Richard Long, who is shaping up to be our Italian Horror go-to guy, sends us his thoughts on Dario Argento's 2001 horror, Sleepless. I'm still a novice when it comes to Argento with only Suspira, Bird With The Crystal Plumage and Phenomena under my belt so hopefully Richard's review will make me and you delve more into Argento's filmography. check out Richard's words after the jump...
Written By Richard Long
Sleepless
is Dario Argento’s 2001 return to the Giallo movie. Some have
criticized this movie for being too similar in its approach to his
earlier work, yet when Argento tried to movie directly away in the
same genre with ‘The Card Player’ he was criticized for being too
different.
Seems
you can’t win.
Sleepless
is anything but predictable and the film does have a feel of past
movies but that’s because it has been made with care and discipline
to adhere to the Giallo formula, whilst at the same time being
realistically modern.
Detective
Moretti (Max von Sydow) is investigating a series of murders in Turin
in 1983 known as The Dwarf Murders. The film opens with a mournful
Detective Moretti explaining to a young boy that he will find the
person that killed his mother. Right away the role of Moretti
flourishes in the hands of Sydow. Even before he opens his mouth you
can feel the characters deep upset for the young boy. To say this
film belongs to Dario Argento would be wrong. He shares it with Max
Von Sydow who is so wonderful to watch on screen, just as much as
Argento’s stylish set pieces.
The
film quickly moves on to seventeen years later and we learn the
alleged Dwarf murderer was never captured and is believed to be dead
and the case closed. Until similar murders begin to take place.
The
opening scene, after the opening flashback, takes place in a darkened
bedroom and then moves to a train in what is a fantastic piece of
film making. I was on the edge of my seat watching this scene and
felt right alongside the victim as she runs from her assailant. Some
have noted that this scene is a return to what made Argento’s films
brilliant and they aren’t wrong. The girl runs from carriage to
carriage, the rain is thrashing, and added in is a wonderful score by
long time collaborator Goblin, it’s a crazed and yet focused scene
flourishing with Argento’s stylised nature.
The
whole film centres around retired Moretti and Giacomo (Stefano
Dionisi), the same boy whose mother was murdered in the opening
scene. Together throughout the film they must determine if the dwarf
is still alive or was actually innocent of the crimes for which he
was accused of in 1983.
What I
liked about Sleepless was how realistic Sergio Stivaletti special
effects looked. There is one scene involving a musical instrument
which made me cringe it was so brutal. In Sleepless the violence is
brutally realistic, to the point that I was shouting at the screen
every time I felt the killer was close to his next unsuspecting
victim, and felt upset when the black gloves reached out and captured
its prey.
I
enjoyed Sleepless, a lot more than The Card Player which I watched
soon afterwards. It is a well crafted film with a storyline that is
deep and rich with the added masterful acting of Sydow who brought so
much heart to his character. I’d rank the film amongst Argento’s
other iconic films.
Brutal
and stylish Sleepless is an Argento fans dream. One I enjoyed very
much and one I know I will enjoying visiting again.
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