Gwen/ Flamingo (Katharine Isabelle) finds herself in a roadside diner with no memory where or how she got there.  She finds a gun and some jawbreakers in her backpack.  Soon she finds herself on the run from the police and criminals as she tries to make sense of what is going on as she gets glimpses of what happened before and hallucinates as reality blends with fiction.  88 is a film of two timelines- the present state and the fugue state.  She is Gwen in the present state where she is scared and in the fugue state she is the dangerous Flamingo on a revenge fueled quest as she seeks those responsible for her lover’s death.   She gets help along the way from the crazy Ty (who wants revenge for what one of the criminals, Cyrus (Christopher Lloyd), did to his trashy druggie sister Dakota).   Gwen and Ty work together in a plot to kill Cyrus while a police detective (Michael Ironside) is on their trail.

 

88 is the best screwed up revenge film since MEMENTO.  Katharine Isabelle is fantastic as Gwen whether she is in the present timeline or in the fugue state (that is a result of a life trauma which results in amnesia, a different personality, and hallucinations).   The editing and switching between the two timelines helps fuel the pacing of 88 which is the fourth film from director April Mullen who has crafted this crazy revenge film.   Tim Dorian wrote the script (and he also plays Ty) which could have also worked as a movie edited in chronological order.   88 has resulted in another wonderful choice for actress Katharine Isabelle who has also been in a couple of other movies I loved (GINGER SNAPS and AMERICAN MARY) and another movie where she was one of the few good thing sin it (the uneven SEE NO EVIL 2).

 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

BEHIND-THE-SCENES featurette which is an extensive 37 minute making-of that has behind-the-scenes footage, clips from the movie, and interviews with director April Mullen (who also has a cameo in the movie), screenwriter Tim Doiron, and the cast.   April explains the timeline of the movie and why they shot (and edited it that way) as she even remarks the movie would still work without the rewind jump cuts to catch people up on the timeline of the fugue state.   Katharine Isabelle said this shoot was one of the most enjoyable while Michael Ironside likes the way the director collaborates on a scene.

 

The MAKING OF featurette is a 2 ½ minute cutdown promotional version of the longer behind-the-scenes featurette.

 

Also included among the extras is the trailer for 88 and previews for other releases including AUTOMATA and GOOD PEOPLE.

 

FINAL ANALYSIS: 88 makes me wonder why Katharine Isabelle isn’t a bigger star as she steals the show with her solid turn as Gwen (no matter what state Gwen is in).  April Mullen delivers the best screwed up revenge film since MEMENTO.  I want to check out her other films and I hope she makes other movies as entertaining as 88.

 

This review is ©1-7-2015 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission.  Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com

 

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