Despite an enviable filmography that allows him the luxury of increasingly impressive projects, there is an underrated 22-year-old Christopher Nolan film that I would like to see more on the director's channel in the future. Nolan has built his reputation as one of the best directors working today, turning mostly original IPs into mega-successful blockbusters, as well as giving up a huge fandom with The Dark Knight trilogy.
Remove the focus, however, and Nolan's filmography is varied, with a good mix of multiple genres despite unifying themes. Nolan won't be hitting the brakes soon either, even after his award-winning Oppenheimer. His next project will be a major undertaking: an adaptation of Homer's epic poem The Odysseywith the mythic fantasy starring a rich vein of talent including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson and Lupita Nyong'o.
The scale of this project should come as no surprise: the British actor has a knack for creating massive films, and this feels like a natural progression. But even though Christopher Nolan's next film looks amazing, it's hard to shake the desire for something more intimate. After all, Nolan is a master storyteller, and going smaller would be a big draw, if his previous work is anything to go by.
Chris Nolan's films get bigger with each new announcement
Few directors assemble casts like Nolan
It almost goes without saying Christopher Nolan is one of the most commercially successful directors of all timeand he has earned the privilege of doing whatever he wants. The very idea of an adaptation of The Odyssey it would be almost unthinkable in the 21st century without its influence. In fact, it seems like each subsequent film Nolan releases is a bigger event than the last, with The Dark Knight in 2008, solidifying himself as a modern master.
Even his most recent film, Oppenheimerbecame one of the most successful R-rated films of all time, coming close to grossing $1 billion at the box office despite being a three-hour biopic with a significant portion filmed in black and white. The Odyssey it seems like another challenge to what he can do as an artist and author, and it's impossible not to be impressed by the audacity of the project.
After the double blow of The Dark Knight and Startmovies like Dunkirk, Interstellarand Oppenheimer all have become must-see event films.
No matter what genre Christopher Nolan decides to use in his filmography, His notoriety has grown so much that he is almost guaranteed to be successfultaking home a significant amount of money in the process. This didn't happen overnight either, Nolan had to work to sell out 70mm IMAX screenings of his films whenever they were re-released. After the double blow of The Dark Knight and Startmovies like Dunkirk, Interstellarand Oppenheimer all have become must-see event films.
Insomnia is Nolan's most underrated film (in his opinion)
The award-winning director's skill was evident even before big budgets
While most of Christopher Nolan's new releases seem to get bigger and bigger while also being more and more successful, there was a time when Nolan's films were low-key. Films like Memory, Insomniaand The prestige particularly stand out against the blockbuster sensibilities of his later filmographyopting to hone a more intimate story while delving deep into the psyches of a select number of characters. Even among these films, Insomnia stands out and is also the most underrated.
This statement need not be taken as an opinion, because Christopher Nolan himself thinks Insomnia It's his most underrated film. In Nolan's variations book, by author Tom Shone, Christopher Nolan talks about Insomnia and what it means to him as his most underrated and one of his favorites. He cited a number of reasons for his thought process on Insomniaincluding being his first studio film, at the same time as he worked with some cinema legends. Your opinions about Insomnia are the following:
“I'm very proud of the film. I think, of all my films, it's probably the most underrated. […] The reality is that it is one of my most personal films in terms of what it meant to make it. It was a very vivid moment in my life. It was my first studio film, I was on location, it was the first time I worked with big movie stars. […] It's not for me to say this, but every now and then I meet a filmmaker and this is the film they're interested in or want to talk about. Yes, very proud of the film.”
I want more films like Nolan's Insomnia
Big is good, but it's time for more intimate Nolan films
Nolan has proven time and time again that he is one of the greatest directors in the world, consistently able to draw a crowd no matter what type of film he makes. As his career continues, it seems Nolan is content to continue making these massive films – like The Odyssey seems to prove – but they are smaller films like Insomnia that I would love to see Nolan start facing again. Not only would it be a nice change of pace from his more recent films, but it would also be a way for him to show off his range while also reminiscing about his early days as a director.
What it does Insomnia standing out from Nolan's current work is just as simple, it's compared to most of his original films. Its obsession with temporal themes and great narrative structure are in prototype here, occupying the background of the narrative and excellent performances by Robin Williams and Al Pacino.
Although the setting messes with the character's perception of time, it takes on many of the standard beats of a procedural or mystery film, which allows the film to showcase the setting, atmosphere, and exceptional performances from its two lead actors. Watching it more than two decades later feels like a privilege, and unless Nolan changes tack, it feels like magic that won't be recaptured again. Insomnia is easily one of Nolan's most underrated, and I'd love to see another film like this from the director someday.