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?
There´s also a side nitpick I wanted to mention: Michael masquerades as Kyle to everyone around him. He even beds an impossibly perky twink (J. Matthew Miller) based on Kyle´s identity. Does it ever occur to him to come clean with anyone except Abigail? Not at all. In fact, it´s the one dangling plot element left at the end of the film. Sure, seeing Michael make amends to a litany of characters might have been tedious, but at least show one to demonstrate he has a conscience.
To its credit, the production looks more expensive than it probably was, with the copious use of exteriors and several scenes involving a good number of background extras. There is little to betray the lack of a true budget in the production values. (However, listening to the commentary track, the shoot sounds like a reunion of friends with the side benefit of making a movie.) And, as I already mentioned, there is no end to the naked flesh on display. Gaston knows his audience well.
VIDEO:
Remember how I said the look of the film was of generally good quality? Either the transfer or the original elements are the issue here and, based on previous TLA Releasing product, I don´t think the problem is in the transfer process. From the outset, the film is covered in a layer of grain, turning the blacks into hues of gray and dancing all over day scenes. Other scenes appear too dark, though this isn´t the fault of the video specs. The details can be muddled at times, a criticism I´ll repeat in a moment. On the positive side, though, other standard video issues don´t plague the film. And with a larger budget, I´d wager the finished product would look better, too.
AUDIO:
A singular option here, English 2.0. As with portions of the video, this track comes across as muddy in some respects, as if a looping session was left out of post production. Background noises and the occasional music cue overpower the dialogue. Upper level sounds at distorted at the top of their range. It´s not a terrible track; the speakers are kept relatively active with activity.
EXTRAS:
The crown jewel here is a commentary with Gaston and editor Farrell Lever. Cast members come and go via phone for the duration (Graham, Stickles, Miller) as well as composer Houston Bernard. Gaston is the only person with any type of insight in the film; sadly, even he gets taken off topic and distracted by the talking with friends again. A lot of time goes into pointing out crew members and friends in each shot, along with various locations.
A short film produced in 2006 shows up next, entitled "Will You…" Running eleven and a half minutes, the trials and tribulations of two lesbians dealing with a marriage proposition manages to be sweet, endearing and obvious at the same time. In the Unrated Photo Featurette (19:17), we´re given every single photograph taken for the sequence of photos on Kyle´s memory card. It turns out to be entirely too long for one reason: we assume the best stuff has made it into the finished film. The leftovers? Variations on the same theme. There is commentary, no explanation over the images. Just music.
Wrapping up are a group of trailers: "2 Minutes Later" (2:04); "Socket" (2:07); Naked Boys Singing!" (1:01); and "Amnesia: The James Brighton Enigma" (2:49).
PARTING THOUGHTS:
Rightly or wrongly, I compare "2 Minutes Later" to the Chad Allen-starring Donald Strachey mysteries on Here TV. Even his first film, 2005´s "Third Man Out," felt more refined, more concerned with the mystery than this production does. The short running time is more of a detriment than asset, and, while the ending is left wide open for a sequel, a better plotted script needs to be written before it goes into production. Gaston has found a genre-gay detective stories-that are in short supply and tries to fill a niche. Michael Dalmar, Abigail Marks and Donald Strachey can coexist. The first two just need to find some better material.