Paycheck

IT TOOK ME BY SURPRISE!
Every now and then a movie passes by me and I totally dismiss it out of lack of interest. Paycheck was one of those. When it was first released, It didn't sound all that great, so I ignored it. Then by chance I came across a DVD of this movie and decided to watch it. What a surprise! This is now one of my favorite sci-fi movies. Had I known that it was based on a short story by Phillip K. Dick, I might have paid more attention to begin with. Especially since he was the author of Minority report and Blade Runner (under the written title of "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"). One of the most outstanding things about this film is that there is no bloody gore, no sex, and not a lot of strong language. It is very fast paced, filled with action and suspense, great acting, and includes some of todays finest actors. I thought it one of Uma Thurman's best performances, and Ben Afflick was at his best. I would highly recommend this DVD (which also has some great bonus materials) to...

Paycheck- Mostly Enjoyable
Paycheck, the new sci-fi action thriller from John Woo delivers some great action and entertains on a high scale. Ben Affleck is better, (eagerly trying to redeem himself after the huge debacle of Gigli). Uma Thurman does just fine and Joe Morton and Paul Giamatti shine.
Now the premise of this film might throw you off, but it shouldn't. Knowing that this film is based on the work of Philip K. Dick who wrote Blade Runner, Minority Report and Total Recall you can expect something new. The film while similar to The Bourne Identity definetly has its differences. In fact, Matt Damon was originally offered the lead role in Paycheck but he declined because he said it was too similar to his role in The Bourne Identity.
Essentially, Affleck plays Mike Jennings, a big computer engineer. His clever mind has enabled him to make a new program. Mike is soon offered a huge job offer by his good friend Jimmy Rethrick (Aaron Eckhart). After he's done the job he gets a huge...

Commodity film......
One always has great hope for a film script with Philip Dick parentage, but this film was a disappointment. John Woo is a talented director, but he is completely unsuited for this sort of film. The dark paranoiac style in Philip Dick's writing has not been used to greatest advantage in film except in 'Blade Runner', which ironically did not cling closely to the story, however, 'Paycheck' pushes alienation from the spirit of the story to new heights. Neither does 'Paycheck' show the humor or spirit, director Woo's films are famous for, leaving Paycheck's unnecessary and out of place chase scenes feeling like a death mask of a John Woo film.

From a performance perspective, Affleck and Thurman are ill matched romantically, with this casting choice made worse by director Woo's decision to play up the romantic aspects of the film. The supporting actors, particularly Aaron Eckhart turn in a strong performance however.

Despite the poor directing, miserable and...

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