Al Pacino is among the Hollywood elite at delivering powerful monologues, razor sharp one-liners, and memorable characters such as Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade in Scent of a Woman, Tony Montana of Scarface, and Michael Corleone of the Godfather series. Unfortunately, forensic psychologist Dr. Jack Gramm from 88 Minutes is not likely to join the ranks of such modern film classics.
Directed by John Avnet ( Fried Green Tomatoes ), 88 Minutes begins when Pacino's character receives a threatening phone call informing him that he has how long to live?
You guessed it, 88 minutes.
If this premise doesn't sound new and exciting to you, it's because the countdown thriller has been done before.
The film is set in Seattle where, coincidentally, a serial killer named the Seattle Strangler played by Neal McDonough ( Minority Report ) is due to be executed after being convicted of murder largely due to Dr. Gramm's testimony. However, when a new murder bearing the Strangler's signature style takes place, it raises doubts about his guilt and casts suspicion on Dr. Gramm.
Meanwhile, Gramm is convinced that the man his testimony convicted is responsible and manipulating events from his cell aided by an accomplice within his own inner circle. The game of cat and mouse plays out, and with the clock ticking Gramm must find the copycat killer before he gets pinned for the murders, or gets killed by the person on the other end of the phone.
The drawback in 88 minutes is that it fails to provide a different take on the murder/thriller countdown genre, and Pacino is typecast playing his own persona more than that of Dr. Gramm. Also, the time sequences are nothing close to real time, eliminating further suspense that might have been garnered.
Since 88 Minutes is John Avnet's directorial comeback following a 10-year hiatus during which he focused on producing films, maybe he's a bit rusty. Despite the film's flaws, its still always fun to watch Pacino. Look for more of him in Avnet's next film Righteous Kill due out in September with a De Niro, Pacino one-two punch.
88 Minutes
Starring: Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski, Neal McDonough, Benjamin McKenzie
Directed by: Jon Avnet
Rated: R
Run time: 1 hr. 48 min.
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