Insomnia (1997)
The midnight sun shines light on a detective’s guilt in this chilling Norwegian crime thriller
7.4
Movie
Norway
Norwegian, Swedish
Crime, Mystery, Thriller
1997
ERIK SKJOLDBJÆRG
Bjørn Floberg, Bjørn Moan, Frode Rasmussen
96 min
TLDR
Before moving to the Arctic Circle, invest in: melatonin tablets, a blindfold, and blackout curtains. (This post is not sponsored by the producers of the previously named items.)
What it's about
Tromsø, Norway, within the Arctic circle. Swedish detective Jonas and his Norwegian case partner Erik are called to investigate a recent homicide, though the 24-hour daylight cycle causes sleep deprivation that makes the case go awry.
The take
In a few seconds, a mistake can change your life forever. Insomnia is centered on a Swedish detective trying to solve a murder while trying desperately to cover a mistake made from the difficult mix of the fog and human exhaustion, but in doing so, his guilt, shame, and suspicion that no one would believe him due to past mistakes, weigh down on him, twisting the police procedural upon itself. Stellan Skarsgård holds an incredibly restrained performance throughout the entire film, and it’s well-framed by writer-director Erik Skjoldbjærg, whose use of cold white light in this debut feature eventually became the staple of on-screen Scandinavian noir.
What stands out
Noir is called noir because of its propensity for contrast between light and shadow, to match the cynical attitudes and murkiness of the character’s morals. This time, however, while the detective shares the same murky principles, the entire film is brightly lit, matching the way the 24-hour sun will not let the detective sleep, as well as the way his character is laid bare.
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