Insomnia (DVD)

When the body of a local woman is discovered in a small Alaskan town, the local police force receives the support of two Los Angeles murder detectives. The young woman has been beaten to death, but her body has been meticulously stripped of any traces of any DNA, and the local police force has no clues. The two detectives despatched to the town are Will Dormer, an experienced and hardened officer, and his young partner Walter Finch. Unbeknown to the Alaskan police, Dormer is under investigation by internal affairs, and it transpires that his partner has been forced into co-operating with the internal investigators. When the murdered woman’s ruck sack is ...  Read the complete review

Christopher Nolan is quickly becoming one of Britain’s hottest directors, after the brilliant Memento, this film, and last summer’s Batman Begins, which was Nolan’s first foray into the world of the big budget action blockbuster. His dark depiction of the caped crusader won him loads of critical acclaim and was one of the only good films in a summer of disappointing flops. But before that, he made Insomnia, a kind of cop thriller/psychological drama set against the icy backdrop of Alaska. It’s a remake of the Norwegian film of the same name which was made in 1997, and starred Stellan Skarsgård. The film is about a detective, Will Dormer (Al Pacino) who is ...  Read the complete review

Nightmute, Alaska, a town of mists and perpetual daylight. A teenage girl has been murdered, and all traces of the killer's DNA painstakingly and expertly removed from her body. The close-knit community is distraught and dumbfounded, the local police nonplussed as to what to do next. Enter LAPD detective Will Dormer and his younger partner, Hap, to give the benefit of their expertise. Both Hap and Dormer are under investigation by internal affairs. Hap (Martin Donovan) is ready to cut a deal to save his career, but Dormer (Al Pacino) wants none of it. He has a reputation in the force as a genius and a 'good' cop, but hints to Hap that there have ...  Read the complete review

As anyone who has suffered from Insomnia will know, trying to draw your thoughts together into something coherent can be more than just a challenge. It begins to blur your perception and leaves you confused about exactly what is going on. Christopher Nolan's slice of 'Insomnia' plays on much of this feeling as it explores the blurring between right and wrong of a high profile detective's career - with the roots of his sleep depravation being more sinister than might be immediately thought. Christopher Nolan's third feature film is remarkably different from his last two offerings, and appears to make him one of the enviable set of directors ...  Read the complete review

This movie further confirms that Christopher Nolan is a brilliant director and here to stay. It is based on the 1997 Norweigen blockbuster of the same name, although that film of course not being produced by Hollywood didn't make the same waves this film did. Based in Alaska, this film would have been great wherever it was filmed, as scenery is not the selling point, however the great acting is. Al Pacino plays an LA detective who accidenently kills the wrong man, and the criminal he was trying to catch(excellently played by Robin Williams) sees this, so also sees an opportunity to blackmail the cop. So the game of cat and mouse begins and the viewer is kept ...  Read the complete review