Rating: 
Summary: The Moose Hole - Can't Sleep? Watch Insomnia!
Review: Anybody remember Memento? The independent film that critics and movie lovers in general loved so much but never got the public attention or the award recognition that it probably deserved? This wasn't so much a big deal for Newmarket, the studio that distributed the film, since the film went on to make nearly three times its budget but this has to be somewhat upsetting for the filmmakers who wanted more from their work but life goes on. The director of Memento, who is currently in the works with the new Batman project, went on to a new film called Insomnia, based on a Norwegian film of the same name. What makes this film interesting is the casting of certain roles within the film. No, its not just Al Pacino, though he does add some flavor of dramatic talent to the film, it's the casting of Robin Williams as the killer. Williams, who is best known for his comedic performances in Popeye, Aladdin and Hook, isn't the first choice that comes to mind in this area but if it works, the film could spawn a cult status on the same level as Memento.The story centers on the investigation of a murder in Alaska and the cat and mouse game that the killer instigates with one of the detectives. When a teenage girl is found murdered in a small town in Alaska, a veteran police detective and his partner are sent up to over-see an official investigation. Just as the two close in on the primary suspect of the murder, the veteran detective accidentally kills his partner in a chase, believing he was the murderer. The detective then lies about the accidental homicide and gets away with it. But he soon finds out that he isn't the only living soul who saw it happen. The murderer calls up the detective, who is racked with guilt, and plans to blackmail him into letting him go free. Now the veteran police detective must choose what means more to him, his life or his commitment to justice. The story for Insomnia does a wonderful job at dealing with conflicts of the human psyche when it comes to guilt but wasn't as surprising as Memento was. But this is a small issue as it is hard to follow up to such a critical success was that film was with many critics. Though the cast of Insomnia represents a wide range of actors and actresses from different performance backgrounds, it doesn't change the fact that they work perfectly together. Al Pacino in the role of the veteran detective brings the film a sense of seniority, which is a good thing in this case, and plays the character perfectly all the way to the end. He showcases a man truly racked with guilt in such a way that it allows his character to really connect with audience members without giving the end to the feature away. Even though it may seem a weird choice for the role of the killer, Robin Williams gives an impressive performance in this film. The veteran comedian seems to be really be adding up his dramatic performances with roles in other adult-oriented features like One Hour Photo and Death to Smoochy and adds to his impressive resume that includes an Oscar winning performance in Good Will Hunting. Hilary Swank, as good as she could have been in this film, isn't given much, in the area of material, that allows her to really expand her acting ability. Overall, despite lack the suspense and the surprising twists of its predecessor, Memento, Christopher Nolan gives an impressive follow-up with Insomnia that stands above most cop thrillers. The problems lie in the feature's time-length, which felt longer then it should have been, and its pacing, which seemed dragged down in certain areas. The lack of usable material for smaller characters with the film, like Hilary Swank, was a shame in there was a lot of potential for several enjoyable performances but nothing developed. Other then that, Insomnia gives an engaging view into the human psyche and the effects of guilt on the subconscious combined with amazing dramatic performances from Al Pacino and Robin Williams.
Rating: 
Summary: Nolan holds back on key strengths in Norwegian remake
Review: INSOMNIA/ USA 2002 (3.0 Stars)
11 Jan 2004: The first scene from Insomnia, that of a two seater plane gliding over endless glaciers perhaps sets up the mise-en-scene of cold spaces and unexpected occurrences in alien lands. The rest of the film only builds on this growing sense of alienation even as British Director Christopher Nolan takes great care to build the entire film around one single occurrence. While I haven't seen the original Norwegian film of which this namesake is a remake, I can't imagine Scandinavian cinema to be quite so literal, aka Insomnia equals the protagonist never sleeps. My guess would be that Al Pacino's physical manifestation of what might have been a hugely meta-diagetic depiction in the original renders the two films as very different, albeit with a common storyline.
