Review of Insomnia (2002) by James S — 10 Mar 2015

Chris Nolan's films always get me excited, but I find this one falls short of the pack. Our hero, a Los Angeles detective, finds himself in Alaska investigating a murder. When complications arise after a fog-ridden gunfight, he finds himself having to deal with the murderer in a series of tit-for-tat extortionist power plays.

While I enjoyed the shifting power dynamics, I was not crazy about the long, drawn-out scenes between Pacino and Williams. I understand there must be context to craft a character's motivations, but too much of the movie felt like it had no support. Throw in Nolan's trademark use of a minimalist musical score, and you get a film that feels very exposed and unsupported.

The acting was not stellar, either. Pacino perennially looks like he has dead eyes, making me think that he has no real emotions. Williams, while good, feels out of place in such a serious movie. Swank was passable, but nothing to write home about.

I suppose this is a standard murder mystery with another interesting plot thrown in. There's just nothing to make it stand out, or to make me care enough about the characters to feel sad when bad things happen to them.