88 Minutes

I actually had pretty low expectations for '88 minutes' since Al Pacino's parts in 'two for the money' and 'ocean's 13', for instance, didn't exactly impress me, but it turned out I had more good things than bad things to say about this film after watching it.

In '88 minutes' Al Pacino plays Dr. Jack Gramm, a forensic psychiatrist known for handling cases of serial killers. This time, a convicted psycopath is hours away from his death and raises doubts on Jack's veredict on him, claiming he's innocent, and Jack receives a call warning him he has 88 minutes to live.

In the first place, the initial scene is absolutely unnecessary and predisposed me into thinking the film was going to be a huge mistake, where Al would be behaving like a young man, which is kind of ridiculous at his age. But it wasn't so; it was an isolated scene.

The plot is well built, coherent, and there are no unbelievable facts in it. The atmosphere around the time fading until Jack's death is overwhelming; there isn't a moment in which the viewer won't be excited, waiting for the next move.

Al's acting isn't special; at times I felt like he was numb, sleep-walking, with no reactions whatsoever, but his acting does get better throughout the film, as the suspense gets more intense – the interesting part is he does show that old energy from his classic films every now and then.

What really doesn't do it for me, actually, is that, lately it seems that, with very few exceptions, Al's characters not only have pretty much the same personality, but the same looks. He's always tan and wearing black, even in real life ! It sucks because to me, one of the greatest things about Al is his great capacity in characterization. He gets deep into every little detail in his parts, which is why each character looks and acts so different from one another. It seems like that's been lost lately.

Overall '88 minutes' is a good thriller, but I'd recommend it mostly for Pacino fans.

I enjoyed 88 Minutes. Al Pacino is a solid actor and delivers a solid performance. I take into consideration that there are people that won't enjoy the film because Forensic Psych is a subject that the average individual has little knowledge about. If you are looking for a movie with a great twist and even better ending, check it out! Al ran his a$$ off in one too many scenes, they added some gun-play and an explosion to balance the drama with action, making the movie trailer (if any) exciting and mysterious. If your IQ is over 110 and can get through a flick without a bunch of action, this should be a definite prospect. I also think you will enjoy it if you are in the CJ or Psych field.

I don't think that Al Pacino is a bad actor. I know he can act and he can do it well. Maybe he was just annoyed with the quality of the script. Or maybe he needed a quick buck. I have no idea what happened in this film, but the results were dreadful.

Let me start with the plot: typical race thriller. Personally involved strong character (usually a cop) is on the clock to solve some problem or else. No one helps him, sometimes they even stand in his way, while he battles the odds. In this particular version the hero is personally involved, but does not show it, the people around him try to help, but they are either completely incompetent or pushed away by the very person they are trying to help or (most of the time) Pacino's character doesn't even tell them he is in need of help. As for the time limit, it is an arbitrary time limit that he can completely ignore if he really wants to. And as for the strength of the thrill... I guessed the killer in the first 10 minutes of the film. And not just by looking at the cast or reading magical runes. It was blatantly obvious.

Then the acting. Everyone acts sub standard, but Al Pacino is the worse. He doesn't seem to care a bit about anything in the movie. He is supposed to be a rational FBI profiler that puts logic before his feelings, but he comes out as slightly bored by the badly written intricacies of the plot.

So, shame on people that use clichés and aging famous actors to win some easy money, but even more shame to people that can't even get a cliché right. Watch some movies first, then make others. Gee!

I really do have to laugh at some people's reviews at times, and over the years, if I totally believe all the bad press that some (if not all) films receive, it would never ever be worth my while visiting a cinema or buying a DVD ever again. If I see a film, like it, and then see all the bad reviews I am sometimes left thinking 'am I the only one that got it?' or 'am I the only one that thought this was good'. In short, reading too many reviews can drive you absolutely insane. OK, so 88 Minutes received largely negative reviews......especially on IMDb. So at the time of writing this, the film has a rating of 5.9, which I class as just above average (5 is average right?). I am more than just a little annoyed that most of those that gave the film an above average rating failed to review it. However, it leaves me with the conclusion that most people are more than happy to complain, rather than go with the flow. After all, I don't think that here are many films for which I haven't read a review from somebody saying that it's the worst film they've ever seen. 88 Minutes, in my opinion is a good, above average, watchable movie. But some of the contradictory comments on people's reviews did my head in. For example:- Al Pacino's performance............Al Pacino is undoubtedly a brilliant actor. His character in this movie is cocky, self assured, calm and in his opinion, always right. Pacino plays this perfectly, so why do people think that he was out of place? Was there any need for him overstate and overact? No there wasn't. Did he look uncomfortable in his role? No he didn't. To me, maybe the reviewers were expecting some powerhouse acting which they didn't receive. The plot.........come on people!!! It wasn't muddled. It was easy to follow. Throwaway yes, but don't we, every now and again enjoy a film that we don't have to think too much about? Yes we do!! It is true to say there is a certain degree of implausibility about things but people should just look at the movie for what it is.......entertainment. I, for one, was entertained, although I did guess who was behind the killings. I mean come on, even true stories have that certain implausibility factor about them in order to make them entertaining...don't they? The acting........it seems that because Pacino's performance was (rightly) understated, everybody else acted badly. It is true that some performances did not bring out the best in the actors (Alicia Witt and Leelee Sobieski), others were excellent, especially William Forsythe and Neal McDonaugh.

I'm done with the film now, but had to laugh at one on the extras on the DVD. The director stated that this was a 'low budget' movie. OK maybe it is in comparison to some.....but calling $30m low budget is an insult to my ears!!

Anyway.......conclusion!! A good, but not brilliant film that a few more of you have actually enjoyed but not openly admitted. Good grief, those of you that have reviewed think it's so bad, I am left thinking that I have just stepped out of the 'bad movie' closet!!

Watch this movie for what it is........entertainment!!!

I think that what people read our reviews is to find out whether or not the movie is worth the time or whether they should watch it so lets cut the crappy "I need attention" reviews okay... Yeah its worth the watch... it was fun and suspenseful to some people. Bottom line here is that it will not bore you. Have time on your hands? Need to watch a movie you haven't seen? then just got for it. You will not be blown away but you will be entertained for the hour and 42 minutes it runs.

I mean truly, its a movie... Heres how I seen it, Did the movie entertain you through the time? yes. Was a bit predictable? yes. Did it at least attempt to come up with a good plot twist? Yes! I mean this is not Pacino's best, but a decent watch none the less. I may not watch this twice on my own but if a friend didn't see it, I'd watch it with them. This isn't being soft on the movie either, it's being realistic... It had a plot, wasn't in my worst top 10, though it wasn't in my best but truly, it wasn't as painful as most threatened. Yeah we all wish that we can see another God Father or Scarface but less we forget, Pacino's an amazing actor, NOT in any way shape or form A producer/ Writer. He played his character well but some feel the script could've been made a little batter or not at all... Sorry to say I think this had a better twist then Righteous Kill. The bad scripts are still scripts none the less, if anyone thinks they can do/ write that much better then maybe you should bring your ingenious script writing to Hollywood, till then, we will watch what we have. Not so bad of a movie OK, worth the watch in my honest opinion, please feel free to respond!