The part I enjoyed the most was the mood that Nolan created through the clever use of texture. A harsh key light with an extra-ordinarily high lighting ratio played out the metaphor for the charred emotional feeling the central character, an upright detective (Pacino) is experiencing. This stylistic element in stark contrast to the polar blues of the Alaskan horizon (where the film is staged) aptly sets the stage for nervous expectation. The spoiler is that Detective Pacino accidentally shoots his partner where they are investigating the murder of a teenage girl in a small Alaskan town. Pacino, who works for the LAPD has a history of disagreement with his partner, and therefore feels compelled to keep the truth to himself. The catch is that the teenage-girl killer has been witness to this mishap.
The killer turns out to be Robin Williams, who surfaces only in the latter part of the movie and whom we have all but forgotten about by now (the fact that he was even a part of this film). The exploration of the relationship between a conniving killer & a seasoned detective with a dark secret leaves the film wanting in the end. Nolan, who so successfully explores Guy Pierce's amnesia in Memento fails on the encore. We are thus left with a film that continues to work on our sub conscience with its artistic mist in never-land, but one that is finally guilty of narrative triteness. Eminently watchable for the transfer of plight and mood, Pacino does a good if somewhat less intelligent job of portraying the hapless Detective, cursed to sleeplessness in a land where the sun ironically never sets.
Rating:
Summary: Wildly Thoughtful And Yet Disturbing Action Film!
Review: This is a quite diverting albeit not totally successful turn into film noire for both Robin Williams and Al Pacino, and the scenes between them are sometime electric with the kind of charisma such notable actors and stars often deliver. The script, too, is uneven, given the fascinating premise of a highly regarded but somewhat unconventional big-city detective and a somewhat disreputable character at that, (played well by Pacino) brought into the backwaters of remote Alaska to help solve a grisly and unsettling murder of a young and attractively seductive co-ed. From the outset, Pacino's character is wracked with insomnia which seems to be a result of both his own haunted past and the strange environment he now finds himself surrounded by. Very early on, the detective and his partner discover someone suspicious revisiting the crime scene, and in pursuit Pacino makes a fateful mistake that dials up the tension level and sets the stage for the insidious cat and mouse game that ensues between the pursued killer (Williams, in an over-the top performance that provides a pulse-raising coda to the progression of events) on the one hand, and the haunted and increasingly confused and bewildered Pacino, on the other. What results from this deadly conflict is a nightmare on steroids, a film noire shot in stark and bold Technicolor shades and hues. The supporting cast, including Hilary Swank doing a nice turn as an overly earnest young Alaskan policewoman, veteran Paul Dooley, and relative new-comer Martin Donovan, all help to promote the suffocating sense of a claustrophobic whirl of events gone tragically out of control. Not for the squeamish, I fear, but great entertainment for someone willing to see Pacino in yet another portrayal of a cop over the edge, and the surprisingly deadly Robin Williams as a most worthy opponent for the cop's relentless efforts to pursue him. Enjoy
Rating:
Summary: A fantastic movie with rewatch value
Review: The film certainly bears its name well because the last thing you'll want to do while watching it is to fall asleep. In fact, the tension runs so high that even after the credits roll by, the last thing you'll be thinking about is your bed. Most likely, what you will be doing is trying to remember the last time you saw a thriller this good, this exciting and this effective at putting you inside the uncomfortable position of its main character. Christopher Nolan's follow-up to the fantastic MEMENTO is as tight a production as they come, featuring three Academy Award winners, an out-of-sight landscape, and a story that will tingle and scrape at more of you nerve endings than a visit to a bad dentist. Pacino and Hilary Swank display tremendous chemistry as the veteran cop and the youngster who admires him, pairing up to solve both the initial murder and another more mysterious crime that comes along and blows the case wide open. Thankfully, Pacino plays a more subdued character than his usually more agitated self and as for Swank, it was nice to see her with some meat on her bones, looking good and putting up a great performance. Whilst I hardly consider myself a fan of Robin Williams, even I have to say