MovieChat Forums > Insomnia (1998) Discussion > I liked the film, but I found it hard to...

I liked the film, but I found it hard to follow

posted 10 years ago by andrj908
2 replies | jump to latest

I attribute my difficulty in following the film's plot to the fact that I was sleepy watching the first half, resulting in me having to watch the remaining half an hour the next evening.

When it finished, it became clear that Jonas' female colleague had found out he was responsible for the shooting. I got that. But where was it indicated that Jon was going to keep it a secret in exchange for Jonas' not turning him in for Tanja's murder? Also, in which part did Jonas decide not to own up to shooting his colleague in the fog? Because I always thought everyone knew it was him.

I'll have to re-watch the film from beginning to end because I just couldn't grasp what was going on the first time. In spite of not knowing what was happening, I actually liked the film. It was well acted, moody, subtle and psychologically engaging.

[–] RaxR1991 9 years ago

Well, I wasnt sleepy when the movie began. Quite the opposite - I was pumped up, because the intro reminded me one of my favorite movies - se7en. As the movie went on, though, it became visually blander, the editing faster (which took away any mood that was established in the beginning), and as a result of that I lost interest and became sleepy.
So I stopped for a bit to rest my eyes in hopes to resume the movie with a fresh mind - ended up sleeping for half an hour.
I woke up and finished the movie, but it still did not make a lot of sense to me character wise.
However, after reading posts on this board, I realized some of the more subtle details had gone over my head. Thats a shame since now Im convinced the movie is more solid than I thought at first - not because of how I percieved it, but because of somebody who is more observant. Sadly, my lack of concentration and dislike for the visual tone made a good movie not enjoyable to me.

Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity. - George Carlin

[–] Street_Lord 9 years ago

I wonder if the film is designed to induce a state of sleepiness so that you can identify with the character. Its tone seems to deliberately lull you in that direction. It's more of a mood piece driven by atmosphere and emotional experience than plot.