Christopher Nolan is widely celebrated for his Oscar-winning film Oppenheimer, which delves into the story of the atomic bomb. However, the director’s filmography is filled with a variety of other remarkable works that deserve attention. Among these are 2014’s space odyssey Interstellar, 2010’s mind-bending Inception, and his iconic Batman trilogy featuring Christian Bale as the Dark Knight. Longtime fans often mention Memento, a 2000 psychological thriller starring Guy Pearce, where he plays a man with amnesia seeking the killer of his wife.
Despite its critical acclaim, one of Nolan’s films tends to be overlooked: Insomnia, a 2002 mystery-thriller that is now available on BBC iPlayer. This film has become a favorite among some of his most devoted followers, who consider it his most underrated work. The movie stars Al Pacino and Robin Williams and is a remake of a 1997 Norwegian neo-noir thriller directed by Erik Skjoldbjaerg. Notably, this is the only film in Nolan’s filmography where he is not credited as the writer.
The plot follows a Los Angeles homicide detective investigating the murder of a high school girl in a small Alaskan town. As he delves deeper, he becomes entangled in a psychological game of cat-and-mouse with the prime suspect. Hilary Swank, Maura Tierney, and Martin Donovan also appear in key roles.
Upon its release in 2002, Insomnia received positive reviews. In a five-star review for The Guardian, film critic Peter Bradshaw described it as a “magnificent blanc-noir” that is “pleasingly old fashioned, yet viscerally and sensually modern.” He praised the film for delivering an “icy, sub-zero burn to the mind.”
Currently, Insomnia holds a 92 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes, with many viewers calling it Nolan’s “most underrated movie.” One fan on IMDb remarked, “Insomnia deserves to be put right up there with [the] director’s classic films. It’s even arguably better than some of his later films.”
Nolan himself has acknowledged the film’s significance, referring to it as “probably the most underrated” of all his works during an interview for Tom Shone’s 2020 book The Nolan Variations. He expressed pride in the film, stating, “I think, of all my films, it’s probably the most underrated. […] The reality is it’s one of my most personal films in terms of what it was to make it. It was a very vivid time in my life. It was my first studio film, I was on location, it was the first time I’d worked with huge movie stars.”
The film is now accessible to UK audiences via BBC iPlayer, following its recent addition alongside another of Nolan’s films, The Prestige (2006). Fans can look forward to more of Nolan’s cinematic brilliance soon. His upcoming project, The Odyssey, is a star-studded adaptation of Homer’s epic poem, starring Matt Damon. The film is set to be released on 17 July in both the UK and the US, with a reported budget of $250 million (£218.6 million).
Independent readers are known for their independent-minded approach, representing a global community defined by their attitudes rather than traditional demographics. In today’s fragmented world, they value real facts and honest opinions delivered by a non-biased news brand they can trust. Empowered by information and inspiration, these readers are equipped to take a stand for the issues they care about.
