Reviewer's grade: C

Dr. Jack Gramm (Al Pacino) is a leading forensic psychiatrist and university professor whose mid-Nineties court testimony landed Jon Forster (Neal McDonough, "The Hitcher," "Flags of Our Fathers"), aka "The Seattle Slayer," on death row.

Nine years later, it's time for Forster to be put to death, and new accusations about the voracity of Gramm's testimony and Forster's guilt come to light as the Seattle Slayer strikes again and the doc starts receiving phone calls counting down his death. Pacino plays his usual angry outsider as Gramm, a likable but typical role for the actor, and no real dialogue sparks fly between him and top cop William Forsythe ("Freedomland," "The Devil's Rejects").

Writer Gary Scott Thompson (creator of TV's "Las Vegas") can be blamed for the impossible plot, and mostly director Jon Avnet ("Fried Green Tomatoes," TV's "The Starter Wife") do little to build suspense and highlight character tension, resorting to fade-backs to remind the audience of insignificant plot details. R

"”Joe Wertz