Sleepless (2001) ***
The last time I reviewed Sleepless (aka Nohosonno) (2001), in 2021, I mentioned that, up until that point, it was one of a handful of Dario Argento feature films that I still had yet to see. It was definitely the one with the best reputation of his "late period" films. Since then, I've seen all but one of the other Dario films that I mentioned in that earlier review—The Five Days (1973) (review), Trauma (1993) , The Phantom Of The Opera (1998), The Card Player (2004) (review), and Dracula 3D (2012). Do You Like Hitchcock? (2005) is the only Argento feature film that I still have yet to see.
For his return to the giallo (after the bomb of POTO) in Sleepless, I've seen it mentioned more than once (including by my friend Michael in his review) that Argento put together a greatest hits package of his trademarks. Indeed, the director incorporates callbacks to his most beloved elements—black gloves, brutal murder set pieces, nursery rhymes, children in peril, past trauma, a thriller novel writer (a la Tenebre (1982) (review)), etc. The biggest boon that the film has going though is Argento having brought the classic Goblin lineup back together to do the score—a hard rocking, pulsing, modern update of their sound. The "Main Title" and the song "Killer On The Train" are incredibly catchy and drive the action in their respective scenes perfectly.
Sleepless's opening sequence (an extension followed by an extension of the opening, really) features a tense chase on a train that finds Argento once again displaying his Hitchcock influence but with the bloodletting that his fans have come to know and love. After this, when Max von Sydow (always excellent) is properly introduced, the film remains vey engaging. Unfortunately, not long after this the film becomes a heavily mixed bag.
The young cast (and really the entirety of the cast) can't hold a candle to von Sydow and the poor dubbing doesn't help any (at least we do get von Sydow's signature gravel in English). The plot is incredibly convoluted and lots of choices and reactions make little sense. That isn't isolated to this film—it happens in a lot of gialli and/or Argento films, but usually the visuals can help to alleviate that some. Not here—Sleepless's look is totally unremarkable. No bold lighting and not enough elaborate camerawork (though there are no doubt a few scenes that give us some images to savor). The film feels long as well, with too many talky scenes. All in all though, Sleepless is solid and there is enough here to enjoy (even on rewatches).
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