Clive Owen and Mike Hodges worked together on the film Croupier and get together again with I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead, a modern day film noir about a retired criminal who leaves his self-imposed exile when his little brother dies. The movie unfolds slowly, and the characters who reconnect after the tragedy have a shared history that is never explicitly spelled out, so as you watch the movie you gradually piece together the past while Will Graham (Owen) learns about the events leading up to his brother’s death.

At times the untold history of the characters seemed more interesting to me than what was actually happening in the movie– I really wanted to know the details behind Will Graham dropping out of society and living in the woods in a beat-up van, and I thought that story might have been more dynamic on screen. Still, if you don’t mind watching a movie that will bring up more questions than answers about the characters, it isn’t too bad. And there’s always Clive Owen to watch.