Sleeping Dogs

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1:54

Sleeping Dogs

R

Released Mar 22, 2024

1h 51m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

42%

Tomatometer

43 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

In this gripping crime thriller, Russell Crowe stars as Roy Freeman, an ex-homicide detective with a fractured memory, forced to revisit a case he can't remember. As a man's life hangs in the balance on death row, Freeman must piece together the brutal evidence from a decade-old murder investigation, uncovering a sinister web of buried secrets and betrayals linking to his past. With only instincts to trust, he faces a chilling truth -- sometimes, it's best to let sleeping dogs lie.

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Critics Consensus

Forgetting to give Russell Crowe a compelling mystery to solve, Sleeping Dogs lies down rather than stands on its own.

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Stephen Romei

The Australian

The murder mystery Sleeping Dogs is Russell Crowe's best film for a while.

Rated: 3.5/5

Aug 7, 2024

Full Review

Sandra Hall

Sydney Morning Herald

It’s an engrossing plunge into the film noir tradition and it’s a pleasure to watch Crowe embody the very fallible Freeman.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 1, 2024

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

This is certainly not a crime thriller in the dourly realistic “cold case” vein; it is outrageously over-the-top at all times, with crazy and almost dreamlike convolutions of plot, and yet its silliness is enjoyably dramatised.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 18, 2024

Full Review

Trace Sauveur

Loud and Clear Reviews

Russell Crowe brings his typical bravura to Sleeping Dogs but can’t save this overly familiar and tattily written detective yarn.

Rated: 2.5/5

Jan 8, 2025

Full Review

John McDonald

Australian Financial Review

There is a mystery to be solved, and a parallel mystery in Roy’s mind as to how much of the murder he remembers. Little by little, the two strands converge, not without further mayhem.

Oct 8, 2024

Full Review

John Serba

Decider

Let Sleeping Dogs lie.

Aug 9, 2024

Full Review

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Band from G

as always, Russell Crowe is mesmerizing and not afraid to try any type of role. Good acting by all and what a sad outcome and ending. It totally fooled me as I thought his boss had something to do with the cover up and although he did it was not what I expected. I can't imagine the pain the character felt with the outcome. Well done and quite different. I hope Russell will get into some shape as he's making a comeback for sure and his roles may open up some if he loses some weight because he's still young enough.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/02/25

Full Review

First L

Another amazing performance by Russell Crowe

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/27/25

Full Review

Marj A

It’s definitely not everyone’s type of film. The twists and turns keep you guessing. Russell is very good in this, as are the other actors. His depiction of someone with severe memory loss and flashbacks was well done. It won’t be everyone’s ’cup of tea’.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/22/25

Full Review

Suzy S

A gripping crime thriller enmeshed with the challenging experiences of living with Alzheimers. Very cleverly written, with engaging plot twists and turns. I have no idea why people have so harshly rated this film. It’s the best film I have seen in a long time and the whole cast was brilliant.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/20/25

Full Review

Ryan H

Best movie I've seen in a minute. Well done pot-boiler!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/27/25

Full Review

Pongo K

Very sophisticated, and difficult to follow all the twists and turns.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/20/25

Full Review

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Adam Cooper

Director

Russell Crowe

Roy Freeman

Karen Gillan

Laura Baines

Marton Csokas

Joseph Wieder

Thomas Wright

Wayne Devereaux

Harry Greenwood

Richard Finn

Sleeping Dogs: Extended Preview

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Sleeping Dogs: Trailer 1

1:54

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Synopsis

In this gripping crime thriller, Russell Crowe stars as Roy Freeman, an ex-homicide detective with a fractured memory, forced to revisit a case he can't remember. As a man's life hangs in the balance on death row, Freeman must piece together the brutal evidence from a decade-old murder investigation, uncovering a sinister web of buried secrets and betrayals linking to his past. With only instincts to trust, he faces a chilling truth -- sometimes, it's best to let sleeping dogs lie.

Director: Adam Cooper
Producer: Mark Fasano, Adam Cooper, Deborah Glover, Pouya Shahbazian, Bill Collage, Arun Kumar
Screenwriter: Adam Cooper, Bill Collage
Distributor: The Avenue
Production Co: Film Victoria
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Language|Violence/Bloody Images)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 22, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 9, 2024
Runtime: 1h 51m

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