Sleepless (2017) * *

Directed by:  Baran bo Odar

Starring:  Jamie Foxx, Michelle Monaghan, David Harbour, Dermot Mulroney, Tip Harris, Scoot McNairy, Octavius J. Johnson, Gabrielle Union

Sleepless isn't poorly made, but is just there.    The performances fit the material and everyone does a professional job, but the film never involves us more than superficially.     There is a promise for a better movie in here somewhere, but Sleepless doesn't find it.    It is content with being okay; a mostly forgettable January release which shows up in theaters right after the Oscar contenders and Christmas blockbusters have already started their runs.

I confess I had to peruse different film reviews to recall the film's plot.    Las Vegas detective Vincent Downs (Foxx) and partner Sean Cass (Harris) chase down and beat up drug dealers and then steal their cocaine stash belonging to a powerful casino owner (Mulroney) and a fearsome drug lord (McNairy).    It is no surprise that the men want their stash back and kidnap Vincent's son (Johnson) to ensure Vincent returns the cocaine unharmed.      McNairy gnashes his teeth with intensity, while Mulroney is somewhat reasonable as a casino owner in way over his head.     At first, we think Vincent is a crooked cop we don't sympathize with because he chose to be a crook himself.    But, there is more and I won't reveal any spoilers.  

On Vincent's tail is Internal Affairs cop Jennifer Bryant (Monaghan) and her partner Doug Dennison (Harbour), who are in charge of rooting out corrupt cops within the Las Vegas PD.    They are slow to discover what we learn soon enough about Vincent, who pays an extreme price with the breakup of his family over his career decisions.     It is hard to believe Vincent would let things go to those lengths just to hide...., but never mind.   

Vincent spends the bulk of the movie attempting to rescue his son from the mobsters and avoid the IA cops.     He is in a pickle, but thankfully his nemeses are rather generous given the circumstances and allow Vincent one hour to produce the coke, which gives him more than enough time to plan his son's rescue.     We also know because we have seen movies before that another character is pulling the strings from behind a curtain and we aren't especially shocked to learn his or her identity.

If I sound less than enthusiastic about Sleepless, it is because I am.    It isn't bad enough to allow me to dig my teeth into a scathing review, nor is it good enough for me to be effusive with praise.    The movie leaves us with a cliffhanger suggesting a sequel will one day be in the works.     If you consider how many uncalled for reboots and sequels pop up all the time, would we be aghast to see a trailer in about two years for Sleepless 2?    They should have Vincent move to Seattle and call the movie Sleepless in Seattle.