88 Minutes - C

On DVD

Al Pacino is an FBI forensic psychologist who also teaches at a Seattle university. A serial killer that he helped put away years earlier is to be executed in a few hours when Pacino receives a phone call that he has 88 minutes to live. A copycat killer is on the loose killing associates of Pacino. The deliberately confusing plot and numerous characters are mostly frustrating, only there to trick the audience. The plot contrivances are overwhelming. Pacino is led around town by the killer who can somehow predict how he will respond to every circumstance and also how long it will take him to get around. He does absolutely ridiculous things: breaking into apartments, commandeering a taxicab, throwing cell phones . . .

The directing by Jon Avnet is pretty awful, amateurish even, with ridiculous close-ups and camera moves. The movie lacks tension but is definitely watchable, often unintentionally hilarious. It’s far from the “worst movie of the year” reviews hanging around its neck. Pacino is actually somewhat believable as a boozy poon-hound. He does have a terrible scene when he describes the significance of “88 minutes”, but he is an exciting performer even when spouting ridiculous dialogue. The rest of the cast blends together with no real standout. The revelation at the end intends for you to rewatch the film and examine it, but it’s pretty obvious – even early on – that there’s nothing to be learned or appreciated here, just a writer, a director, and a bunch of actors going through the motions of a typical serial killer movie. C