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

82%

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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Liam D

For a mystery it’s not very compelling even with the great cast trying their best with the mediocre material

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/20/25

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Audience Member

Many details slowly coalesced during the film. There were a few dead spots, but overall well assembled, with surprise ending---and even the ending left you without 100% assurance as to which way it would go. Few films surprise me anymore as they usually follow a predictable script, but this one was cleverly done.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/18/25

Full Review

Rob A

Russell Crowe, who has gained some weight since Gladiator, is excellent in this cleverly written murder mystery. The supporting cast were all good too; Tommy Flanagan (Sons of Anarchy), Karen Gillan (great legs, girl) and Martin Csokas (I first saw him in Mark Felt, the story behind Watergate's Deep Throat) among them. Worth a late night stream!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/25

Full Review

The H

Decent, some typical tropes, but was somewhat surprised how certain things turned out given storylines we're introduced to, some good acting & realistic plots/emotions. Overall, an enjoyable watch.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/15/25

Full Review

Gustavo G

It's been a minute since I've seen a Russell Crowe film and I had a hankering for one after watching Gladiator II (Paul Mezcal is no Russell Crowe, though Denzel was awesome). So I went looking for a Russell movie and decided between this and Pope's Exorcist. Reviews for both were equally bad so I flipped a coin and got Sleeping Dogs. Really glad I did. Was totally surprised by it. The woman who played the femme fatale character was a little odd, but Russell was totally believable and awesome. Brooding and different than I've seen him ever before. He seemed really vulnerable and displayed a kind of sensitivity I can't remember seeing in a long time. Had some predictable beats, but it was moody and the twists and turns were fun. Critics were too harsh on this one, I think -- but it's also possible that the edible I ate clouds my perception.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/07/25

Full Review

Noel C

WOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!! WHAT AN ENDING!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/06/25

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

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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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