The defence The Big-Idea Head
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
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Insomnia
Thriller · Crime · Drama · 2002
Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen.
Movie details
Insomnia
“A tough cop. A brilliant killer. An unspeakable crime.”
2002 Thriller · Crime · Drama 1h 58m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.0 / 10
Community rating
Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Insomnia?
For the defence
The Big-Idea Head
“You watch with your brain, not your gut.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
The Stranger
Thriller · 2022
Two strangers strike up a conversation on a long journey. However, neither is who they appear to be, each carry secrets that threaten to ruin them — and in the background, one of the nation's largest police operations is closing in.
Islands
Thriller · 2025
In this twisty thriller, a tennis coach at a tropical resort finds himself at the center of a missing persons mystery. Tom teaches tennis during the day and parties at night. When an enigmatic tourist arrives, Tom is unable to shake the feeling he has met her before. Tension and attraction grow, until her husband disappears, and the police suspect Tom.
The File on Thelma Jordon
Thriller · 1949
Cleve Marshall, an assistant district attorney, falls for Thelma Jordon, a mysterious woman with a troubled past. When Thelma becomes a suspect in her aunt's murder, Cleve tries to clear her name.
Point Blank
Crime · 1967
After being double-crossed and left for dead, a mysterious man named Walker single-mindedly tries to retrieve the rather inconsequential sum of money that was stolen from him.
Footsteps in the Fog
Thriller · 1955
A Victorian-era murder mystery about a parlour maid who discovers that her employer may have killed his first wife.
Perfect Sisters
Thriller · 2014
Tired of their mother's alcoholism and a string of her abusive boyfriends, two sisters plot to kill her.
The Woman in the Window
Crime · 1944
A seductive woman gets an innocent professor mixed up in murder.
The Enforcer
Drama · 1951
After years of investigation, Assistant District Attorney Martin Ferguson has managed to build a solid case against an elusive gangster whose top lieutenant is about to testify.
Evil Under the Sun
Thriller · 1982
An opulent beach resort provides a scenic background to this amusing whodunit as Poirot attempts to uncover the nefarious evildoer behind the strangling of a notorious stage star.
Detective Story
Crime · 1951
Tells the story of one day in the lives of the various people who populate a police detective squad. An embittered cop, Det. Jim McLeod, leads a precinct of characters in their grim daily battle with the city's lowlife. The characters who pass through the precinct over the course of the day include a young petty embezzler, a pair of burglars, and a naive shoplifter.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Christopher Nolan
Written by
Hillary Seitz
Al Pacino
Will Dormer
Robin Williams
Walter Finch
Hilary Swank
Ellie Burr
Maura Tierney
Rachel Clement
Martin Donovan
Hap Eckhart
Nicky Katt
Fred Duggar
Paul Dooley
Chief Nyback
Court is in session
Put Insomnia on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Technique in search of a pulse.”
Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.