comparisons between the remake and the original

Rating: Null/10 (19 October 2002)

As many by now know, "Insomnia" is a remake of the identically-named Norwegian thriller from 1997. I saw the original before seeing Nolan's remake, and I'm quite glad I had. Watching the remake was far more gratifying this way; I felt it was a kind of a reinterpretation of the original story. !!May contain Spoilers!! Stellan Skarsgard's cop has his reputation already smeared by an incident of indecent behaviour and what's left of his career is in shambles when he begins his investigation into the murder of the girl. He has an air of creepy sleaziness. And he's aware of his ethical shortcomings. That's why he covers up the shooting of his partner, he simply wouldn't believe himself either if he'd claim it was an accident. Pacino's cop, however, is a veteran and burnt-out LA cop fearing an internal affairs investigation into his department. The years on the job have taken their toll and made him resentful, immoral and self-righteous. He fears the IA investigation (with help from his partner) could ruin his career and everything he worked for. Skarsgard's persona is afraid that the constant daylight will expose his flawed character for all to see, while in Pacino's case the lack of sleep force his character to face his inner demons. No rest for the wicked, indeed! I think the new version shouldn't be knocked just because it's a remake, but critics should rather overlook the usual Hollywood elements (exposition, gratuitous action etc.) and accept this version as a variant of the original story, viewed under a different aspect and with a change of the emphasis. The acting is fabulous, Pacino gives one of his best performances in years and Williams shows us that he actually can act and very compelling, at that (which is surprising, considering those criminally sappy flicks he had been making lately). The score by David Julyan is subtle and adds a certain haunting-melancholical touch as in "Memento". And Nolan, well, "Memento" proved he's a genius and he has a way of inserting frames into the picture that makes the viewer get unnoticingly drawn into the story. Can't wait to see Nolan's next film!