Insomnia (2002) Review

INSOMNIA (2002)
Director: Christopher Nolan

Writer: Hillary Seitz (based off screenplay from original Swedish version)

Producers: George Clooney, Steven Soderbergh, Kim Roth, Charles Schlissel, and Tony Thomas

Editor: Dody Dorn

Cinematography: Wally Pfister

Music: David Julyan

Starring: Al Pacino, Hilary Swank, and Robin Williams

Runtime: 1 hour 58 minutes

Rating: R (violence, language, brief nudity)

Genre: Crime, Mystery/Suspense, Film Noir

Release Date: May 24, 2002

Intro: On the downside, I have been sick this last week. On the upside, I've had the chance to watch some movies I wouldn't normally have time to watch. Insomnia was one of these (the reviews of the others to come within the next month or so). It's one I've wanted to see for a while because I like Christopher Nolan and I am a film noir fan. According to stuff I'd read, this was both. Insomnia is a good, enjoyable movie and a complex psychological thriller, but it isn't up to the standards Christopher Nolan has set for himself through movies like Memento, The Dark Knight, and Inception.

Plot: Two L.A. homicide detectives, Will Dormer (Pacino) and his partner (Martin Donavon), are sent to a small Alaskan town during the time of year where the sun doesn't set to investigate the savage murder of a teenage girl. While tracing the suspect (Williams), Dormer's partner is shot and killed, presumably by the suspect of the murder. As a local detective who idolizes Dormer (Swank) is put on the case of the murder of his partner, Dormer begins to find out more information about his case and that of the one he's following. As the two cases become increasingly intertwined and the murder suspect seems all too nice and compliant with Dormer and the police, the more and more the morality of the situation becomes twisted.

Things people may find “objectionable”: The main thing here would be language, as f-bombs are dropped here and there throughout the movie. There is also a brief nudity shot or two when the detectives are looking at pictures of the victim. These couple shots are brief and not in a sexual scenario and are not an integral part of the movie and they're over in the first 10 minutes, so they are very easy to skip. And of course, there's some shooting and blood here and there, but there isn't a lot of either. Just in a couple scenes.

Ratings: I've decided I'm done with the numerical ratings system. I'm going to try this new system of just addressing things by category instead of ranking them. I think the numerical rating system was too  arbitrary and wasn't a good representation of how well I liked the movie. Anyway, let's try this.

     -Directing/Cinematography: Good, but Nolan has done better. There was some interesting lighting, but nothing striking and nothing that really stuck out. I'm not saying this is bad, but it wasn't as good as it could have been. I think Nolan really becomes great as a director more through his vision than through the shots and lighting he uses. However, for the movie he was given much less free reign than his other projects, as he was remaking a Swedish film, so I think this is why Insomnia isn't up to par with some of Nolan's other projects.

     -Acting: As always, a great performance from Al Pacino. I don't think it's possible for the man to give a bad performance. Robin Williams, though he'll forever be a comedy man in my mind, actually does a pretty good job as the murder suspect. It's kind of hard to accept this at first, since the character of Finch is completely opposite from his comedy work. Hilary Swank also does a good job. This is definitely a strong point of the movie

     -Story: An interesting story and a great base for a psychological thriller. I would definitely like to see the Swedish version at some point to see what the original story is like. It's one of those nice stories where there are no good guys, but at the same time there are no bad guys. It's a very interesting relationship that is explored a lot in the movie.

     -Script: Pretty good script. It wasn't earth-shattering, but it worked. 

For lack of a better picture, here's the cool
Swedish poster for the movie. I haven't
a clue with the birds, C's, wrenches,
watchtowers, and die mean, though.

     -Characters: One thing this movie does well is present good, complex characters. The character of Will Dormer is very complex and a good portion of the movie focuses on the psychology of the character. Finch, the murder suspect, is another interesting character, and his motivation and reasoning are very interesting parts of the movie.

     -Special Effects: None to speak of, but then again, not really needed.

     -Music/Score: Ok score. It works, but I didn't think it was anything special and/or powerful.

     -Power/Emotion: Makes you feel psychologically more than anything else. I found myself caring more about the characters' motivations than the characters themselves. However, you do feel bad for Dormer with his inability to sleep and his trying to wrestle with his increasingly complicated situation.

     -Adrenaline: More of a slow, tense adrenaline than anything else. There are a couple intense fight/chase scenes, but most of the engagement comes from the slow, atmospheric and psychological tension.

     -Intelligence: Makes you think a lot, especially psychologically. The movie is driven by the psychologies of the characters, and what really makes you think are the motivations and the thoughts of all the characters and the justifications behind all their actions. The psychological aspect is one thing I love about Christopher Nolan movies, and this one is no exception.

     -Humor: This is one thing that always bugs me a bit about Christopher Nolan. In all of his movies I've seen (which is all but his first film and The Prestige), there is hardly any humor at all, as he prefers a deadly serious tone. I mean, he usually gets along fine without humor, but I think his movies could benefit from the occasional comic relief or witty line.

     -Best Credit: Chris Guthior as "Uninformed Officer."

