MOVIE: Sleepless might provide a cure for insomnia

HAVE you ever lay awake at night reliving the compelling drama you just witnessed at the movies? Well, we have one film that won’t pose that problem. In fact, it might just send you to sleep in your cinema seat.

‘Sleepless’ stars Oscar winning Jamie Fox as undercover Las Vegas police officer Vincent Downs, who is caught in a high stakes web of corrupt cops and the mob-controlled casino underground. 

When a heist goes wrong, a crew of homicidal gangsters kidnaps Downs’ teenage son. In one sleepless night he will have to rescue his son, evade an internal affairs investigation and bring the kidnappers to justice.

Fox mumbles and mutters his way through a performance that we suppose is meant to convey threat, but instead, is sometimes just difficult to hear. 

The plot is nothing new, and in many ways could be any episode of any TV cop show you’ve ever seen. In that respect it’s difficult to know why it was made or why the obviously talented Fox signed up. 

He is supported in his endeavours by the equally accomplished Michelle Monaghan of ‘Law and Order’ fame and Dermot Mulroney as a kind of Robert Downey Jr light. 

On that point, when you cast the man most famous for his turn in ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’ as a baddie, you know you’re in trouble.

This is a film that may appeal to many cinemagoers who look for guns, car chases, and some level of intrigue as to the identity of the crooked cop (and, of course, there is one). It just would have been nice to find something original, or funny, or clever, to get excited about. 

And as for the ending, it’s so predictable. You just want the shooting to stop so you can get on with the rest of your day. 

Overall, this is a disappointing and forgettable film that if it does keeps you awake at night, it will only be because you are wondering what else you could have done with the money you spent to see it. We score it a drowsy 2 out of 5 stars.

REVIEW: Paul O’Rourke