By Blake Laurita
Staff Writer
Sleepless is a stereotypical action film remake of the 2011 French thriller Sleepless Night, which centers around the actions of a corrupt police officer.
Although the film has an array of talented actors, outstanding cinematography, and an unpredictable plot, it suffers from a dry script, stagnant characters and an obsolete soundtrack.
The 2017 American crime drama film, stars Jamie Foxx and T.I., was directed by Baran bo Odar and written by Andrea Berloff. Filming began on June 15, 2015, in Atlanta and Las Vegas and has grossed $11 million, finishing 8th at the box office.
The movie follows Vincent Downs (Jamie Foxx), an undercover Las Vegas police officer who has been keeping his work a secret from his family and friends for more than two years. At the beginning of the film Vincent and his corrupt partner (T.I.) mistakenly steal drugs from a top drug dealer which setups the film’s story.
Photos: Jamie Foxx stars in Sleepless movie.
A highlight of the film is the stellar line up of actors. The actors were expertly chosen and delivered award winning performances despite the lackluster script. Lead actor Jamie Foxx did a respectable job in portraying his character.
The films outstanding cinematography emphasized the film’s most memorable exhilarating moments, giving it an edge over similar films. This really became prevalent during action and fight scenes. The rapid and unpredictable camera movement added tension and suspense to every fight scene.
While too many or too little plot twists could be detrimental to a film’s success, Sleepless managed to find the perfect medium keeping the audience on the edge of their seat. The film did a marvelous job of changing the characters motives organically and timely, which made for an unpredictable and tense plot.
Video: The film Sleepless stars lead actor Jamie Foxx and was released January 13, 2017. The trailer depicts the expertly filmed action scenes in the film.
The unsubstantial soundtrack lacks a solid foundation and the movie, as a whole, suffers because of it. Most of the songs featured in this film were forgettable and fail to influence or intensify the film in anyway. The underwhelming soundtrack in Sleepless adds nothing, and falls short to the superb acting in the film.
The most noticeable downfall of the film is the dry, emotionless script. Although the actors still delivered a solid performance, they had the potential to do so much more with an improved script. The poor writing prohibits the actors from emoting or conveying their characters’ inner conflicts successfully to the audience.
Visit Rotten Tomatoes for more critical reviews on the movie.
Overall, Sleepless is a mediocre movie that briefly comes alive during action sequences due to the excellent cast and expert cinematography but are lost into a sea of mediocrity as soon as the lackluster script and miserable soundtrack become apparent.
For more information about Sleepless click here.
Sleepless was released Jan. 13, is rated R, and is playing in theaters across the nation.
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