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Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman, Aaron Eckhart

Brilliant computer engineer Michael Jennings routinely has his short term memory erased, so he can't divulge any information about the top secret projects he works on throughout the year. For his most...( read more  read more... ) recent gig, he expects to receive over four billion dollars. Upon completion of the job, however, Jennings is given a filled envelope--not with a check for his billions, but containing random objects. It is communicated to him that he had agreed to forfeit his payment for this specific project. With his memory erased, the meticulous engineer attempts to use the objects in the envelope to figure out what happened to him in his now obscured past. Soon, federal agents are after Jennings and he teams up with his old flame, Rachel, who helps him uncover the mystery of his past--and the question behind why the people whom he once worked for, now want him dead.

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53% liked it

72,153 ratings

Critics

27% liked it

138 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 50 min.

Directed by: John Woo

Release Date: December 25, 2003

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DVD Release Date: May 18, 2004

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Flixster Reviews (4,845)

  • SirPant
    September 15, 2009
    SirPant
    Some guys in suits, who don't read books, make a lot of money and Mr Dick keeps on rolling!
  • TheMachinist
    April 23, 2009
    TheMachinist
    "One big paycheck. You're done."

    "Blade Runner", "Total Recall", "Minority Report". All of the before mentioned are based on Philip K. Dick's stories just as this movie. Those three are great movies. "Paycheck" is not.

    John Woo, the director, may have had a great past in action...( read more) movies but since he started making movies in Hollywood, his career has gone on the wrong tracks. Now, he's back in Hong Kong, hopefully making better movies. I guess why I wrote this segment is that I'm trying to say that he was the wrong man for the job. He's too inconsistent. "Black Jack" - "Face/Off" should prove my point.

    The story itself is interesting but pretty much everything with Dick's name on is worth taking a look. The story develops nicely and there ain't any bigger problems with the pacing.

    All it needs, for a 'what may look good' movie to turn bad, is a single scene. And that scene in this movie is the chase scene where Ben Affleck's character, who has a motorcycle, is trying to get away from the bad guys, who are driving cars. I just can't figure it out, why can't they get away with a motorcycle during rush hour? Why is he driving 50 mph when he could do it in style and drive 150?

    Rest of the action scenes are a bit beneath average. Like the final scene where Affleck takes the final steps to save his future. Somehow a computer engineer suddenly turns into a skilled super agent guy thingy...

    Pretty much everything with "Paycheck" was a disappointment in the end. Even Uma Thurman! And yes, there are the John Woo trademarks in the movie; slow mo flying birds, exploding barrels, calm music during the action scenes...

    "Wait, I remember these birds... "
  • 76Majikat
    March 28, 2009
    76Majikat
    A futuristic Sci-fi/Action film which has it?s interesting plot moments, I?m usually not much of a fan of Ben Affleck, but he seems to do ok here. The envelope idea, of course holds the interest of the audience and although this is a futuristic tale, the storyline tells more lik...( read more)e a time travel story.

    A very watchable film, with limited brain work required.
  • franktowers
    November 14, 2008
    franktowers
    just when you think john woo wouldnt put a dove in slow motion in one of his movies
  • PvtCaboose91
    October 5, 2008
    PvtCaboose91
    "Michael Jennings is not a super agent, he's an engineer."


    Ever since John Woo trotted off to Hollywood, the quality of his output has gradually declined. Following the days of Hard-Boiled, A Better Tomorrow and The Killer, director Woo moved int

    ...( read more)o Hollywood and made his mark with the underrated Hard Target and the exceptional action-thriller Face/Off.

    But the golden years of John Woo cinema have disintegrated. Mission: Impossible II and Windtalkers play a key role in the death of Woo's Hollywood career. At of 2008, Paycheck denotes Woo's final slice of Hollywood cinema. It isn't difficult to comprehend why: Paycheck is brainless, witless, utterly preposterous, formulaic, rarely thrilling and frequently boring. It's a no-brainer actioner assembled from components of the most conventional techno action-thrillers: a wealthy cold-blooded industrialist with an evil agenda, a hero with no understanding of the situation, a love interest with a passion for helping the hero, FBI pursuing the hero (they do an awful job and cause the story to constantly plod), a vast technologically-advanced laboratory, and of course plenty of security guards to get offed unsentimentally during an action scene.

    Based on the novel by Philip K. Dick, the story tracks a Reverse Engineer named Michael Jennings (Affleck). Employers hire Michael to deconstruct products of rival companies, re-engineer the product, and make improvements. After Michael finishes his work, he's given his paycheck and has knowledge of the experience erased from his noggin. This memory erasure essentially removes any evidence of illegal activities that could incriminate his employer.
    He's soon approached by shady billionaire Rethrick (Eckhart) who offers Michael the chance of a lifetime: a job that will take three years, but will earn him almost $100 million. Against the advice of close friend Shorty (Giamatti), Michael accepts Rethrick's offer. In the blink of an eye three years have passed, Michael has finished the job, and a memory erasure has transpired. He's also almost $100 million richer! But as Michael begins to get his life back in order he's informed that during the three years he forfeited his gargantuan paycheck and instead left himself 19 seemingly useless everyday items. The FBI also begin to pursue Michael as he's been accused of treason. And Michael's life is continually threatened by the company he'd been an employee of for the preceding three years.

