Paycheck

Starring: Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman, Aaron Eckhart,
Directed by: John Woo
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action
2003

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: An engineer (Ben Affleck) works on top secret government projects, and at the project's conclusion, has his memory erased. After the biggest job of his life, he discovers he refused to accept the paycheck, which would have meant millions of dollars. Even stranger, all he left himself was a folder containing a number of random objects. Now, his life is in danger and he must try to figure out the meaning of the envelope's contents if he wants to survive.

Review:

Tim: Paycheck is truly not as bad as many people made it out to be. John Woo directs a very good action film that has quite a bit of suspense, too. The film is based on a short story by Philip K. Dick, so you know it will contain elements of the future mixed with some pretty important philosophical questions.

Ben Affleck is pretty good, surprisingly. I'm not a fan of him at all, but I give him credit for not totally mucking up the film. Uma Thurman is enjoyable to watch. She can really kick some ass and makes a decent pair to Affleck, although they don't have much chemistry. That can be forgiven, I suppose. I am a huge fan of Aaron Eckhart and it was interesting to see his turn here as a bad guy. I still prefer him to play the hero, but I appreciate him expanding his range as an actor.

Paycheck is a very good futuristic science fiction movie. The idea of the machine that Affleck's character builds is pretty fascinating to think about. It is on this level that the film succeeds the most- making us wonder. As it is directed by John Woo, this is first and foremost an action film. However, there is just enough of the story by Philip K. Dick to give the audience a taste of awe that only future possibilities can bring.

Now, all this isn't to say that the film doesn't have its problems. It most certainly does. The plot is oftentimes nebulous and so suspense-driven that it fails work on other levels. I also happen to believe that Woo has some obsession with unbelievable/borderline ridiculous motorcycle scenes. He has one in Mission: Impossible 2 and ups the ante in this film. Go figure. There are also some pretty ridiculous fight scenes in the film, where Thurman and Affleck go from ordinary people to trained superstar martial artists or something. It just wasn't believable.

For the most part, though, Paycheck is an entertaining action film that might not require the most thought ever, but sincerely more than the typical shoot 'em up action flick. That is good enough for me.





Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Blade Runner, Minority Report, Mission: Impossible 2, Kill Bill Vols. 1 & 2, Reindeer Games