Insomnia [Blu-ray] [Region Free] [US Import]

And a bad cop cant sleep because his conscience wont let him. Insomnia is directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Erik Skjoldbjærg and Nikolaj Frobenius (1997 screenplay). It stars Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank, Maura Tierney, Martin Donovan and Nicky Katt. Music is scored by David Julyan and cinematography by Wally Pfister. It's a remake of a 1997 Norwegian film of the same name. LAPD detective Will Dormer (Pacino) and his partner Hap Eckhart (Donovan) travel to the remote Alaskan town of Nightmute to aid the local cops investigating the savage murder of a teenage girl. But Dormer leaves behind an Internal Affairs Investigation that gnaws away at him, and when a potential bust of the murder suspect goes tragically wrong, his conscious gets attacked on two fronts. By lack of sleep and by the killer himself. It's a House of Cards. Viewing from afar it's easy to be cynical and suggest that Insomnia is just an American remake cash in. Bigger budget, bigger stars and directed by a indie darling of the critics moving into the big league. While on the surface the plot looks to be another in a long line of cops and villains thrillers where procedural unfolds and evil is ultimately brought down at the end. Yet Insomnia is so much more than that, it's a deep movie dealing in complex psychological issues, a blanc-noir of some character substance, a picture clinically put together around one man's descent into a private hell, with the beautiful Alaskan backdrop perversely claustrophobic and Anthony Mann like in being at one with Will Dormer's fragmented state of mind. Killing changes you. You know that. From the opening moments as we observe a biplane flying over the Alaskan glaciers, accompanied by David Julyan's nerve tingling score, there's a looming air of disquiet. Nolan knows his noir onions, mood is everything and the dense psychological atmosphere is never once breached for the entire movie. Much of the picture is dialogue heavy, gratifyingly so, with the hushed conversations between Pacino and Williams begging the viewer to hang on every word as cop and killer (no spoiler, it's revealed to us early as a necessity) jostle for control of each others soul. What action there is also comes with a side order of otherworldly delights, a chase across floating logs and a stalk through eerie fog being the two particular highlights. Sleep comes at a cost. With three Oscar winners in the cast Nolan had some serious quality to direct, that Pacino, Williams and Swank deliver excellence is high praise for the British director. Pacino actually gives one of his finest late career performances, utterly compelling as Dormer, his haggard face tells of a thousand sorrows, his sleep deprived gait befits a man staring into the abyss. Wally Pfister's photography is on the money, the blend of snow whites and green tinges sparkle from the vistas and the soft brown hues inside the hotel provide the rare moments of tranquillity available to Will Dormer. Across the board Insomnia is a cracker of a movie, a film that goes into the murky depths of the genre to reveal one of the best movies of 2002. 9/10

Excellent film. My motivation for buying this was Robin Williams. Fairly early on in the scenes by the beach in thick fog I realised I had caught some of it once on a flight and, ironically, had slept through most of it. So finally I had a chance to see all of it. The cinematography is simply wonderful. The mood of the Alaskan town and endless daylight are captured perfectly. The premise of the story is simple and yet extremely troubling. The Pacino character battles with his moral dilemma and is compromised. Psycho-thriller is a fitting label, reminding me occasionally of scenes from Basic Instinct - who is outsmarting whom? As it accelerates towards its reckoning, the likelihood of a happy ending sinks into the depths. Gritty, bleak, realistic.. and that brings me to the film's only significant problem; the violence. It's a crime investigation and some of the action seems realistic, or at least believable. Some elements are frankly ridiculous. People are hit hard and repeatedly, sometimes knocked unconscious and yet, miraculously, stand up more or less unscathed and leap immediately into action. Wherever such directors learn their trade apparently no-one ever hits them. Aside from that I've rarely seen Pacino more convincing as his character skates the thin ice. Williams surprises and excels in this serious role as the villain, the combination works surprisingly well. Swank and Donovan are also compelling in smaller roles, as are the supporting cast. A great way to lose yourself for 2 ¼ hours.

Did I ever know what insomnia is? Sure it's not being able to sleep, but what does it do to you?? I think I know now, as I can feel myself addressing it right here, I've been up for nearly 17 hours. But at least I can sleep, this guy can go 5 days without a blink. The film seems to say something about small town mentalities and what it's like living in one. I'm from one and I recognize certain aspects of human behaviours and attitiudes. Al Pacino's character holds it together as best he can - the interesting fact being that he has had to cut corners throughout his career and they are catching up with him more than he will catch up with sleep. He is tormented by this and makes another serious mistake. That scene is in the fog - again, great attention to detail as I was driving in the fog a couple of nights ago (naturally). He is trying to catch a child killer in the form of Mrs Doubt..No, that's Robin Williams of course, he's taking on a serious role and you do wish he'd taken on more since, cos it shows you another side to him and it's good. Williams torments Pacino throughout and you get the impression that Pacino is fighting the tide of opinion, in a town happy to settle for any result. Overall this is a good man fading away, tormented by his demons and the past. It is gripping and it really feels like this manhunt is taking place in the wild west, except this is Alaska, a place where it's always light... This film had a profound effect on me, especially when you consider we've had the Batman trilogy off this director since. It's moody and the eternal appeal for me is that it is the portrayal of a man trying to keep his head above water whilst doing the very important job of catching someone dangerous. It shows you what life is like in moments of personal turmoil and gives you a real insight into what survival means at that point. Moving.

