"PAYBACK" (1999) review by R. L. Strong
Paramount Pictures presents an ICON production of a Brian Helgeland film Mel Gibson "PAYBACK" Deborah Unger David Paymer Bill Duke Kris Kristofferson Edited by Kevin Stitt Music by Chris Boardman Executive Producer: Stephen McEveety Cinematography by Ericson Core Based on the novel "The Hunter" by Donald E. Westlake Screenplay by Brian Helgeland & Terry Hayes Produced by Bruce Davey Directed by Brian Helgeland
"We made a deal: if she'd stop hooking, I'd stop shooting people. I guess we were both aiming a little high."
That ending bit of narration sums up the problems of Brian Helgeland's directorial debut "Payback". In attempting to make an audience friendly version of Donald Westlake's hard hitting crime novel 'The Hunter'; the filmmakers have replaced the amoral atmosphere of the story and replaced it with a quick series of quips and one liners. The end result is a very brutal and strangely enjoyable film, but one that raises interesting questions.
Mel Gibson plays Porter a small time hood who we meet as he is having several bullets removed from his back by a back alley doctor. In flashback we learn that Porter and his partner, Val (Gregg Henry) steal $140 from a Chinese gangster. Getting away with the money, Porter is doublecrossed by Lynn (Deborah Unger), his wife and Val. As Porter lies bleeding from his gunshot wounds, Val drops a photograph on Porter, revealing the hood with a high priced call girl, Rosie (Maria Bello) he was employed by as a driver.
Porter is now on a mission, and that mission is not revenge. He simply is out to get what is his. What he earned. $70 thousand dollars. And no one is going to stop him from getting it. After healing his wounds, Porter finds his ex-wife (widow), Lynn in a flea bag apartment. Strung out on heroin, Lynn is returning home with her fix, when Porter surprises her from inside. He violently assaults her, angry at the betrayal but more so with her addiction. He forces Lynn to lay with him as she suffers the beginning of withdrawals. Unfortunately, as Porter sleeps, Lynn manages to get to her fix. When Porter wakens, he finds Lynn dead from an overdose, the syringe still imbedded in her artery.
Having gotten some information from Lynn, Porter goes off to find Val. His source is Stegman (David Paymer), a mousy bookie. Stegman, happens to be working with two of Chicago's not so finest cops, Detective Hicks and Leary (Bill Duke and Jack Conley respectively) who determine that Porter must be in for a big score and decide to cut themselves in on the deal. Add to this mix, the reappearance of the Chinese hoods who were the victims of the original heist, and the deck is increasingly stacked against Porter. Until, that is, he is reacquainted with Rosie (Maria Bello).
"Payback" is an extremely ugly film. There is not one character that is redeemable. Everyone in this film connives, cheats, kills, tortures and maims anyone who would get in the way of their money. While this character trait is base at best, the writers of the script try to humanize these figures by giving them humorous asides and quick little one liners. It doesn't work. While the film has humorous moments (this could be the blackest comedy of all time were it not so imaginatively bright), there is not one believable character in the film. The story is constructed with a heavy reliance on a voice over narration in the person of Porter. In some cases the narration is current, emphasizing a current thought or feeling, others are spoken in a past tense which leads one to believe that the film is being told in hindsight. This is one of the many problems with the film, in that it's hard to feel empathy and suspense for the character when he is telling you what he is going to do or what his mindset is, before he acts.
First time Director Brian Helgeland, does a very good job of handling this morale of Mickey Spillane and Raymond Chandler. The basis for the story was the marvelous tome, "The Hunter" by Donald E. Westlake, which was filmed once before as "Point Blank" (1967) with Lee Marvin in the title role. A comparison of the two films is rather mote at this point, since both films detail certain morays and cultural identities of their era. What Director Helgeland is able to do with this current version is make a hip, jovial and frightening violent portrait of American society collapsing onto itself in a vile heap of easy money. At this level, "Payback" works as a lurid magnifying glass. These characters care less about each other than what they have. Possession is everything. This is pointed out most strongly in a stomach churning scene of torture, in which Mel Gibson's character has his toes crushed one by one with a hammer until he reveals the location of a kidnap victim. He lies! His health, his well-being is never so important as his money.
Gibson's performance is topnotch as usual. In what may be the flip side of his 'Lethal Weapons' character of Riggs, Porter has no affinity for anyone. In one marvelously constructed scene, Porter asks Rosie why she didn't leave with him the night they discovered they were in love with one another. She replies, 'why didn't you take me'? It shows that these characters are so immersed in their own guilt and longing that they can never express they're true feelings or, better yet come to grips with them.
The female leads are fine but are not called upon to do much. To that extent Deborah Unger fairs the best, having the showier role as Porter's estranged wife. Her portrayal for a woman at the end of hope is painful to watch. When Porter comes to get information from her, she asks "Are you going to kill me?" When Porter replies 'No', she is heartbroken, knowing that her only salvation is to take her own life.
The standout performance is by Lucy Alexis Liu as the sadistic prostitute, Pearl. Having developed a reputation for comic timing on the television series "Ally McBeal", Ms. Liu pulls out all the stops in what may be the most outrageous performance of the year. Her natural sexiness and comedic ability raise her scenes to a level that the rest of the film fails to live up to.
The cinematography by Ericson Core is marvelously conceived and staged. This is one of the first films is quite a while that actually takes full advantage of the wide screen. There are scenes, stage in such a way that both extreme ends of the frame are used. This is going to be one film that will not translate well to video without the aid of letterboxing. One side note.. I must make a comment here about the conditions in which I witnessed the film. On opening night at a local AMC theater. The print was not in good shape. The color for the first two reels (approx. 40 mins.) was uniformly dull, with muted color. Also the print developed a slight greenish tint, almost eliminating any solid red or warm colors. Furthermore, the print exhibited a problematic focus shift on the right edge of the screen, where everything went out of focus. And lastly, the print exhibited several instances of water damage. These showed themselves as faint, dark horizontal lines that would run down the frame during a scene. Needless to say, a refund was forthcoming.
But, that aside. What is the final determination of "Payback". For my taste, an interesting misfire. This is a film that could have been a marvelous send up of the crime genre. As it is, it is a nice programmer. But with a real moral compass to guide it. The film ultimately fails to achieve its end. And that is, to entertain.
On a scale of 1 to 5, Payback rates 2. (rated R for sexual situations, profanity, and extreme violence) Copyright 1999 R.L. Strong Nothing in this article may be quoted or re-printed without the expressed written permission of the author
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