Probably the film that’s forgotten from Christopher Nolan is 2002’s ‘Insomnia’. It was sandwiched between the mind bending ‘Memento’ and what would be the advent of his blockbusters, ‘Batman Begins’. Starring Al Pacino as a cop it was notable more for the casting of Robin Williams as a murder suspect and was far darker than his normal roles. But few realized that the Hollywood film was a remake of a Norwegian film of the same name.
Insomnia…..
The story begins when 17-year-old Tanja Lorentzen is found murdered in the Northern Nordic city of Tromsø, two Kripos police officers are called in to investigate: Jonas Engström (Stellan Skarsgård) – a disgraced former Swedish police officer who moved to Norway following an inappropriate relationship with a witness – and his partner Erik Vik (Sverre Anker Ousdal ). With a cold, cunning and calculated killer on the loose, the officers attempt an arrest, but it goes terribly wrong when the suspect escapes and Jonas mistakenly shoots Erik, later pinning his death on the fugitive. Haunted by guilt and repressed by the relentless glare of the Arctic Circle’s midnight sun, a destabilised Jonas gets caught up in a game of cat-and-mouse with the killer and as his insomnia worsens, so does his grip on reality.
Behind the scenes….
Directed and co-written by Erik Sklodbjaerg it was his debut feature film that was unsettling as much for Skarsgard’s performance as the brilliant investigating officer with a guilty conscience and the Nordic setting where the sun never really sets that gave the film its eeriness. The role had been written as a Norwegian but was changed to Swedish when Skarsgard was cast and is arguably a better role than that of Pacino’s in the remake which director Sklodbjaerg had been offered but declined having gone to Hollywood to make 2001’s box office flop, ‘Prozac Nation’ before returning back to his home country.
There’s a moral ambiguity to Skarsgard’s already complex cop that that suits the film well but is less well served by some uneven set pieces (that set piece from Nolan’s film where a foot chase sees Pacino fall into a lake and underneath floating logs that trap and threaten to drown him is not here). It was also one of the last films Skarsgard would make before going to Hollywood where he was worked ever since appearing in films as diverse as ‘Deep Blue Sea, Exorcist : The Beginning, Thor and Mama Mia
Bonus features…..
Released on a limited edition 4K UHD / Blu-Ray this is a rare opportunity to catch the film in all its steely cold glory with a number of bonus features that includes:
- New 4K restoration presented with Second Sight Films Director Approved HDR grade with Dolby Vision
- Dual format edition including both UHD and Blu-ray with main feature and bonus features on both discs
- New audio commentary with Director Erik Skjoldbjærg and Co-writer Nikolaj Frobenius
- Running on Instinct: a new interview with Director Erik Skjoldbjærg
- Falling Into It: a new interview with Producer Petter J. Borgli
- Private Prisons: Alexandra Heller-Nicholas on Insomnia
- Erik Skjoldbjærg’s Short Films: Spor, Close to Home and Near Winter
Limited Edition Contents
- Rigid slipcase with new artwork by Peter Strain
- 120-page book with new essays by Jenn Adams, Mitchell Beaupre, Barry Forshaw, Francesco Massaccesi, Priscilla Page and Travis Woods
- Six collectors’ art cards
Best of these is the commentary which, though a little over earnest on occasion, does give an insight into the production of the film. The short films that director Erik Skjoldbjærg made before Insomnia are also worth a look as his style develops throughout.
Insomnia was made at a time when those dark Nordic TV crime dramas were taking hold and culminated with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and so for fans of Scandi-noir this is a must for the collection.
related feature : Actress Eva Melander talks about her extraordinary role in Border….
related feature : ‘Past Life’ stars Jeremy Piven, Aneurin Barnard & co-star Nicolas Farrell who chats about the thriller
Here’s the Insomnia trailer….
Insomnia – Limited Edition 4K UHD/Blu-ray is released on 25th May 2026
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