Insomnia (2002)

There are only few directors who are competent enough in making movie remakes which can be notable from the rest. Christopher Nolan’s Insomnia is one such instance. Though the plot details are based on ’97 Norwegian movie of the same name still it was quite a striking experience.

Insomnia can be described as a crime thriller which requires attention as the pacing is slow & unfolds the story gradually. It begins with the travel of two LAPD detectives Will Dormer (Al Pacino) & Hap Eckhart (Martin Donovan) to Alaska for probing into a homicide case of a teen age girl. The relation between the two detectives is shown to be strained, caused due to ongoing inquiry on Dormer by the internal affairs for tampering with the evidences in some previous case. Local authority provides Officer Ellie Burr (Hillary Swank) to assist with the investigation, who also seems to be a great admirer of Dormer’s work. While trying to lure the murderer into the trap an accident takes place which results to the death of Eckhart. From here on a baffling mind game starts between Dormer & the prime suspect who seems to know the actual cause of the accident which led to the death of Dormer’s partner. The story eventually progress with how Dormer deals with his suspect’s blackmailing as well as insomnia caused due to Alaska’s everlasting daylight system.

This movie is some what diverse from other usual thrillers, although the story progressed bit by bit the overall casting made it very interesting. Al Pacino fleshed out Dormer’s role brilliantly & Hillary Swank got enough time to put her part in good use. I don’t know whether Robin Williams was the right choice for the role entrusted to him; still I guess he did pull the character pretty well.

Wally Pfister has been working with Nolan ever since Memento and his touch on the cinematography was pretty neat & laudable. Though the relevance of the backdrop score was limited; it was soothing & had some kind of haunting tune stringed to keep the tempo.

This is a character driven story powered by prominent castings. If I am addressing this article to any Nolan fan then I am sure they might have already seen this movie. Nevertheless this movie cannot be compared with Nolan’s other brilliant work but as a stand alone it is really hard hitting & definitely requires attention.

My Rating : 7.5/10