Rating: Summary: A Great, Terrific Thriller with Rich Performances. Review: When a L.A. Famous Detective (Oscar-Winner:Al Pacino) & His Partner-Hap (Martin Donovan) are Sent to Alsaka for a Murder Invesgation. Helping them is a Young, Thoughful Detective (Oscar-Winner:Hilary Swank) to Solve the Crime. Once his Arrival, Will can`t Sleep, because of the Relentless Midnight Sun. When he`s close to Catch the Culprit (Oscar-Winner:Robin Williams). Will ends up Playing Cat & Mouse with the Suspect & He Can`t Fight the Guilt of his Dark Past.Directed by Christopher Nolan (Memento) made a Riveting, Suspense-Thriller. Nolan choosen his Cast perfectly Well, which they given Top-Notch Performances. Based on a Screenplay by Nikolaj Frobenuis & Erik Skjoldbjaerg, which Skjoldjaerg did Directed the Original 1997 Film. DVD has an sharp anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1) transfer & an strong-Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. DVD has an Commentary Track by Nolan, Commentary Track by Actress:Swank & the Production Team., Behind the Scenes featurette, Additional Scenes & More. This is One of the Best Remakes & Thrillers out-there. Executive Produced by George Clooney & Steven Soderbergh (Ocean`s Eleven, Out of Sight, Solaris). Screenplay by Hillary Seitz (I, Robot). Panavision. Grade:A.
Rating: Summary: Original better; still, kudos for Pacino and Williams Review: Chris Nolan's version of Insomnia is an American-ized (and slightly watered-down) remake of the excellent original Norwegian film, which featured Swedish Stellan Skarsgård (best known to American audiences for his work in "Good Will Hunting") as the sleep-deprived lead detective. I had one fundamental problem: I never really bought into the contrived circumstances that lead Pacino and partner Martin Donovan (who many will recall for his excellent portrayal as Christina Ricci's brother in 'The Opposite of Sex') up to Alaska. Once ensconced in Alaska, I've got to admit: Pacino does a really good Pacino here. His Pacino persona is a hand-in-glove fit for this sleep-deprived role. Pacino being Pacino, I'll bet he took the Method approach and literally didn't sleep for 5+ days. Either way, his frustration and increasingly slowed reflexes and perplexity are palpable. The real revelation for me was Robin Williams. Even though he got an Oscar for 'Good Will Hunting,' I thought his fake Boston accent schtick there was dreadful. Anyone who grew up within a 100-mile radius of Boston tuned him out the second he opened his mouth. Here, though, he's superb. Forgot "One Hour Photo." Williams is perfectly creepy and calculating here. I never for a second thought I was watching another goofy Robin Williams role. He needs more "Insomnia," less "Death to Smoochy." I hope we see more inspired choices like this from him in the future.
Rating: Summary: overacting 101 Review: Clostrophobic non thriller with Pacino overacting all the way through it. Weak premise, weak plot only watch it if YOU are an insomniac and you've gone through your entire DVD stash!
Rating: Summary: Worthy Remake Review: The Los Angles detective Will Dormer (Al Pacino) and his partner are sent to Alaska to investigate a bizarre murder of a teenage girl. During the murder investigation there is a simultaneous investigation of the two LA detectives in LA, which might incriminate detective Dormer and set free all the criminals that he has put behind bars. When an opportunity to arrest the murderer of the teenage girl arises, the detectives set a trap for the murderer, but something goes wrong in the fog of things. This leads to an overbearing sense of guilt for detective Dormer that induces insomnia, which affects logical reasoning and all other aspects of detective Dormer's investigation of the murder. The constant daylight keeps the audience reminded with intelligent manner that one cannot escape guilt. Insomnia is a remake of the Norwegian film with the same title where Stellan Skarsgård has the roll that Al Pacino performs in the remake. The Norwegian version is different in the sense of solitude and culture while the remade version provides an clever and different view of the same film. The film is cunningly directed as well as acted with a brilliant touch and it leaves the viewer with an experience that will not fade.
Rating: Summary: A WEIRD MOVIE Review: I did not feel much exitement or thrill throughout the whole flick.This version was good but still I think the original Norwegian one was better.
