15 Minutes Rating: Sorry, this product is not currently available. Cast: Robert De Niro Edward Burns Kelsey Grammer Charlize Theron Complete Cast (9 total)

15 Minutes Reviews

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Wildly Uneven
3 stars may be a bit harsh for a movie with one of the most unsettling scenes I've seen, but the problem with the film is that it never becomes a whole. There's a conflict of tone that's never successfully resolved--director John Herzfeld wants to make a dark comedy full of satire aimed at Jerry Springer, Geraldo Rivera and the like; but he also wants to make a grisly, gritty action film filled with blood, murder, fire, and tragedy. These two aspects rub against one another uncomfortably, and although life may indeed be like that, the juxtaposition doesn't work well in this bit of art.

The dichotomy plagues the work further: there is terrific imagery, some great acting, some terrific writing; there's also lots of very typical Hollywood run-of-the-mill work. De Niro, as one of the two protagonists, is superb until the writers feel it necessarly to give him a girlfriend. The other protagonist, played by Edward Burns, is the stereotypical young hothead, who in spite of being an ace fire inspector, can't control himself around other people. I must admit that the two villains are both terrific, in terms of both writing and acting; but a bit of clowning at the end really destroyed the effect of the final scene for me.

If you do decide to see the movie--and in spite of my negative comments, the positive aspects of the film (especially the scene with De Niro and the two villians) make it worth viewing, be sure to stay tuned after the credits begin--Kelsey Grammer has a final bit that begins a minute or so into the credits.

Minute By Minute
Right off the bat, I must say that the only reason I first checked out 15 Minutes at all, was because of Robert De Niro. When I saw the previews, I kept thinking, this looks like it's going to be a retread of Natural Born Killers. For the most part, that initial opinion, is confirmed. The film is watchable but wont really wow you as much as is promised.

Two Easten European criminals arrive in America to pursue dreams of fame and fortune. They decide that, the fastest way to achieve their goal, is to go on a murderous crime spree. Convinced that even if they hide in plain sight and taunt officials they can get away with anything. As the crime wave begins, the case brings together veteran detective and media darling, Eddie Flemming (De Niro), and gung ho arson investigator, Jordy Warsaw (Edward Burns). These two men must learn to work with one another, in order to catch the deadly duo, before they kill again. Of course, in our media saturated society, these killings are just what tabloid anchor Robert Hawkins (Kelsey Grammer, in a nice role, other than on TV's Frasier) is looking for. Melina Kanakaredes plays Nicolette Karas, Flemming's girlfriend, and reporter.

I am a big fan of director John Herzfeld's 2 Days In The Valley. Here though, as frenzied as the pace may seem, the story still plods along at times. Instead of a thought provoking thriller--things are quite static. The script disappoints because it misses a great opportunity to comment on the state of media today, and barely does any of that. The film's "twists" are very predictable and easy to spot from a mile away. De Niro and Burns or ok--even though De Niro doesn't seem as into it as Eddie does.

As part of New Line's Infinifilm DVD line, 15 Minutes is loaded with extras, but as usual if the film is sub parr--getting through the added material may be tough. The audio commentary from Herzfeld is ok, but better realized is the subtitle-style trivia track. The deleted footage with director's comments, was wisley cut, and wouldn't have added much. The questions that I hoped the film would dive into, are discussed, in two documentaries called, "True Tabloid" and "Does Crime Really Pay?". All they are though is a bunch of talking heads, making the film, seem better than it is. You also to look at "Oleg's Video," which is actual video footage captured from actor Oleg Taktarov's perspective. This wears on you after about 5 seconds. The cast/crew interviews are fairly typical, a music video called "Fame" by the group God Lives Underwater, theatrical trailers, and a DVD-ROM Script-to-sceen option tops off the disc. Most of these bonus features can either be accessed, while watching the movie, in Infinifilm mode, or separately...it's your choice.

Certain things about 15 minutes work, but, the whole still doesn't quite measure up to the sum of its parts. It's a movie of missed opportunity and saddled by a poor script

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