Review of Before I Go to Sleep (2014) by Andy P — 11 Feb 2015

Another relatively suspenseful, stylish and dark "marriage thriller", Before I Go to Sleep is a compelling mystery that despite its failure to avoid genre clichés entertains with sharp twists and solid performances. With enough British-ness to seem a bit more pretentious than necessary, this claustrophobic thriller sometimes lacks the logic to explain all its twists but thanks to its fast-pacing it keeps the audience interested and involved in the story.

Christine Lucas (Nicole Kidman) is a 40 years old woman who wakes up every morning without remembering anything for the past 20 years. Every single morning she has to undergo the same drill with her husband in order to learn that she had an accident and that her memories after the accident are erased every time she goes to bed. Whether by chance or by the call of her natural curiosity, and helped by a mysterious doctor she starts trying to fix the puzzle of her lost memory. Quickly, elements of a painful past, strange facts and suspicious contradictions are brought to Christine and her husband's (Colin Firth) lives. With his skilful story-telling director Rowan Joffe manages to zig-zag the audience through multiple twists and to increase the overall level of curiosity. This will really keep you intrigued until the final revelation of the mystery.

What deprive Before I Go to Sleep from being something more than a passable delivery are two elements. On the suspense side, the movie is intriguing but only at curiosity level. Rowan Joffe never really manages to create a nail-biter. The second issue it the lack of emotional load within the cast. Some revelations are expected to have a much more powerful effect on Christine and once again the audience does not succeed to get involved beyond the level of curiosity. When the final twist is revealed and the climax takes place the suspense kick is totally non-existent.

In the end, Before I Go to Sleep is definitely a worth-seeing thriller that would keep you involved with the story for all its 92 minutes. Nothing more and nothing less. It would not shock you, provoke you and stun you as the other recent "marriage triller" Gone Girl, but it would rather keep you mildly intrigued in an easy-going way. Three months later you would not even remember what the story was about, but still it is a very decent option for an evening home cinema experience.