7 Minutes

"Don't get caught. Don't get caught." Three high school friends have been backed into a corner. They need money, a lot of it, fast. Out of options they decide to simply rob a bank. They have the perfect target and things start smooth, but when one is recognized things take a turn for the worse. What started off as a way to get out of a jam now becomes a fight for survival. This movie is a different take on the heist movie genre. The robbery takes 7 minutes, but during that time the reasons and back story of each robber is told through flashbacks and that really is a neat way to do this. Each person has their own story, which really helps in the emotional connection to every person involved. On the other side, that is really the only thing keeping this from being 100% generic. There are a few twists in this but nothing mind blowing. All that said this is actually a decent movie to watch, but I found my mind wandering every once in a while. On the plus side this wasn't all that convoluted of a plot and even zoning out for a few minutes I was able to understand what was going on. Overall, nothing terrible but nothing amazing either. I liked the use of flashbacks. I give this a C.

If you are looking to watch a movie that you won't have necessarily to follow, keep reading. Otherwise, you will be disappointed. This movie starts well: it follows an interesting style of narration (Flashbacks which carefully explain the main Event through the single introduction of characters) and employs good actors. Unfortunately it also lacks an ending: the feeling after the ending credits reminds that sour sensation that something more could (should) have been done.This movie does not aspire to anything more than a decent box office outcome, but it could have been something more, if they had believed it to mean anything. It is just incomplete,and because of that, pointless to watch in the first place.

I found the screenplay frustratingly predictable and boring. The characters were more like caricatures with no depth. The acting was poor. There were some serious flaws in the story-line. I managed to sit through it but I regretted it.

Timing is everything and this movie succeeds in relating its story in scenes involving each of its main characters in the 7 minutes the criminals involved in a robbery have planned before the cops arrive. All the actors are superb. Unusual Seattle setting. If you like character and suspense movies told in a different way you'll like this one.

Sometimes I don't know why modern productions insist on time warping their ideas. 7 Minutes is full of flashbacks, in fact, there is at least one for each significant character. Mind you, the characters are believable, and the production is certainly good. Wrong side of the tracks youths mix with small time hoods, and other small town types. That's a treat. Almost as good as Fargo. Tarantino doesn't use a lot of flashbacks as I recall, and yet we forgive him unspectacular starts. For me, 7 Minutes needed that approach. Don't get me wrong, this is still a great movie and the flashbacks do work as entertainment. My opinion is that the movie may have worked better with a straighter timeline and less flashbacks.