Paycheck
(Widescreen Edition)
(Paramount Region 1 DVD)
(2003)
review by Head Cheeze

Take the master of Hong Kong action cinema, hand him a script based on the cyberpunk genius of Philip K. Dick, and round up an A-list cast (featuring Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman, and Aaron Eckhart), and what do you get?

An underwhelming peformance at the box-office, apparently.

Why? I haven't a clue. Paycheck is one of the most exciting and inventive sci-fi/action films I've seen in years and I can only guess that the media saturation of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez soured both critics and moviegoers enough to keep them away from this film. It's a shame because this is easily Woo's best Western offering since Face/Off, and it's just a hell of a lot of fun.

Michael Jennings (Affleck) is a reverse engineer. His job is to acquire newly developed technology, take it apart, and discover what it is that makes it tick. Once he figures that out, he then adapts it to the needs of whatever company hires him so that they can compete with (or improve upon) their competitor's offerings. It's a risky and covert operation that requires Jennings to undergo "memory wipes" after his work is done so that those who hire him can rest assured he no longer carries any information that can implicate them in the theft of someone elses ideas.

When Jennings' old college buddy Jimmy (Eckhart) offers him an obscene amount of money for a top-secret job that will cost him three years of memories (the length of the contract), he reluctantly accepts the offer despite the risks of the unprecedented length of the memory wipe he will have to endure once his work is done.

It's now three years later, and, to Jennings, it's seems like merely moments have passed. Jimmy assures him that he is now a wealthy man, and Jennings leaves to pick up the belongings he left behind. What he discovers, however, is that he's forsaken his stock options for an envelope of miscellaneous trinkets; hairspray, a car key, matches, a bullet, etc. While he has no memory of any of this, his signature on the package is his, and soon he realises that these seemingly innocuous items are the keys to his survival as he is pursued by both the F.B.I. and his former friend who now wants him dead.

Paycheck is a very slick and exciting piece of action cinema. I especially enjoyed the whole concept of the pre-memory wipe Jennings warning his future self with the envelope of assorted items, and leaving it up to future Jennings to figure out their use "on the fly". The way this envelope comes to serve as Jennings' "weapon" is inspired stuff, and lends a lot of tension to the proceedings as he has to adapt to certain situations by using certain items. For example, while being chased by the F.B.I., Jennings finds himself trapped in a bus terminal, falls, spills the contents of the envelope, only to find a bus pass within. He gets out in the nick of time, and the package's mystery begins to reveal itself to him.

Affleck is his usually sturdy self as Jennings, and I just love this guy as an action hero. He's a likeable working class sort that reminds me of Bruce Willis circa "Die-Hard". He's also a huge Red Sox fan in real life (as is his Jennings character in the film, of course!), and we Red Sox fans stick together, damnit!

The supporting cast of Eckhart and Thurman (who plays Jenning's love interest he no longer remembers) are solid, but it's Paul Giamatti as Jenning's pal/memory wipe expert Shorty who really shines, albeit with limited screen time. I love this guy's work, and anyone whose seen "American Splendor" knows what I'm talking about when I say that this guy is the epitome of a scene stealer.

Woo's direction is quite restrained here, with the usual Woo trademark slow motion action and gun ballet barely employed. Of course, we do get several "Mexican stand-offs" as well as the obligatory doves and religeous iconography that are his signature, but, for the most part, his contributions are much less invasive than his previous works, and I found it refreshing.

Paramount, as always, heaps on the extras with this special edition DVD. The set features a charming and informative commentary by Woo, a commentary by screenwriter Dean Georgaris that touches upon how he went about adapting Dick's original short story, two featurettes; "Paycheck: Designing the Future" and "Tempting Fate: The Stunts of Paycheck", as well as deleted scenes and more.

Paycheck deserves a second chance, and I hope it finds it's audience on DVD. Give this one a shot!