88 Minutes

We finally saw the movie 88 Minutes the other night.  I don’t know what we were so busy with when it came out in the theaters, but we somehow didn’t get around to seeing it then.  The reviews were so unfavorable that I forgot we had missed it; I guess I just wrote it off.  I’ve learned time and time again to go opposite what most reviewers say, so I don’t know why I let them get to me this time…

So anyway, the movie is about a very well known forensic psychiatrist played by Al Pacino.  A serial murderer he testified against is hours away from execution when Pacino receives a phone call saying he has 88 minutes to live – tick tock tock.  Much action and plot twists ensue, and at the conclusion, I found myself very satisfied with this movie as a thriller – something I can’t say about the last few thrillers I’ve seen.  There are a whole bunch of characters, and the movie manages to make all of them interesting and VERY suspectable.  What surprised me was my ability to keep them all straight – that is usually something I have a problem with when watching movies – I tend to mix up characters especially when the actors playing them look the slightest bit alike, and I also have trouble remembering names.  Although I can’t put my finger on what was different about this movie, I was able to differentiate between all the characters; not only remembering who was who but their names and relationship to the main character – rarities for me.  Adding to my enjoyment of the movie was the fact that it kept you on the edge of your seat, and its many plot twists and turns kept you guessing and didn’t come out too cheesy in the end, which can sometimes ruin a good action movie.  Al Pacino was good and believable in his role, though believe it or not I don’t think I’ve seen him in anything else.  Lee Lee Sobieski and Amy Brenneman also rounded out the supporting cast with strong performances.  Overall, a very good action suspense film and I would definitely recommend it to fans of the genre.  Others who might enjoy it are true-crime buffs and CSI fans.