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Payback
1999 100 min United States of America R 18+
★6.8
Action, Drama, Crime, Thriller
Director: Brian Helgeland
🎭 Based on
«The Hunter»
byDonald E. Westlake
Trailers
Description
With friends like these, who needs enemies? That's the question bad guy Porter is left asking after his wife and partner steal his heist money and leave him for dead -- or so they think. Five months and an endless reservoir of bitterness later, Porter's partners and the crooked cops on his tail learn how bad payback can be.
Budget:
$90M
US Gross:
$81.53M
Worldwide:
$161.63M
Starring
Mel Gibson
Actor
Gregg Henry
Actor
Maria Bello
Actor
Awards
Saturn Awards 2000
— Best Action, Adventure or Thriller
Key opinion
Payback is widely regarded as a gripping, stylish neo-noir thriller anchored by a charismatic and ruthless performance from Mel Gibson. While critics initially sparred over its tonal shifts and production history, audiences have embraced the film as an engaging, darkly humorous, and highly rewatchable genre piece.
| Acting | Mel Gibson delivers a definitive antihero performance, perfectly balancing calculated menace with dry, ironic charm. | |
| Cinematography | The film utilizes a distinctive, high-contrast visual style with a desaturated or muted color palette to effectively establish its gritty, noir-inspired atmosphere. | |
| Humor | The script leans heavily into sharp, biting black humor that gives the crime-thriller narrative a unique and entertaining edge. | |
| Screenplay | Opinions on the narrative structure are divided: some view the straightforward, linear revenge plot as a compelling and coherent journey, while others find the storytelling to be simplistic or lacking in deeper thematic weight. | |
| Direction | The film's quality is debated due to its troubled production, with significant disagreement over whether the studio-mandated theatrical cut succeeds as a punchy action movie or if the director's cut provides a superior, more cohesive noir vision. |