Review of Payback (1999) by Aaron N — 03 Oct 2008

Val Resnick: Beauty of the Chows is that they won't go to the cops. They keep everything in house... and, they don't feel pain the way we do.

Porter: You notice anything about those guys, Val?

Val Resnick: They look nasty... probably all Kung Fu-motherfuckers. Why, did I miss something?

Porter: They weren't wearing their seat belts.

A fun, dark revenge story, with Gibson in one of his last good roles before the craziness stepped in.

This movie is very dark and gritty, yet filled with a great morbid sense of humor. Everyone in this movie is in asshole mode, and it only makes it more fun.

Good 70s soundtrack as well, in fact the whole movie plays like an homage to a 70s revenge story, which is pretty cool.

Porter: [voiceover] You'd think after five months of lying on my back, I would have given up any idea of getting even, just be a nice guy and call it a day. Nice guys are fine: you have to have somebody to take advantage of... but they always finish last.

Gibson has a lot of fun as Porter, an asshole/professional criminal who is seeking revenge based around principle, which is evident from the fact that he only wants a certain amount of money, and rejects offers of more. As he appears back from the dead after being shot, he tries to get his point across and get his revenge, but keeps getting interfered with by higher up criminals and crooked cops.

Stegman: You know what, Val, this one's on me. OK?

Val Resnick: Do you see me reaching for my fucking wallet!?

The film also stars a hilarious Greg Henry as the man who double crossed Porter with Porter's own wife, played by Deborah Kara Unger. You also have Maria Bello, David Paymer, Lucy Lui, Kris Kristofferson, and James Coburn as various figures all in Porter's way.

Pearl: [seductively] I've got a few minutes.

Porter: So go boil an egg.

The film was written and directed by Brian Helgeland, screenwriter of such films as LA Confidential, who has based the movie of a novel titled The Hunter, which has itself been previously adapted as the Lee Marvin film Point Blank.

Now, there are two versions of this film. The original theatrical version, which replaced Helgeland and the third act of the film, and there is a more recently released director's cut. Both versions would get the same rating despite their differences.

The original has a steely blue look to it and fits into a zone where Gibson is a bad guy, but the best bad among all the others. The director's cut removes the blue look for a grittier look, removes the voiceover, replaces the soundtrack, and has a darker and completely different ending.

A dark and fun R rated revenge story, filled with violence and Gibson when he wasn't crazy Mel.

[Porter has just threatened to kill Carter while talking to Bronson on the phone].

Bronson: Are you threatening me?

Porter: I'm not threatening you, I'm threatening Carter.