2 Minutes Later

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If, for the sake of argument, "Murder, She Wrote" unveiled the identity of the killer before the opening credits and then casually disregarded this person until the last 15 minutes of the show, there would be a problem. If, also for the sake of argument, if Jessica Fletcher literally stumbled her way into solving a case after going down the wrong track for the entire length of the episode, there would be a problem. These rules are broken in "2 Minutes Later," leaving the film essentially daring the audience to become emotionally invested in the events on screen.

Kyle Dalmar (Michael Molina) is a pompous photographer. He is killed, leading private investigator Abigail Marks (Jessica Graham) to search for his killer. In Philadelphia, she meets his twin brother, Michael (also played by Molina) and the two set out to uncover what exactly happened to Kyle.

Writer/producer/director Robert Gaston has crafted a mediocre introduction to the characters and their world. But that is all this is: an introduction. There is no mystery, no suspense, no reason for the audience to play along while Abigail and Michael sort through Kyle´s life. And that is the fundamental misstep "2 Minutes Later" takes: the script blows its hand far too early. To put together a thoughtful and involving whodunit, the audience can not be at the proverbial finish line before the gun has gone off. By showing the identity of the bad guy as the opening credits are still rolling, an unspoken question is posed to the audience. Is this really the guy we´ll be looking for?

And in order to answer that question, he can´t disappear for all intents and purposes until the third act. Victor (Peter Stickles, aka the bad guy) should either be shot in such a way as we don´t know his identity or be integrated into the actual story so a slew of possibilities pop up. Since the audience knows exactly who the culprit is from the start of the film, any suspense which could have been generated is lost.

There is one other, rather major issue with the plot as it unfolds. It isn´t detective work which leads to Victor being fingered as the murderer. It´s sheer dumb luck. Without ruining how it happens, Michael quite literally stumbles into figuring the whole thing out. To add insult to injury, neither Michael nor Abigail thinks it´s a good idea to call the police. Not with incriminating evidence of at least one murder. Not before both go barreling into Victor´s apartment-her in a slinky dress and heels, him without a weapon or training.

"2 Minutes Later" bides its time, trying to develop the relationship between the two leads instead of focusing on the actual plot. To a certain extent, having Michael and Abigail clash for half the running time (a paltry 68 minutes) works to strengthen their personalities. He has lived in his brother´s shadows, making Michael reticent, almost shy to a fault. And as he´s paired with Abigail, a brash and out lesbian, they both take on traits stereotypically associated with the other gender. It´s not until roughly 35 minutes in do they begin to gel, feeling like something more can come of their friendship.

Perhaps it is a symptom of the actors and Gaston trying to find the voices for each character, but a good chunk of the dialogue is stilted, as if it works on the page though not in practice. Molina is often the worst offender, with a seemingly one note delivery for every emotion Michael can feel. While it´s understandable his twin brother was murdered, they haven´t had any kind of relationship for a decade. To counteract Molina, Graham´s character is written so over the top, she borders on comical, not the characterization anyone would want from a PI.

Never let it be said, though, Gaston does not fill his movie with good looking people unafraid to show off their bodies. Kyle got a perverse pleasure out of humiliating people and taking their photos in moments of absolute despair. It goes without saying, then, there are copious amounts of pictures featuring naked male bodies. This is simultaneously the puerile thrill of "2 Minutes Later" as well as a maddening potential plot. Stickles has never been shy about showing his own body (see "Shortbus" or the Here series "The Lair"); instead of introducing an element completely unconnected to the rest of the story, why not integrate him into the actual plot using this humiliation theme? Maybe he posed for provocative pictures with Kyle, later thought better of them (he´s not out, he´s embarrassed, they were shown in an exhibition and his employer saw them…) and Kyle wouldn´t hand them over?

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