DVD Review: Payback: Straight Up - The Director’s Cut

I believe that one day in the future an entire new segment of the film industry will be born.  This new area will focus solely on recutting movies that Richard Donner and his friends, acquaintances, and one-time co-workers were fired from directing.  Superman II has already been recut and released as Superman II:  The Richard Donner Cut.  I saw that one and thought it really good (though I wished that they hadn’t updated the special effects).

Recently released is the next in this series of films:  Payback: Straight Up - The Director’s Cut.  Director Brian Helgeland, was originally fired from (or quit, or mutually agreed with producers and the studio to leave depending on whom you ask).  After listening to the various commentaries and behind the scenes discussions and documentaries included with the DVD, I can tell you the reason for this seems to be that not only was he not a great director (this was his first major motion picture), he also wanted to make a movie that was completely about evil people doing bad things and without any hope of redemption for anyone.  Why such a script was greenlit I can’t tell you, I just know that during filming Mel Gibson (star and a producer on the movie), among others, told Helgeland to change the ending, he said no, and was handed his walking papers.  At that point, he was replaced by John Myhre who reshot the entire third act of the movie (after a huge rewrite was done). 

In brief, the movie follows a thief, Porter (Mel Gibson) as he tries to get back $70,000 that was stolen from him by his partner, who set Porter up, nearly getting him killed.  Porter not only wants the cash, he wants revenge, and he goes after everyone that was remotely involved in the $70,000 getting stolen. 

Happily, the new movie is better than the original.  Gone is Gibson’s voiceover, gone is the ending, gone is Kris Kristofferson completely.  In addition to the wholly new third act, there is also a scene early on in which Porte, beats his estranged wife, played by Deborah Kara Unger.  This scene certainly helps push the character of Porter and the film as a whole in the direction Helgeland wanted it to go.  I will not enter into a discussion of Porter’s motivation and the appropriateness (or not) of his actions, unquestionably though, even if one would forgive Porter for hitting is wife, it completely changes the way he is viewed for the rest of the movie.

Article Author: Josh Lasser

Josh Lasser, formerly known as "TV and Film Guy," and complete with a Masters Degree in Critical Studies in said areas, gives his opinions on TV, Film, and Entertainment in general. All of which he does in a shameless attempt to try to get paid to do the exact same thing. …

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