John's Movie Musings

You ever watch a movie and come away feeling that something just ain't right about it? 88 Minutes did that to me. It's an entertaining two hours, but acted like a diversion while someone robbed me.

The movie is a Pacino flick that fits squarely into the thriller genre. He plays a forensic psychologist who gets a phone call from Mr. Heavy Breath saying he's got 88 minutes to live. What is a forensic psychologist? I'm certain they just made it up. CSI has made forensics cool and that helps psychologists - who are still dull and boring unless they are talking to mobsters.

Whenever you have a title like 88 Minutes, there had better be a good reason for it. I'm happy to say the writers got this right. The number is significant and fits very nicely into the plot.

Unfortunately, I think that's the only thing I can compliment the writers on. The dialog wasn't all that great. There are some recognizable actors in this that only have one or two lines and weren't integral to the story. I'm not sure why they were even in this.

Another is that everything seems forced. The characters don't necessarily act unnaturally, but everyone acts as if their primary motivation is to advance the plot. There were lots of contrived conveniences here.

This one's far from great; far from horrible. Overall, it's forgettable.

Grade: C