Payback Straight Up The Director's Cut [Blu ray]

Customer Reviews

Tough guy flick

2008-09-28
Mel plays a very tough guy, like you don't see so much anymore. The lighting is all monochromatic. The side stars are very good, especially Lucy Liu as the sadist. Kris Kristofferson as the second biggest mob boss is a hoot, though he still seems more like a cowboy. The plot is some silliness about $70k owed to Mel, and how he gets it back, despite the odds. A lot of blood and violence, but it's sort of forgiveable.

Suspicios packaging

2008-09-17
The only thing I found odd about this physically was the fact that the blue ray was shrink wrapped instead of the plastic wrapper it usually comes in. Also when I opened up the case, there was no pictures on the other side of the cover. (I've gotten two BDs in shrink wrap and they both are similar in packaging as opposed to the other BDs)

Also instead of an insert that advertises more blue ray movies, It has a paper saying how the blue ray disc is manufactured to the highest quality available, etc.

As for the movie? If you like the theatrical then you'll like it. It's a great film and both versions should be watched. I honestly don't think one is better than the other but I know I liked this one a little more. Porter (Gibson) Is even more hard core in this version.

Not the theatrical release, buyer beware!

2008-09-13
I was truly disappointed as the movie progressed and I realized this is NOT the same movie I loved when I saw it on the big screen. This "Director's cut" version is abysmal and an absoulte joke. The ending is pathetic. To only have this version available on Blu ray and not even include the theatrical relase as an extra is really unacceptable. The people who put out this product ought to be ashamed of themselves. The only bright spot is the unintentional comedy factor of watching the director describe the "artistic merits" of his version in the extras section.

If you liked the orignal, you'll hate this. At least I did.

2008-08-02
I saw the original theatrical release at the theater and liked it so much, I bought another ticket. There was a dark comedic thing going on, but the bad guy wasn't a dirtbag. There was a degree of chivalry and honor. In this version, I hate the bad guy. He is just a thug who beats the crap out of his wife. Ok, she deserved it to a point, but the original Porter loved her despite her drug addiction and forgave her for the most part. The music in this new version SUCKS! The original was lively and enthralling. In this version the music is an afterthought and gets in the way. This new version is a completely different movie, a sucky one. I hope to heck that they release the original version to blu ray, and quite honestly I was very suprised that both versions weren't on the CD. What a waste of money. If you like the original, don't bother with this trash.

Worst Director's Cut Ever!

2008-07-15
I loved the original theatrical release. I picked up this blu-ray figuring I would watch this over and over. I WILL NOT! Absolutely the worst "Director's Cut" ever. They completely changed the story line and eliminated several characters. The new version is awful! DO NOT BUY THIS BLU-RAY!!

This is far better then the un"Director's cut".

2008-05-17
Mel Gibson portrays Porter a career criminal bent on revenge after his partners in a street heist pump metal into him and take off with his $70000 cut. Bad move thugs. Because if you plan to double-cross Porter you'd better make sure he's dead. Porter resurfaces wading into a lurid urban underworld of syndicate kingpins cops on the take sniveling informants and deadly gangs. Porter wants his money back. And the way he sets out to get is assures that from beginning to heartpounding end Payback pays off big. System Requirements:Runtime: 90 MinsFormat: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: DRAMA Rating: UNRATED UPC: 097361197845 Manufacturer No: 119784

Director Got It Right The First Time

2008-03-25
There are two versions of this film, the original, and the newly-released 'Director's Cut.' If you saw this movie before, in the theatre or on cable, and want it for your own, DO NOT BUY the Director's Cut. The plot is completely different, ends abruptly, and does not create the Porter character that was in the original. Kris Kristofferson, the boxing match, the kid in the limo, the toes, the blown-up apartment...none of that's in it. Here, the money arrives at a subway station in a back-pack, and Porter has a shoot-out with a twenty-something chick that had the voice of Kathleen Turner on an earlier phone call with Devane's character, when Porter 'meets' with him. That meeting is where it really runs off the rails.
Best Buy has pulled the original, not even listed in their stock anymore. Get the good version before all that's left is the second, anemic, 'Director's Cut' version.

Completely superfluous

2008-01-02
Okay, so I made a mistake.

I wanted a not so expensive blu-ray disc to test my PS3 capability. And since Payback is quite an excellent movie, I thought I'd try this one. Wrong.

This version is not better than the previous one. Its inserts make the main character slightly less likable. The ending sucks. And the format is not 16:9, which kinda defeats the whole purpose of up-scaling (since that apparently leads to down-sizing).

Big mistake.

This Version Is Not Good

2007-12-27
They destroyed the 1999 version, which is much better. I but director's cut thinking that I would get more, but I got less, it is like 11 minutes of less movies and change characters and removed interesting scenes.

What was wrong with the first cut?

2007-09-22
SO GLAD that I rented this instead of buying it. This cut of the film is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT from the theatrical release... even going so far as to change the gender of the head of the syndicate. COMPLETELY DIFFERENT in some pivotal places. Starts soft. Ends soft. NO NARRATION. Weird. Did this filmmaker get brainwashed by Syd Field after releasing the first cut?

I'm not against change. Peter Jackson scored BIG with the new cuts of all of his films. But this just seems to have been done from boredom.

BAD FILM in it's Blu-Ray form.
See the SD version. It's one worth owning.

I only gave this two stars because the blu-ray transfer was nice.