一夜的纸醉金迷后美国联邦调查局的法庭精神分析师Jack Gramm博士（Al Pacino饰）被一宗谋杀案的电话带离了美人香，这宗谋杀案和9年前的西雅图杀手案极其相似。Jack当时的精神分析是判定嫌疑犯Foster有罪的关键依据。现在联邦调查局认为Foster是无辜的，而被害者在临死前的录象带也亲口证实Jack抓错了人。真正的罪犯也许正在逍遥法外。 　　当Jack正处于迷惑之时，他又收到了莫名的死亡威胁，得知自己只能再活88分钟。 　　面对种种突如其来的迷团以及死亡的威胁，Jack该如何应对……In Seattle, the successful forensic psychiatrist and college professor Jack Gramm is in evidence since he was responsible for the condemnation of the serial killer Jon Forster, influencing the jury to sentence him to the death row. Jon accuses Jack of manipulation, inducing one witness and sister of one of his victims to testify against him. On the eve of Jon's execution, Jack receives a phone call telling him that he has only eighty-eight minutes of life, while a killer is copycatting Jon, killing women with the same "modus-operandi" and is investigated by Seattle Slayer Task Force. With the support of associate Shelly Barnes, an FBI agent, his friend Frank Parks, and his assistant Kim Cummings, Jack investigates some weird and problematic students, a security guard of the campus and the woman with whom he had one night stand.