that he was perfect as an offbeat author from a neighboring town. It's a very character and plot driven movie and these three drove it home in style. The surrounding cast also followed their lead in playing the local cops and townspeople, with a special nod going to the delightful Maura Tierney who plays the town hotelier. It was pretty cool to see Pacino in this setting. We're not used to seeing him in a small town with snow and grass since he's usually playing characters in New York or LA. which was another northern murder mystery featuring cops dealing in environments in which they were not familiar. It was actually quite refreshing and very satisfying to see this perspective on Pacino. Overall, the film is definitely worth the look and a great use of a couple of hours as solid entertainment and lots of gritting of teeth. A success through and through
Rating:
Summary: Defeating the Type-Cast
Review: Imagine if Robin Williams could subside his overzealous attempts at being the funniest person of all time (which obviously wasn't working) and actually took on a more serious role. Come to find out that he can actually be a great actor! It's true, Williams drops all the corniness to team up with Al Pacino and Hilary Swank to achieve Christopher Nolan's brilliant follow-up to Memento with this thrilling drama that takes place in Nightmute, Alaska. Two L.A. detectives are brought into this quaint little town to investigate the murder of a local teen. Chaos ensues after a philosophically taxing event happens to chief detective Will Dormer (played by Pacino). It's quite entertaining all the way up to the very end that will have you chewing on your fingernails without even knowing it. Spectacular acting by Pacino, Williams, and Swank mixed with Nolan's fantastic directing sytle prove this film to be a great one. Also see "One Hour Photo" for another role that thwarts the "corniest guy of the 90s" type-cast for Williams.
Rating:
Summary: Put yourself in a desperate man's shoes.
Review: An ace detective is after a killer, but his incredible sleeplessness (because it's always daytime in far northern Alaska) causes him to make more and more mistakes. Also his righteous indignation towards the quilty is clouded by his own guilt in two other incidents, making him gradually realize that he's not much better than the man he's chasing. All the elements are presented to you at the beginning, but you never know for sure how they're going to get there until they do so. For a movie that lays it cards out on the table so soon this one packs quite a few surprises. You may say, more than once, "I didn't know THAT was going to happen".
Rating:
Summary: Good but not Great
Review: Al Pacino does and excellent acting job in this movie. It is also a well written piece about character and "choices". It just gets a little lost towards the end and not as suspenseful as it should be. (A near car accident is scarier than the confrontation with the killer etc) The biggest problem is the casting or maybe the interpretation of the role by Robin Williams. He is so likeable that it's almost like Mr. Rogers the killer. It does not work and ultimately makes this a film that doesn't work. There is no menace to him - someone like Kevin Spacey would have been much better. (altho no one has ever really beaten Anthony Perkins' incredible acting job in Psycho as a likeable killer) Rent or buy this because it is much better than the "paint by numbers" suspense movies we usually get. You know the "Killer goes after the investigators wife and kids" etc plot. It was actually written about choices of loyalty, Honesty and what matters the most. (Do ends justify means etc)
Rating:
Summary: Insomnia
Review: A good flick for Pacino, but something... eh... Pacino is better in this film than usual. he is acting without yelling, which is nice. The plot is good. Robin Williams is great in this. Hillary Swank is terrific. But something is just missing throughout the picture; you find yourself waiting for it... and it never comes somehow. Not a bad picture, but not a terrific one either.
Rating:
Summary: Sorta' like Clarice
Review: This was a good film... I liked it. Pacino (although older) was fantastically cool, and I liked him more and more as the film opened up. Now perhaps it was because I watched this film at a badly late hour (enabling me to relate to Pacino's character better, perhaps) but as time wore on, I couldn't help but see some similarities between the Hilary Swank character and Clarice Starling.... Good film. The Vancouver area passing for Alaska given away on the ferry scene. I'd definitely recommend this film.
Rating: 
Summary: Disapointed
Review: I was disapointed, I thought it could have ben alot better. Both actors were great but Robins charecter was just to nice.
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