Rating: Summary: Good performances/camera work, but otherwise avoid Review: If you can jog your memory back to Memento, you'll see that Christopher Nolan is a great director. Al Pachino has starred in lots of great films and won academy awards, and the same goes for Robin Williams. Hilary Swank is a fantastic actress. Yet something falls apart. I don't know if it's in the script, but when I saw the ads, they had Robin Williams and Al Pacino. In the film, Robin williams doesn't come in till 2/3 of the way in, and his role is more of an important cameo. In the ad, you see Robin Williams swinging a mashetti (?) at the camera, but in the film, he just tosses it around; it is intense, yes, but VERY brief. I was unsatisfied with the ending, but I liked Nolan, and his jump cuts. Thank you for taking the time to read my review ... God Bless America!
Rating: Summary: An intelligent thriller with great performances Review: The initial, basic plot of INSOMNIA is fairly conventional. Al Pacino, a tired, grizzled cop, and his partner, come to Alaska to help solve a particularly heinous murder. They're chasing a psycho. Right there is enough story for many movies. But this movie isn't satisfied with anything conventional. When Pacino comes close to capturing the bad guy, he makes a HUGE mistake and then makes the bigger mistake of covering up for himself...and is witnessed in this crime by the murderer himself. Thus, Pacino must now track the murderer to also prevent his secret from getting out. Does this mean killing the murderer? The movie is set in Alaska, during the time of year when the sun isn't setting. Pacino can't get to sleep, and his guilt-ridden insomnia seeps into his performance in a nearly tangible way. We see his ever increasing weariness. He's a good cop who may have taken some shortcuts in the past, but we sense that he's smart and on the right side. His mistake was an accident followed by a lapse in judgement. But as his weariness covers him, we feel his despair for his soul. It's rare to see a "crime" movie that delves so deeply into the psyche of its main characters. This is truly a great Pacino performance...he doesn't go over the top, and we understand once again why he's one of our greats. Robin Williams excellently plays the psycho-killer. He's not as creepy as he was in ONE HOUR PHOTO, but he is very effective, and makes an unusual foil for Pacino. Hillary Swank plays the local law officer who admirers Pacino, even as she begins to question his story. Martin Donovan plays Pacino's partner in a small part that he carries off VERY well. This guy needs more high profile parts. The movie doesn't move at a very brisk pace, but for intelligent, adult movie goers, it is jam-packed with psychological action. And there is very nice chase scene about halfway through, where Pacino is pursuing Williams over a river covered with logs. It's something we've not seen in a movie before. The whole movie is pretty unique, in fact, and I highly recommend it!
Rating: Summary: Fantastic acting, fantastic film Review: Very seldom have I seen a culmination of acting of this magnitude. This film is incredible! Al Pacino plays detective Dormir (Ironic is that Dormir is a spanish verb meaning to sleep) on the trail of a suspected murderer, played by Robin Williams. Robin is perfect in this role. He completely pulls off an antagonist role. As the movie progresses, we see a hatred for Williams bloom inside of Pacino making the movie more enjoyable to watch. Even more interesting is that as indicated by the title, sleep deprivation is involved in this film. Pacino is unable to adjust to the constant sunlight in Alasksa at this time of the year and cannot sleep. This makes him slowly go insane throughout the film. A very interesting premise indeed. Anyway, this is a spectacular DVD and should be purchased by any movie fan.
Rating: Summary: Welcome Chris Nolan to the mainstream. Review: It is a nice follow-up installment after the unique psychological thriller - Memento. Chris Nolan can surely saved his seat in the mainstream with this good work and we do need this talent out of the at-times boring industry. But in my opinion, it could still be more better. Chris Nolan should shed more lights on the impact of suffering from insomnia that affected Will Domer as in Memento did to Leonard Shelby's amnesia. In addition, the ending sequence could extend longer and look at the intensity between the three characters, whereby will be more satisfying. ANY GOOD? The chase cross the river is the best moment of the film, nicely crafted and shooted. Robin Williams' soft acting earns him 5stars. Al Pacino's sleepy eyes are absorbing, u can definitely feel his tiredness.
Rating: Summary: Insomnia suspenseful Review: I originally saw this film in the theatre during one of the opening weekends. Surprisingly, I realized the plot of the movie, having the feeling that I'd seen this film before (but that's impossible!) I in fact had seen the 1997 Norwegian film which "Insomnia" was based upon, years before. From what I can recall, the American version followed the Norwegian version's script pretty closely. I was a bit dissapointed, however, that I knew how it would end from seeing the Norwegian version first. I would definitely recommend this DVD if you like suspense thrillers.
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