88 Minutes
2008
In 88 MINUTES, Dr. Jack Gramm (Al Pacino), a Seattle-based college professor and forensic psychiatrist, is informed by an enigmatic caller that he has exactly that amount of time to live. The threat is linked to Gramm's role in putting a convicted serial killer (Neal McDonough) behind bars nearly a decade earlier, and sends the .. Read more
| Starring | Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski, Amy Brenneman |
|---|---|
| Director | Jon Avnet |
| Genres | Drama, Thriller, Thriller |
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88 Minutes
In 88 MINUTES, Dr. Jack Gramm (Al Pacino), a Seattle-based college professor and forensic psychiatrist, is informed by an enigmatic caller that he has exactly that amount of time to live. The threat is linked to Gramm's role in putting a convicted serial killer (Neal McDonough) behind bars nearly a decade earlier, and sends the scholar/consultant on a desperate run to avert his imminent demise. Entering into Gramm's dangerous orbit are his dutiful assistant (Amy Brenneman), an FBI agent (William Forsythe), and his admiring young students (most notably Alicia Witt), all of whom add layers to the tense mystery.
Pacino clearly knows his way around a thriller (see HEAT and INSOMNIA), and approaches his beleaguered character with typical gusto, while his costars, particularly Forsythe and Witt, also offer up energetic turns. Though the high-concept plot is secondary to Pacino's agitated performance, even those who drift from the storyline will appreciate the Hollywood veteran's over-the-top acting, especially if they are diehard fans of the iconic actor.
| Starring | Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski, Amy Brenneman, William Forsythe, Deborah Kara Unger, Benjamin McKenzie, Neal McDonough, Leah Cairns, Stephen Moyer, Christopher Redman, Brendan Fletcher, Michael Eklund, Kristina Copeland, Tammy Hui |
|---|---|
| Director | Jon Avnet |
| Studio | WARNER HOME VIDEO |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 47 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Collections | 100 Most Wanted |
| Genres | Drama, Thriller, Thriller |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: 16 Mar 2009 Production year: 2008 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (4)
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All great actors have films theyd rather forget, and Al Pacino isnt exempt from starring in his share of... read more on Time Out
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The spectral Deborah Kara Unger... delivers one of her singular and eminently watchable narcoleptic turns
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Most helpful member's review
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74 out of 76 people found this review helpful
Best Thriller of 2007
I must say I loved this film, where Al Pacino plays an excellent part as an FBI psychiatrist who has 88 minutes to solve the mystery or he dies. This has you wondering who the bad guy is as things happen to Al Pacino that make him think that it could be anyone. As with most films there is the typical twist at the end, but there are little clues that help you along the way if you can spot them and not take notice of the red herrings that throw you in the other direction.
If you are into mystery and suspense then this is definitely the film for you -
Most recent members' review
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9 out of 9 people found this review helpful
What is the matter with people?
What is the matter with old, previously relatively attractive, male actors in Hollywood? Why can they not accept that, now they are in their late 60's, they are starting to look like old men? And I mean normal old men, not Sean Connery who is an anomaly. I hate to break it to you Al, but most women in their 20's do not throw themselves at men that look like you now do. Most of us are not ambulance chasing, gold diggers. The casting director of this film has real problems if they think that we are.
Incase it isn't obvious, the main problem with this film is that Al Pacino is stalked by my contemporaries in this film, and I have no idea why. One can only suspend disbelief for so long before ridicule sets in. His character is supposed to be an older, arrogant, highly intelligent lecturer, who regularly attracts and shags his post-grad students. What was George Cloney doing? Or Sean Connery, or any number of older, attractive actors who women actually fancy. The further I got into the film the more distastful I found it, so that by the end I was shouting 'What are you women doing? He's hideous and old and hideous'. No idea what the body of the film was about because the premise was so rediculous, it was hard to get past. -
News and features
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88 Minutes
- 29 Sep 2008
You wait years for a new Al Pacino movie – and then two turkeys come out back to back. The misleadingly titled 88 Minutes (it lasts 108 minutes and feels much longer) was filmed three years ago, before last week’s not-quite-so-terrible-in-retrospect Righteous Kill. The fact that Mr Pacino would agree to work with director Jon Avnet again after this is trashy, tacky, ridiculous thriller is quite mindboggling, but then Al hasn’t had a great millennium lately (S1m0ne, People I... Read more
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