Film review: Before I Go to Sleep
In an era when horror films have forgotten how to be scary, it's no surprise to find thrillers that fail to thrill, and suspense movies that have no suspense.
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth, Mark Strong
Director: Rowan Joffe
Category: IIB
In an era when horror films have forgotten how to be scary, it's no surprise to find thrillers that fail to thrill, and suspense movies that have no suspense.
Based on a bestselling novel by S.J. Watson about a woman with an illness that makes her forget her identity every time she wakes up, Before I Go to Sleep is a psychological thriller that does everything vaguely competently, yet manages to bore the viewer.
Directed by Rowan Joffe (who also wrote the screenplay), Before I Go to Sleep tries to build an aura of mystery around its main character's loss of identity. Nicole Kidman plays Christine, a woman whose memory is erased by sleep. Each morning when she wakes up, her husband, Ben (Colin Firth), patiently explains who he is, who she is, and what their life together consists of.
This goes on for years until a psychologist named Dr Nasch (Mark Strong) begins to treat her in secret. He has her video herself each night, and then calls every morning to tell her to watch the video.
