Sleepless 4K 2001 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

Turin is rocked by a series of brutal murders of young women. Similar crimes were committed 17 years ago. Retired detective Moretti, who led the investigation at the time, is asked to assist with the investigation. Together with the son of one of the victims, he begins an investigation that turns into a dramatic game with a brilliant, dangerous, and cruel opponent.

Review 4K Movie

Undoubtedly, the slasher film Sleepless looks a little naive compared to dozens of its more modern counterparts that rely on special effects. The acting (mostly by women) is not very convincing and has a painfully familiar theatricality characteristic of thrillers from the 1960s and 1970s. But I think Dario Argento intended to shoot everything exactly as it turned out, combining the trademark gloomy intimacy of the film's atmosphere with the semi-amateur acting of the minor characters, who performed the roles of victims of a mysterious killer rather poorly from an acting standpoint.

The film has an extremely old-fashioned feel to it. Argento seems to deliberately contrast his chosen manner and style of presentation with new trends in the horror genre. There are obvious references to Hitchcock's films in the murder scenes and the mothball-scented image of the elderly retired police inspector Moretti, the main character of the slasher film, and on the other hand, the bloody naturalism of the scenes, repulsive and bloody down to the anatomical details, presented on the verge of trash.

Those unfamiliar with Argento's work will accuse him of the naivety of the proposed story and the primitiveness of its external form of presentation to the viewer. But anyone who has seen even a couple of films by this recognized master of the mystical thriller genre will easily recognize from the very first seconds the viscous, thick atmosphere of horror and primal human fears, skillfully built up by the director throughout the film. Fear of the dark, fear of loneliness - Argento successfully plays on all kinds of phobias hidden deep in the soul of every person, skillfully influencing the viewer not with visual effects, but through masterful psychological pressure, including the use of disturbing music, the play of shadows in the night light, and the smoothly gliding, hypnotic camera work.

When watched at night (as in my case), the film does not exactly make your heart sink with fear, but it is certainly disturbing, and quite noticeably so, to the extent that you think twice before pausing the viewing and walking down the dark corridor to the kitchen for a cup of coffee. The film keeps you in suspense, which is a testament to the director's high class. Despite certain nuances that may not appeal to everyone and which, in principle, are expressed in the fact that Argento, reserving the right to be original, simply does not want to shoot within the framework of the fashion dictated by the mainstream, the film ‘Sleepless’ is an excellent example of a ‘scary’ horror film.