I am not so sure that I would call this a career performance in light of the job he did in the underrated Carlito s Way, Scarface or Scent of a Woman, not to mention the magnificent Godfather trilogy, but it was well done.
Supporting cast was excellent; with Hilary Swank playing her part dead perfect, moving from a wide-eyed innocent to a jaundiced skeptic as she finds her idol has feet of clay. Robin Williams was excellent also in a performance against type. Martin Donovan and Nicky Katt were also first-rate in their fairly small roles.
The director, Christopher Nolan, did a good job, showing how Pacino got trapped by his own words, however the story was a little weak and s-l-o-w moving with a few too many coincidences. The people who are mentioning Oscars for this work show just how shallow the thinking of the Academy is, in my opinion; anyway, I seldom understand their picks. The dialog provided quite a few good one-liners, mainly for Pacino. These are the words that keep coming back to haunt him as the story plays out. The props could have used some work; I thought the blood they kept showing, as a flashback, looked more like cherry cough syrup than blood.
The film follows along in the film noir detective genre rather well with a few nice twists like the midnight sun juxtaposed with works of darkness metaphor. I would recommend Insomnia for genre fans as well as fans of Al Pacino.
If you enjoy Insomnia you ll also enjoy Jennifer 8,
Gorky Park, and Sharky s Machine.
Happy viewing!
You have to pay close attention watching Insomnia, as the director inserts lots of little seemingly unrelated flashes into the story that make sense when the film finally plays out.
A pair of experienced homicide detectives Will Dormer and Hap Eckhart (Al Pacino and Martin Donovan) travel from Lost Angeles to Alaska to help solve a particularly vicious murder. Local detective Ellie Burr (Hilary Swank) worships Dormer and even wrote her college thesis on his work in LA. True to his reputation, Dormer wows the locals with some high-speed detective work and finds out who the killer is in record time. Catching him will take a little longer
It just so happens that there is an Internal Affairs investigation going through the LAPD and the two detectives are targeted for questioning - their boss sent them away to turn down the heat. Hap (Donovan) tells Dormer (Pacino) he is going to turn state s evidence in return for probation, which drives a wedge between the two men. The next day, during a stakeout for the killer, Pacino accidentally shoots and kills his partner in the fog. Pacino neglects to mention this when the inevitable questioning arises so the murderer gets another charge added to his warrant.
The investigation, accidental shooting, and unfamiliar location - not to mention the 24-hour midnight sun - disturbs Pacino s sleep and he begins to suffer auditory and visual hallucinations. Compounding the matter, the murderer saw and heard everything when Dormer (Pacino) accidentally shot his partner. He phones Dormer and tells him so, which leads to a meet, negotiations, etc.
Journeyman actor Al Pacino did an excellent job as Will Dormer. The way he played the dog tired detective who was unable to get any sleep because of the disorientation or maybe guilt was a joy to behold. Still, Al is a professional with over thirty years in front of the camera so I expect good things from him. I am not so sure that I would call this a career performance in light of the job he did in the underrated Carlito s Way, Scarface or Scent of a Woman, not to mention the magnificent Godfather trilogy, but it was well done.
Supporting cast was excellent; with Hilary Swank playing her part dead perfect, moving from a wide-eyed innocent to a jaundiced skeptic as she finds her idol has feet of clay. Robin Williams was excellent also in a performance against type. Martin Donovan and Nicky Katt were also first-rate in their fairly small roles.
The director, Christopher Nolan, did a good job, showing how Pacino got trapped by his own words, however the story was a little weak and s-l-o-w moving with a few too many coincidences. The people who are mentioning Oscars for this work show just how shallow the thinking of the Academy is, in my opinion; anyway, I seldom understand their picks. The dialog provided quite a few good one-liners, mainly for Pacino. These are the words that keep coming back to haunt him as the story plays out. The props could have used some work; I thought the blood they kept showing, as a flashback, looked more like cherry cough syrup than blood.
The film follows along in the film noir detective genre rather well with a few nice twists like the midnight sun juxtaposed with works of darkness metaphor. I would recommend Insomnia for genre fans as well as fans of Al Pacino.
If you enjoy Insomnia you ll also enjoy Jennifer 8,
Gorky Park, and Sharky s Machine.
Happy viewing!
Review ID: 10000000000565644
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