Synopsis
John Berlin, a big-city cop from LA moves to a small-town police force and immediately finds himself investigating a murder. Using theories rejected by his colleagues, Berlin meets a young blind woman named Helena, whom he is attracted to. Meanwhile, a serial killer is on the loose—and only John knows it.
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Cast
- Andy GarcíaSgt. John Berlin
- Lance HenriksenSgt. Freddy Ross
- Uma ThurmanHelena Robertson
- Graham BeckelJohn Taylor
- Kathy BakerMargie Ross
- Kevin ConwayChief Citrine
- John MalkovichAgent St. Anne
- Perry LangTravis
- Nicholas LoveBisley
- Michael O'NeillSerato
- 80
Variety
Jennifer Eight is an unusually intelligent and unexploitative late-season thriller, which probably won't help its chances at the box office. Involving without being exciting, pic is notable for avoiding most of the standard suspense film contrivances, as well as for Conrad Hall's utterly smashing cinematography. Interesting cast and sober approach will mean more to critics and sophisticated viewers than to general audiences, resulting in OK results during brief release window before Christmas heavy hitters put this out to video pasture, where it might fare better. - 70
TV Guide Magazine
Despite a gimmicky, underdeveloped plot, JENNIFER EIGHT is a moody, atmospheric thriller, featuring several fine performances and marking a promising major studio debut by writer-director Bruce Robinson. - 67
Austin Chronicle
Robinson keeps Jennifer 8 moving right along, alternately dropping clues right in our laps and tossing in a red herring or two, but it's the dark town running like a black thread throughout the whole film that keeps your nerves jangling. - 60
Los Angeles Times
Jennifer 8 is smarter than most of the swanky scare machines, but it’s also too hemmed-in by convention and programmed scares. The game is too rigid: the player’s skills are being wasted. The movie, perhaps, should have been built entirely around those Garcia-Malkovich scenes--because it’s in the exchange of glances between those two, the scraped wariness of Garcia, the quiet, almost lazy sadism of Malkovich, that it really chills the blood. - 60
The New York Times
One of the most surprising things about Jennifer 8, a strikingly atmospheric film even when not an entirely convincing one, is a running time that is in excess of two hours. Losing 20 minutes would almost certainly have heightened the film's sense of purpose, which is sometimes in danger of drifting away. - 60
Empire
With a predictable central story, what might have been a distinctly average film is greatly improved with stellar performances from Garcia, Thurman and, in particular, Malkovich as well as some incredible cinematography that keeps the atmosphere tense. - 50
Time Out
The opening scene on a rain-drenched rubbish tip hints at great things, but despite strong writing and an exceptional cast, the plotting is suspect and the murderer's identity is obvious from very early on. - 40
IGN
Curse you and your vile coma-inducing powers, Jennifer 8!