Jennifer Eight (1992)

This movie is on the level of 1970s "TV movies," which were hastily thrown together weekly made-for-TV films written by hack screenwriters with hack directors and hack production values. It's surprising that Andy Garcia (in his hot days) and Uma Thurman are in this middling drama. I'm guessing the majority of the film's funding went to their salaries, because i cant find anything else the money might have been spent on. Certainly not on plot or characterization. If you haven't figured out who is the murderer after he's on screen for 20 seconds, then you should just OD yourself because there is no hope for you. Today's TV procedural dramas are 100 times better than this film. But damn, Andy was hot back then.

After his 'cult hit' with Withnail & I, English writer/director (1988), went on to write and direct How To Get Ahead In Advertising (which I haven't yet seen) a year later (1989) and then, this, Jennifer 8 in 1992. It then wasn't until 19 years later, in 2011, that he directed his next film, the - for me, at least, underwhelming The Rum Diary. And I think you have to ask yourself why.Both Jennifer 8 and The Rum Diary suffer from the same failing: most of the bits and pieces are there, but they don't seem to be assembled in the right order. And crucially some still seem to be missing. That is especially the case with Jennifer 8. After a strong beginning, it seems to limp along, hinting at what kind of film it should be rather than being that film.Our central figure - the hero - is a cop who has moved to the styx from the LAPD, apparently once had a drink problem and was abandoned by his wife. I fancy these details are meant to make him interesting. But they don't: here they just mark him out as a certain kind of hero in a certain kind of film, and no more.Then there is the obsession Garcia, for he's the hero, has with tracking down a putative serial killer. It isn't explained why, and there's no particular suggestion as to why. And despite his boss informing him that there is a lot of other detective work to be getting on with, our hero seems simply to ignore anything else and get on with chasing the serial killer he is so certain exists. He is not popular in the department, but why is never obvious: in one rather jarring scene that is made clear, but why exactly.There are other, quite drastic signs that this just isn't a very good production: set in winter, the country is covered in snow one minutes, then the fields are green the next. There is one particular, quite crucial, scene which even takes places in a blizzard. The following day, the ground is as dry and snow-free as one might not hope for if you are a director with a real eye for detail.One gets the feeling that Robinson has seen a lot of these kind of 'psychological, suspense' thrillers and has set out to make one. Sadly, he simply doesn't succeed. There's precious little psychology and no suspense whatsoever.Finally, Garcia is just too nice to be the dedicated cop with inner demons. This role demanded someone of the calibre of Al Pacino and his ilk. Sad to say, but if you get the chance to watch this, pass it up.

I knew once I had started watching this that I had seen it before - a long time ago as a teenager watching a late night movie. I enjoyed it then and I enjoyed watching it now again. Some of the performances are brilliant. John Malkovich gives a mesmerising turn as the prosecuting detective. Andy Garcia is convincing overall and Uma Thurman was very believable in a part that's hard to play. Lance Henriksen and Graham Beckel are great and tend to be those guys you've seen in lots of movies but can't quite place. Overall it is engaging and builds up to a thrilling pace. Unfortunately it does go over the top as too many twists and turns take us to a very abrupt ending. I couldn't help but expect more from it. The plot is terrifying - a serial killer of blind women. It started right. It just took off at some stage into the realms of the wildly unbelievable. I think that the plot and the cast probably deserved more. If it was more measured, brooding and clean in it's execution it could have been a great. This isn't to say that it's not a good movie. It is and it's worth a watch if you like your thrillers.

I am watching this movie right now. Underrated is not the word. It blows away many movies. I just saw a couple movies rated "eight", and this movie was far better. The plot is very convincing, the acting by Uma Thurman, Andy Garcia, and Lance Hendriksen are excellent. The supporting cast is excellent. There is violence and action, but it is highly believable. I am so tired of over-the-top action and violence. Many a good movie is spoiled by heroes, they can get buried alive, hung by a rope, his hand smashed by a huge monkey wrench , stabbed in the kidneys, and shot in the head, and still they come back teach scores of heavily armed bad guys a lesson. (This is a actual plot of a 8 rated movie) . The music is good, the mystery believable and deepening. Just great. You will not were regret the time you spent watching this movie. One of the best I have seen in a long time. I liked the ending a lot. It is very hard to guess how it ends, to solve the mystery before it's over. I didn't see it coming. This movie is something that could conceivably happen in real life, rather than your cyborg werewolf vs. ninja vampire affair geared toward sixth-graders. It seems like many of these get high ratings these days. The wilder it gets, the more people like them.