Insomnia **** (2002, Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank) – Classic Movie Review 472

Director Christopher Nolan’s 2002 movie is a distinguished, creepy remake of Erik Skjoldbjærg’s 1997 Norwegian psychological thriller Insomnia that starred Stellan Skarsgård.

This time it is Al Pacino’s turn to look tired. That’s because he hasn’t had any sleep since he arrived in the small sleepy Alaskan town of Nightmut.

In this dark and disturbing thriller, Pacino plays troubled veteran LAPD cop Will Dormer, who is sent to Alaska with partner Hap Eckhart (Martin Donovan) to investigate the troubling death of a 17-year-old girl. They are met in the small sleepy town of Nightmute by eager-beaver young local cop Hilary Swank and police chief Paul Dooley, and Pacino encounters the smug and reclusive novelist, Robin Williams, who has befriended the dead girl.

Sleep-deprived from the brutality of the case and unrelenting daylight, Pacino finds his judgment and stability dangerously impaired, leading to inevitable tragedy. An understandably shattered-looking Pacino is first rate, and so are the two other Oscar-winners Swank and Williams. All three are well cast and ideal in a gripping, if sometimes tough to watch, movie that, like the original, lets no one off the hook.

It is extremely stylishly directed by Memento’s Nolan, with a lot of tension and an eerie, doom-laden mood. Hillary Seitz’s screenplay is an effective adaptation of the original by Skjoldbjærg and Nicolaj Frobenius. And there are eye-catching images from ace cinematographer Wally Pfister, filming on location in Alaska and British Columbia.

Tragically dear Robin Williams was found dead in his home in Tiburon, California, on Monday August 11 2014, aged 63. The cause of death is believed to be suicide via asphyxiation. He had been battling depression and recently entered 12-step rehab for drug abuse.  He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1997 for Good Will Hunting, and won two Emmys, four Golden Globes, five Grammys and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Mrs Doubtfire was perhaps his most enduring character. He was gearing up to reprise his role in a sequel.

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 472

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