Insomnia

This remake of the 1997 Norwegian film of the same name is not quite so innovative as it thinks it is. In fact, it's a downright traditional cop (Al Pacino, who doesn't speak so much as growl, though he still holds our attention in the way he always has) vs. fiend (Robin Williams) procedural. Unfortunately, the fiend is not really very fiendish at all. Heck, he's not even a serial killer, just a pathetic, run of the mill nut case, and not a very imaginative one at that. The story's twist is that it takes place in Alaska, under the midnight sun, so it never gets very dark, so Pacino can never get any sleep. If that's the biggest problem you have as a cop, more power to you. Director Christopher Nolan (who dazzled us with “Memento” last year) makes the picture look nice, but that only makes the story seem thin by comparison.