     -Final Score: Don't get me wrong, Insomnia is a good movie. It succeeds mostly due to its interesting psychological plot, gray-area morality, and good acting. Having said that, this still does not rank among Christopher Nolan's best. If you're a fan of film noir, cop films, Al Pacino, or psychological thrillers, I recommend seeing Insomnia. However, if you're looking for a classic Christopher Nolan movie, check out Memento, The Dark Knight, and Inception instead. So in other words, unless you're looking for why Christopher Nolan is famous, I recommend Insomnia.

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Moon (2009) Review

MOON (2009)
Director: Duncan Jones

Writers: Duncan Jones and Nathan Parker

Producers: Trevor Beattie, Bil Bungay, Michael Henry, and Bill Zysblat

Editor: Nicholas Gaster

Cinematography: Gary Shaw

Music: Clint Mansell

Starring: Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey

Runtime: 1 hour 37 minutes

Rating: R (Language)

Genre: Sci-Fi, Drama

Release Date: June 12, 2009 (US theater release)

Before Watching the Movie: The less you know going in, the better. This really should be your ground rule for watching sci-fi mind-benders like Moon. These types of movies are always best going in blind.

Intro: I buy a lot of DVDs I never get around to watching. Any time I see a good deal on Amazon or at a store or something on a movie I've heard good things about, I more than often buy it, which leads to an ever-growing stack of movies I own but haven't watched. This is how I picked up a copy of Moon. I remember hearing good things about it when it came out via Rotten Tomatoes, but I didn't know much about it, but this was enough to drop $4 on a copy at a used DVD store in Ohio. Anyway, I had some time yesterday and was looking for a short-ish movie to watch, so I decided to watch Moon and cross one title off my list. It turns out this was a good idea. Moon is a great sci-fi mind-bender with good special effects, a good one-man performance, and a storyline that intrigues and does what every science fiction plot should do--ask questions.

Plot: In the future, scientists have found an eco-friendly solution to the energy problem in mining Helium 3 from the dark side of the moon. The Lunar Corporation has sent Sam Bell to the moon on a 3-year contract to run the mining station, which sends the deposits to earth. Sam is all alone in space except for the station's computer named GERTIE. At the end of his 3-year contract, strange things begin to happen in the station and things soon become not what they seem.

Things people may find “objectionable”: There are some scattered uses of the f-word and a couple gruesome blood shots that are intense. Otherwise, there's no violence or nudity.

Ratings:

     -Directing/Cinematography: 9/10. The directing was very good and the shots and lighting were all very interesting. It is especially good since this was Duncan Jones' directorial debut (his only other movie to date is Source Code). The other thing that impressed me about the directing, as well as the whole production, is how cheaply the movie was made. The budget was a mere $5,000,000 compared to the $220,000,000 The Avengers had, and yet they managed to make the movie much deeper and more psychological than The Avengers.  
     -Acting: 9/10. This is as close to a one-man performance as you're going to find in a movie, and Sam Rockwell does a good job with the role. I.... God, it's really tough to critique a movie while trying not to reveal spoilers. I would elaborate more, but I really can't without revealing spoilers.
     -Writing: 23/30.

          -Story: 10/10. I loved the story, and it's what carries the movie. It's really hard to have a good science fiction film without a good story. I guess my love of science fiction is where I get my appreciation for a good story.

A really cool alternate poster. I almost
like this one better than the one they used.

          -Script: 8/10. Pretty good script that worked pretty well with the movie. While it's not an earth-shatteringly good script (like the one from Social Network for example), it works nicely and had a few good and thought-provoking lines. The line that hit me was one of the last ones that was really thought-provoking, but I'm not going to post it because it'll ruin a plot twist.

          -Characters: 5/10. The movie is more of a thinking movie to me than it is a feeling movie. While you can feel for Sam, the turn of events that takes place puts the emphasis on psychological questions and less on the character of Sam. I do not mind this choice, honestly, but some people might. I've always been more of a story person anyway.

     -Special Effects: 9/10. For an indie film, the special effects are surprisingly good. In reading up on the trivia, this is because there was a lull in moviemaking during the production during the Writer's strike, so Jones was able to get good special effects people who were looking for work.

     -Music/Score: 8/10. Though it wasn't omnipresent, the score helped ratchet up the tension every time it was used. If nothing else, it was used very effectively.

     -Power/Emotion: 7/10. The movie was more powerful in the questions it asks than the characters it develops. While you do care for Sam, the emphasis is on psychology and asking deep, powerful questions.
     -Adrenaline: 6/10. I wouldn't say Moon is a thriller of any kind, but it had enough interesting concepts and plot twists to keep you thoroughly engaged. The relationship between Sam, GERTIE, and Lunar Industries created a lot of tension as well (no spoilers here!).

     -Intelligence: 10/10. I love movies that make me think and I love a good sci-fi mind bender, and this satisfied both my loves. It starts out with an interesting concept and the story gets weirder and more mind-bending the more it unravels. It makes you think and leaves you with a lot of questions, which is exactly what a good science fiction film should do.

     -Humor: 0/10. None, really. This didn't add or take away from the movie, it just wasn't there.   

     -Final Score: Moon is my favorite kind of movie---the kind that makes me think. You've probably never heard of it until reading this review, but if you can get your hands on a copy, I highly recommend it, especially if you love mind-bending sci-fi.

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