Insomnia (1997 & 2002) (**** & ***1/2)
review by Jon Waterman

I’m going to do something somewhat different.  I’m going to review two movies at once.  The new “Insomnia” is actually a remake of a 1997 film from Norway.  It would be nearly impossible to review the new without referencing the old, and so, I’ll do both at once.  At the end of my review, I will have the star ratings for each version.  Here we go.

The basic premise is the same no matter which way you go.  Two great detectives are brought in from out of town in order to solve a murder case.  While hunting down the suspect, one detective (the main character) accidentally shoots his partner.  He lies to his superiors and says he didn’t do it and now has to find the suspect, fight his inner demons and try to sleep.

The original starts off with a full on assault of a full on assault, it gets you right in there and doesn’t let you turn back.  It’s captured in a home-movie-on-a-tripod look, full of grit and grain and a muted palate.  Once we’re introduced to the crime, we move on to the more crisp and clear 35mm look, but still with a muted blue color scheme.  The new version gives us an extreme close up of blood staining some white fabric.  The credits come in over the blood slowly soaking in and settling.  Both set a definitive mood and work very well.

Stellan Skarsgård plays the main character, detective Jonas Engström.  He’s very level-headed and extremely calm.  Rarely does he ever lose control over his temper.  Stellan gives an interestingly subdued, subtle performance.  He limits his emotions, thus creating a sterile and dry (in a good way) character.  It all comes together in a nice, slow build up of the pressure he feels inside.  In fact, almost all of the characters spend most of the movie expressionless.  Even in the school, which is the most colorful place in the film, the kids are filled with dead stares as if a classmate dies every day. However, none of them pull it off as well as Stellan.

In this new version, we have three main actors to talk about.  First, I’ll mention Hillary Swank.  She plays an up and coming cop who’s assigned to the murder of Al Pacino’s partner (played by Martin Donovan).  This role, originally quite a bit smaller, was played by Gisken Armand.  Despite the increased number of lines, her part doesn’t warrant (no pun intended) that much attention, nor does her acting job.  Next, is suspect Walter Finch (played by Robin Williams).  Originally played much calmer and still more intensely by Bjørn Floberg (character named Jon Holt).  Williams gives a strong, mostly convincing performance, which deserves more attention than I’m going to give it.  Lastly, we have Al Pacino in the lead roll playing Will Dormer (Dormer is obviously a play on the foreign verb, to sleep).  Al loses his temper quite frequently throughout the course of the film and he exaggerates some of his gestures.  This is a huge contrast to Stellan, however, it still works.  Al blows me away, because although he does yell a lot and wave his arms more, he can still flip that switch so that he’s as calm and intense as he needs to be.

With a mystery/suspense movie, there’s always this fear of a mundane, cookie-cutter feel.  “Insomnia” made the smart move by not focusing solely on the murder case.  Right along side that is the growing guilt and uneasiness that is swelling inside the main character.  I’m glad the new version realized how important that element is.  The movie would be boring were it not for this factor, no matter which version you watch.  There’s also the matter of the lighting and visual effects that play games on your mind.

In both versions, although more prominent in the old, the background is full of lines and bars.  You see them and it helps to recognize the sense of imprisonment the character battles with.  No matter where he goes, you’ll see some blinds or shades or siding or planks or logs that work their way into the back of your head.  The original also included another effective devise that is lacking in the new version.  In the beginning of the movie, many of the shots contain glaring, slightly overexposed whites or light.  However, after the suspect is introduced, the deep blacks are introduced.  The film becomes darker.  So, like a parrot with a blanket over it’s cage, the audience and the main character know that it’s time for sleep even though he’s unable.

A lot of credit needs to be given to Erik Skjoldbjærg (director/co-writer) and Nikolaj Frobenius (co-writer).  “Insomnia” was the debut feature for both of them.  The visuals are outstanding.  The acting is magnificent.  The script is superb.  And the last shot the runs over the credits is haunting and incredible.  It’s easy to see why this movie was remade.  When a film this good is overlooked, it’s remade so that a new audience can discover it.  Christopher Nolan (director) also created outstanding visuals and got magnificent acting while sticking with his signature post-modern structure and editing (done by Dody Dorn).  Hillary Seitz (screenwriter) did a fantastic job of adapting the script, while keeping most of the original’s integrity.  It’s easy to see where the Hollywood ideals fit into this version (especially the ending), but the end product is still much better than most.

If you got the time, see both, but if you have to pick one or the other, pick the original.

1997 version – ****

2002 version – *** 1/2

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