Insomnia [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Many of the best thrillers exploring the darker aspects of crime and the human psyche are filmed in dark surroundings, hence the genre film noir. Like film noir, this debut-feature from Norwegian director Erik Skjoldbjaerg is a psychological thriller that is set in the relentless light of the midnight sun. It begins with the murder of a 17-year-old girl. Her nude body, carefully cleaned and wrapped in plastic, is discovered near a small rural town. Mystified, the semi-pro police force calls Oslo and asks that two experts come to the scene. Veteran homicide detectives Jonas Engstrom (Stellan Skarsgard) and his partner Erik Vik (Sverre Anker Ousdal) are assigned the task. The townsfolk are particularly excited about the presence of the highly regarded Engstrom to locate the wily killer. But Engstrum is not as calm and cool as he seems. The infernal brightness of the sun makes it impossible for him to sleep. He then becomes deeply absorbed in the puzzling case and obsessed with the beautiful young victim. As time passes the increasingly sleep-deprived gumshoe begins to lose first his objectivity and then his sense of self. Still he approaches the case methodically, and after finding the girl's back pack, he sets a trap for the killer that is unfortunately sprung by the incompetent local cops. This in turn causes Engstrum to make a terrible mistake that ultimately results in the slow decay of his own moral standards and leads him to a fate that is inextricably linked with the killer's.