Finally, A Real Movie

Rating: 10/10 (29 May 2002)

I have not seen the original, but I will. This movie was outstanding. I would write outstanding in all caps, but I don't feel like yelling. Pacino was the most engaging I have seen him since Scent of a Woman. If you are a fan of acting and love the understated, you may feel Robin Williams gives his best performance in this movie. I definitely do. There are so many details to pour over; questions within questions with answers that perception and perspective can and will change for you.

Why did Dormer hold so much inside? Do we really believe that Finch believes he is innocent? Everyone's actions and choices ride the film forward on a tightly wound and engaging suspension of disbelief. At one point the movie almost broke in to a typical Hollywood-style chase scene - but the director immediate derailed it, with confidence, and plunged us (literally) right back in to our insomnia-induced sense of isolation and eeriness.
Dormer/Pacino is the kind of cop with a gift that we are used to in movies. But he is a flawed cop who's gift may have become a crutch. In the back-story it may have cost him his career. With Finch/Williams (in the present) it may be clouding his vision more than the insomnia. If you watch Memento enough, every detail makes sense. Not so in Insomnia, logic (for the characters) is tossed aside early; bad and good dance and almost swap places.
This movie is all about the struggle, but not in a way that we are used to. The motives aren't what you think. The good guy has strayed from the path. The bad guy is sad, driven, compassionate and intelligent - if he wasn't so willing to wear his guilt, we might like him. I am tired of black and white characters in movies. This movie dons the gray cloak and shows all its wonderful shades. If you can't tell already, for me, this movie was deeply satisfying and beautiful - and a guilty pleasure I will enjoy again soon.