DVD Review: Max Payne Special Edition
Mark Wahlberg Portrays Popular Shoot Em Up Video Game Icon
Jan 31, 2009
Max Payne Synopsis
Max Payne (the ever serious Mark Wahlberg) is a no-nonsense, quiet cop who has opted to work in solitude in the Cold Case department, allowing him to hunt down clues at leisure, regarding the murder of his wife and child 3 years prior. Determined to work his way back to whoever is responsible, Payne spends his shift sifting through old cases, and prowls the night looking for criminals with connections to the murderers.
Upon working the latest lead, Payne encounters a mysterious vixen named Natasha, at one of his informant's parties (said vixen played by Olga Kurylenko, Quantum of Solace). Natasha gets into a heated argument with her equally sexy but cold sister Mona (Mila Kunis, of Family Guy fame) at said party, and storms out and heads home with Max. As they head out, Max notices that partygoers are experimenting with the latest drug, called Valkyr.
Rebuffing Natasha's advances due to her insensitivity towards his late wife's memory, Max kicks her out. When she is found dead in an alley the next day (with Max's wallet on her, of course), Max is deemed suspect No.1 by the authorities. A former partner of his (Donal Logue) is assigned to the case, but he too is found dead shortly therafter, having worked a possible link in the investigation, which may lead to the murder of Max' family.
Having little to go on, Max turns to his father's old partner, B.B. (Beau Bridges), who does his best to comfort him, and assist in his investigation. It doesn't take long before Max finds out more connections between the latest killings, and the drug Valkyr. At the same time, a capable internal affairs detective (Chris "Ludacris" Bridges) is arriving at the same conclusions. Soon thereafter, all characters (including Mona) are in danger of being eliminated, for getting too close to the truth...do they succeed? The audience must watch the film to find out.
Max Payne Overall AnalysisThe story itself having very loose connections to the video game which bears its name, Max Payne is little more than a typical revenge story, which uses any and all available action scenes to poke fun at the popular moves which made the game so addictive. Genre director John Moore doesn't take full advantage of Payne's "Bullet Time" action moves (not dissimilar to the ones in The Matrix), and tries too hard to add substance to an already very flimsy premise.
The film is gratuitously violent, not unlike the recent Punisher War Zone, though more subdued (Punisher violence is expected). The Norse references in the movie are barely explained, other than hinting at how Norse warriors were high on stamina, as said element ties into the Valkyr drug. Other than that, it is a poor product of little substance which hopes to cash in on the use of yet another video game brand.
Olga Kurylenko appears mostly as eye candy in the little screen time she receives, while the diminutive Mila Kunis tries her level best to pass off as an action star, her first noticeable non-comedic role since her recent lamentable stint in an American Psycho direct-to-video sequel a few years back.
Mark Wahlberg makes the best of the situation, offering a half decent portrayal of Payne (though how to quantify a passable equivalent of a computer game character is debatable). He makes an effort to provide a decent action piece, despite any shortcomings writing wise.
Max Payne is yet another visually interesting piece by John Moore, which suffers from a weak premise and lazy writing. To get an idea of how irritating Moore can be, watch the making-of feature on this DVD, where a bitter, raging John Moore is already telling off his audience, advising his critics to go to hell, and pre-meditatively accusing his fans of pirating the DVD, rather than buying it legally. Not much fun watching a filmmaker rant for 20 minutes.Suffice to say, Moore is headed the way of Uwe Boll, being reduced to bringing video games to the screen, unable to handle anything of higher substance.
The disc contains a brief animated graphic story of Michelle Payne, Max's wife, explaining a bit more which events lead to the film's main plot. Other than that, the DVD includes theatrical and unrated cuts. Nothing more.
This film is only recommended for Mark Wahlberg fans, or anyone who thrives on video game adaptations. Otherwise, it is suggested the viewer wait until it runs ad nauseum on late night movie shows.
3 out of 10, for director John Moore thinking a popular video game automatically makes a worthwhile film product.
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