88 Minutes Well Spent

While 88 Minutes may have taken eighty-eight minutes of my life that I’ll never get back, that’s really not that bad of a thing. The movie may not be everything you expect from an Al Pacino project (okay, from ooold Pacino projects) but it really is nowhere near as bad as it’s been made out to be. In fact, I found the concept somewhat original even if stealing from various projects along the way.

First of all, 88 Minutes is directed by Jon Avnet, who just so happens to be the director of one of my favorite tv shows ever canceled; Boomtown. So, yes, I’m a little biased to his style and skills. He also did a very unknown movie called The War, which starred Kevin Costner and a pre-hobbit Elijah Wood. Most of Avnet’s work thus far is fantastic, and even if 88 Minutes isn’t perfect, it’s still something I watched all the way through. Which, compared to other crap recently, is a pretty strong achievement.

Plot: Pacino plays Dr. Jack Gramm, a forensic psychiatrist who becomes the target of several death threats telling him he only has eighty-eight minutes to live. I can’t dive any deeper than that, as doing so would go too far into the realm of spoilers, but needless to say everything is connected and you can’t discount anyone from this ‘who-dun-it’.

The plot of the film is decently engaging, even if it does steal a few tricks from other places. The film is based around the eighty-eight minutes to live and it certainly gives the viewer a reason to keep watching as 1)you want to know who is threatening him and 2)you want to see if he will survive. It’s an interesting set up, taking a specialist like Gramm and putting him in a situation where his life is being turned upside down every step of the way. Pacino’s Gramm is a smart character who uses his talent to see through people’s lies but finds himself trying to figure out the game he’s trapped inside.

In all honesty, a movie like this only works if everything makes sense. And, fortunately for the viewer, it actually does here. I didn’t find anything too predictable, nor anything too unrealistic. There’s no real surprises here either and when the conclusion is reached, you aren’t left blown away by any stretch of the imagination. However, that doesn’t ruin the film, it only makes you think back on it. Which, when it comes to almost any Pacino movie, is never quite a bad thing.

Is it an instant purchase? Probably not, but it certainly serves as a good rental for a late Thursday night.