So, in case you don’t know how I decide what to review and what not to review, because frankly it would be weird if you did, here’s the method I use with bonus features: if the bonus feature has a credited director on IMDB, I consider it worth reviewing. I mean, if it’s not listed on IMDB, well, it’s kind of nothing, right? And if it’s listed on IMDB, but doesn’t have a credited director, well, I kind of say that it’s not really a “work of art,” or whatever. It was probably just assembled by some studio hack who gets paid to put bonus features together. If it has a real director, well, then maybe there’s something there worth looking at.
In this twenty-minute bonus feature on the Insomnia blu-ray, Christopher Nolan and Al Pacino sit down, in chairs that are distressingly close to each other, and chat about the process of filming Insomnia. This was filmed while Nolan was in the editing process, so the film hadn’t been released yet. It’s more interesting than a talking head interview with either of these guys would be and, while it’s certain the big points they needed to hit were kind of sketched out, the conversation feels like it flows naturally and they have a decent, conversational chemistry. “Work of art?” Well, no, I guess not, honestly, but it was pleasant and diverting enough and far preferable to the kinds of interviews they usually have on these discs. 2 ½ stars.
tl;dr – twenty-minute bonus feature is pleasant and Nolan & Pacino have enough chemistry to make the conversation feel natural and unforced. 2 ½ stars.