ありがとうございました。 早速、楽しく視聴出来ました。

Will Dormer è un esperto detective della Polizia di Los Angeles: viene chiamato insieme al collega Hap Eckhart a Nightmute, una piccola cittadina dell’Alaska, per indagare sull’inquietante omicidio di una diciassettenne, Kay Connell. Sul luogo i due incontrano la giovane agente Ellie, che nutre profondo rispetto per la carriera di Dormer e per i numerosi casi che ha risolto nel suo passato. La coppia di poliziotti è per altro nel centro della bufera, avendo procurato qualche tempo prima false prove per far condannare un uomo che loro sapevano per certo aveva ucciso e torturato un bambino. Tra di loro vi sono idee diverse su come dichiararsi al processo, in cui le rispettive carriere sono inevitabilmente a rischio. Sotto la luce abbagliante e ininterrotta dell’estate artica, i sospetti cadono sullo scrittore Walter Finch. Un incidente tormenta Dormer, che incapace di recuperare sonno ed equilibri mentali e fisici tenta di lottare con i propri sensi di colpa, mentre un pericoloso gioco psicologico si innesca nei suoi confronti. Ho acquistato questo prodotto perchè, oltre ad essere un capolavoro, presentava l' edizione due dischi con contenuti speciali, interviste, spiegazioni del film. Per chi non lo sapesse il film si tratta di un remake dell'omonimo film norvegese del '97, ma nonostante questo risulta essere un thriller da vedere assolutamente anche perchè è guidato da Cristopher Nolan, uno dei miei registi preferiti, che aggiunge un che soggettivo ai propri personaggi lavorando sul loro aspetto interiore, psicologico e cognitivo. Consiglio assolutamente l' acquisto.

très beau film, avec des acteurs formidables, et un voyage dans une intrigue et une région inhabituelles (pour le Parisien moyen que je suis) on est heureux de revoir (en vie) l'actrice de One Million Dollar Baby

I'm really glad I watched the Norwegian version of Insomnia (1997) first. The 2002 remake pretty much stuck to the same script, but with a few different angles. The opening of the 2002 I found much more commanding. You really saw and appreciated the isolation, ice-capped mountains, dense forests and fogs of northern Norway, more so than in the original. And I liked that in the American version, the suspect had dogs; that was a nice touch — made it a bit more likely that his story about it being an accident was more likely true, at first anyway. TO GO WITH STORY TITLED INSOMNIA--Al Pacino and Hillary Swank in Alcon EntertainmentÕs suspense-thriller ÒInsomnia.Ó (AP Photo/ Warner Bros. Pictures). I think when I watched the original with the subtitles, I missed some of the nuances about the problems the Inspector was having with internal affairs, in the States in the 2002 version. This is why he has so much trouble with the accidental shooting of his partner — he seems uncertain, himself, as to whether it was an accident or not. And the lady cop, played by Hilary Swank in the American version, has a much more important role in the story — all the way through but especially at the end, which was different. Actors Al Pacino (L) and Robin Williams are shown in a scene from their new suspense thriller film "Insomnia," also starring Hilary Swank. Pacino portrays a Los Angeles police detective assigned to help solve a murder in Alaska. The film opened May 24, 2002 in the United States. (NO SALES) REUTERS/Warner Bros./Handout It's quite prophetic when Inspector Dormer (Al Pacino) is looking at the body of the victim in the morgue and says, "He crossed the line with this one. You don't come back from that." It's not only prophetic for the killer, Walter Finch (Robin Williams in one of his more serious and sinister roles) but also for himself. He, too crosses the line, but at the very end he succeeds in coming back from it — only just. There was quite a bit of abusive sex in the original that was left out in the remake, but the remake had its share of foul language. The shack in the newer movie was in a much more isolated place that made it more believable, I thought, as a place of privacy for clandestine meetings, and I liked the way the tip-off to the suspect came from an accidental squeal from a megaphone. Also, the differences between the partners from Los Angeles (Pacino and Martin Donovan) was much more visible, which lent itself to the question of whether the shooting was really accidental or not, and Pacino hallucinates during the search, thinking he sees his partner as one of the searchers. Nice touch! All in all, I think I preferred the American remake but I'm glad I watched both. The foreign one was interesting, partly because of the actors being unknown to me, but I thought the American one, perhaps with a bigger budget, showed the setting off better and I liked the changes to the script — especially the ending. Absolutely amazing!

I have bought the blu-ray, and that is amazing. ....