Jared's Pick - Movie Reviews: Payback

Payback

The promos for Payback make it very clear that Mel Gibson plays a Bad Guy. Truth is, there's not much difference between Lethal Weapon's Detective Riggs and Payback's Porter. But it's a savvy casting move - because we're so used to rooting for Mel, the fact that Porter is a cold son of a bitch hardly matters. It's Mel, after all. We like Mel, and the movie works because of it. If John Malkovitch were playing Porter, I doubt if audiences would be so sympathetic. As it is, Payback is one of the better action movies of its kind to come out of Hollywood in some time.

Porter is a brutal, callous, vindictive man. Of course, he has reason to be - he was viciously double-crossed and left for dead during a $140,000 heist, but he's recovered, wants his share of the loot, and is willing to go to any lengths to get it. It's always entertaining to see someone with virtually no moral compass kicking ass and taking names in a single minded quest for revenge, and Mel plays the role with relish.

This is a violent, stylish crime story, populated by nothing but cheats, backstabbers, weasels and slimeballs, all of whom punctuate their sentences with blows to the stomach. Somehow, the violence is so casual that it hardly registers, except in a nasty torture scene that brings new meaning to the children's poem "This Little Piggy." Maybe Americans are just used to violence, but I think it's more than that - in Porter's world, violence is as natural as breathing, something that hardly bears thinking about. It's just a way to get what you want, and because he takes it so lightly, you will too.

The movie is filmed entirely in high contrast blue filters, giving Chicago's streets and back alleys a dark, gritty feel entirely appropriate to the script. The only time you ever see the color red is when there's blood or the painted nails of sadomasochistic hookers on screen. Of course, you see both frequently, as Payback's style is as important as its substance. This is a crime noir in the style of old Bogart films, the brooding anti-hero, the dry voiceovers ("Crooked cops. Do they come any other way?") and the black comedy.

While no classic on that scale, Payback is entertaining, and stays true to its characters. While the action is fun, it's most interesting to see Porter's drive to outmaneuver his enemies though smarts as well as force. He uses both liberally, and so does the movie. Porter's hooker girlfriend adds a level of emotion to the film, giving it a depth that dumbed-down shoot 'em up Schwartzenegger films can only dream of. While not for everyone, Payback is well worth seeing for the wealth of nasty characters, Mel's deadpan vengeance and smarter than average script. Plus it features tracks by James Brown, so how do you miss with that?

- Jared O'Connor

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