    To me, the film's title of Paycheck presumably refers to the reason why so many big names agreed to be involved with the film. There's a lifeless Ben Affleck, an aging Uma Thurman, a cardboard Aaron Eckhart, an underused Paul Giamatti...and then there's director Woo who quite frankly appears to be on autopilot. Judging by the film's overall quality, I'm guessing Woo grew bored of the film early into the game and strived desperately to complete the film as soon as possible (quality be damned). By the time the film reached its climax I got the inkling that everyone involved was bored and urgently wanted to end the movie as soon as possible. The action is disappointing for a Woo film as well. Granted, the vehicle chase towards the middle section was somewhat watchable. However the climax got dreary very quickly. Gone is the dreaded slow motion, but as a substitute the action is almost incomprehensible. I had no idea what was happening 90% of the time. The trademark John Woo dove appearance towards the end can best be described as painful. Urgh!

    Paycheck begins with a killer concept, and then quickly disintegrates into silliness before the formulaic action-packed climax. The movie continually plays it safe instead of being subversive or mind-blowing like Minority Report or Total Recall. In fact the film predominantly draws inspiration from these two aforementioned movies. Unfortunately, though, Paycheck lacks the classy touch of the former and the exhilarating ultra-violence of the latter.
    Worse are the gaping plot holes. There's also the ludicrous concept of the 19 items Michael sends himself. Maybe if it wasn't so dreadfully overused we could buy it. But past the use of the first 5 items, it's impossible to believe a word of it. Further pain is derived from the lack of intelligence in the script. Everything happens so conveniently. The unbelievably handy timing is too implausible. Like when the FBI agents realise a clue regarding the future destination of the hero...just as the hero is moving to said destination.

    The actors are yet another issue. The habitually horrible Ben Affleck oozes zero charm as Michael Jennings. He's so contrived and seems too content when his life is threatened. Not as bad as Gigli...but what wouldn't be? Thurman looks aging and bored. The chemistry between Thurman and Affleck is simply dismal.

    In case you haven't realised, Paycheck is pure popcorn fodder with zero artistic merit. It happily rattles along at an ordinary pace as the unbelievable story (that grows thoroughly boring past the first 30 minutes) continues to unfold.
    I can't help but get a sense of cinematic déjà vu: the film is strikingly similar to 2002's Minority Report. Both films are based on stories written by Philip K. Dick. Perhaps Dick was infatuated with fate and pre-destination that he decided to write two almost identical short stories. But that doesn't mean Hollywood should retread the same territory repeatedly. If Paycheck was a decent experience, the similarities to Minority Report could be overlooked. But Paycheck is stupid beyond comprehension and barely provides entertainment. I kept growing bored...even during an action scene. When it's a John Woo action scene that's causing me to yawn then something is horribly wrong.
  • angryjeffermayer
    September 30, 2009
    angryjeffermayer
    A kind of interesting story/premise, but really poorly done.
    Ben Affleck is a strange character and a really unconvincing action hero.. but actually, kind of hard to imagine him being a really convincing anything. How he randomly has all these fighting moves in his character rep...( read more)ertoire is pretty confusing.
    Uma Thurman is strangely not very attractive in this movie, I don't know what it is. She was a stone cold fox in the Kill Bill movies. And she and Ben Affleck seem like a terrible matchup no matter what the circumstances.
    The screenplay sucks, it's just filled with a million implausibilities and nothing to really make you give a shit. Lousy movie.
  • ulovejoshualynn
    September 30, 2009
    ulovejoshualynn
    once again, Affleck Rules! this movie was just okay though.
  • EbertsLittleApprentice
    September 23, 2009
    EbertsLittleApprentice
    Please explain was the Pointless-Predictable Action-Thrillers always somehow make us happy?
  • ElCochran90
    September 16, 2009
    ElCochran90
    One of John Woo's typical Hollywood dissapointing films. Ben Affleck sucks and Uma Thurman was a little bit annoying. Nothing new here...

    44/100
  • Ramosmelissa23
    September 13, 2009
    Ramosmelissa23
    Nice Sci-fi movie, it wasnt boring for me, got me focused till the end..

View All Paycheck Reviews

Critic Reviews

December 26, 2003
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Without ever quite becoming boring, Paycheck seems to narrow into a routine pattern, and a plot that at first had nuance and the hint of a broader meaning degenerates into chases and standard action. full review

December 25, 2003
Claudia Puig, USA Today

Though the premise is provocative enough, the execution feels like a host of other violent action-drenched movies. full review

December 25, 2003
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Belongs with the likes of Impostor: a near-future tale of paranoia and suspense of disappointingly generic proportions. full review

December 25, 2003
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

Every scene screams, 'I'm only doing this for the money.' full review

December 25, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

With its bland central character, and collapsible contraption of a plot, Paycheck leaves little after-effect. full review

December 24, 2003
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

There are countless fascinating possibilities involved in Philip K. Dick's story, and I'm kind of sad that the ones ranking highest in the minds of the filmmakers was the opportunity to have chase sce... full review

December 23, 2003
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Limp retread of Minority Report. full review

View more Paycheck reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

  • juliabutler1
    May 31, 2007
    juliabutler1
    "For his most recent gig, he expects to receive over four billion dollars." Uh, no, it was more like 90 million dollars.
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