from Columbia Pictures
Directed by
Luis
Mandoki
Starring
Stuart
Townsend (Dr. Will Jennings)
Charlize
Theron (Karen Jennings)
Kevin
Bacon (Joe Hickey)
Courtney
Love (Cheryl Tilly)
Dakota
Fanning (Abby Jennings)
Pruitt
Taylor Vince (Marvin Pool)
Written by
Greg
Iles (also book)
Rated: 
(for violence, language and sexual content) |
about the
book...
This explosive suspense thriller gets off to a blistering
start: the kidnapping of a little boy--in eight breathless pages--that
culminates with the child's safe return and the disappearance
of the successful kidnappers. That sets the stage for the book's
centerpiece, the abduction of little Abby Jennings, daughter
of Will, a successful physician, and Karen, a slightly dissatisfied
suburban woman who's wondering where the passion in her marriage
went. The criminals' modus operandi is established early on.
They target the progeny of Mississippi doctors, demand a reasonable
(to an affluent M.D.) ransom, release the child after it's paid,
and promise the victim parents that if they ever breathe a word
of the incident to anyone, their kids will be taken again and
killed. The kidnappings are carefully set up, targeted to take
place when one parent is out of town at a medical meeting or
convention, thus ensuring the cooperation of the other. And the
victim is held by a sweet, slightly retarded but humongous and
powerful man whose loyalty to his cousin, the mastermind, is
unquestioned.
24 Hours is a version of the locked room school of kidnap
mysteries and a very good one indeed, especially when Will turns
the tables on the kidnapper and takes control of the situation.
Abby's diabetic condition (she needs lifesaving injections on
a regular basis) notches the suspense up one last turn. It's
a well worked-out plot, the pacing is terrific, and the characters
likable and attractive. Iles is a master storyteller, and this
one has big screen written all over it--with Harrison Ford and
Michelle Pfeiffer as the Jennings, if we're lucky. -- Jane Adams
of Amazon.com
Official Site
|
