Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2277 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-04-13
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 96 minutes

Synopsis
Based on the video game from Rockstar, MAX PAYNE stars Mark Wahlberg as a New York City cop out to avenge his slain wife and child, and heaven help anyone who gets in his blood-strewn way. The trail leads him into a network of shady characters mixed up with an experimental drug that causes super strength and fearlessness, as well as wild hallucinations of winged angels and demons. As Max gets closer and closer to the truth, he finds himself the target of a massive police manhunt, and in the crosshairs of the powerful kingpin behind the racket; soon enough, the angels and demons become downright deadly. Olga Kurylenko (QUANTUM OF SOLACE) is a beautiful Russian party girl who winds up dead after a late-night visit to Max's pad; her assassin sister (Mila Kunis) first goes after Max, then tries to help him get some answers. Rap star Ludacris (here credited as Chris Bridges) is a tough internal affairs cop investigating Payne's behaviour. Shot in an impressively grungy palette of high-contrast greys and blacks, with snow and sheets of rain soaking the grim atmosphere, New York City is brilliantly morphed into something like Gotham City by way of Detroit, with a touch of X-FILES-style supernatural dread looming over everything. Director John Moore knows how to stage his action scenes: offices blow up, big chunks of rubble crush police cars, bodies and shattered glass suspend in mid-air for some of the slowest slow-mo moments in action film history. Fans of the video game and/or action movies in general should get a kick out of all the mega-loud insanity, stylish design, and Wahlberg, who never changes his mean expression, but still commands the screen.

Customer Reviews

You won't experience Max Pain, but you may wince a couple of times!
Mark Wahlberg plays Max Payne, a hard-bitten, hard-boiled, tortured police detective who `bucks the system' and `spits in the face of authority' who works the Cold Case Department of his city's Homicide Division. He dresses in black, wears a killer leather jacket and is a bit handy with firearms. He is also out for revenge against the killers of his wife and child, and angry with his former partner for not investigating their murders thoroughly enough.

After traversing this sequence of world-weary movie cop clichés, Max finds himself investigating reports of an unusual new drug known as 'Valkyr' that has started flooding the criminal underworld with terminal consequences; it's victims prone to suffering terrifying visions of winged demons swimming in a sea of fire, just before they die. An early casualty of this addictive narcotic is Ukrainian babe Olga Kurylenko (from Hitman) playing Natasha Sax, who survives long enough to show off her lithe figure, get herself thrown out of Max Payne's apartment, and presumably question why she is starring as yet another prostitute in yet another movie-based video game adaptation. Then she gets killed. And her body parts are found strewn around a trash cluttered back alley just off the main street. She had lifted Max Payne's wallet from his apartment and it is found at the scene. As he was one of the last people to see her alive, Max is therefore prime suspect and is forced to endure the mutterings and suspicions of his colleagues whenever he enters the station house - `Yikes' this movie has all the clichés!

To crack the case Max has to join forces with the sister of his supposed victim Mona Sax (Mila Kunis), uncover the mystery surrounding his family's slaying, before indulging in a series of sub-matrix gunplay on his way to meeting up with the `end of level demon' responsible for all his hurt and....well....`payne'!

This movie will appeal to anyone who harbours a secret and slightly geeky obsession with the comic-book/videogame adaptation genre. It is suitably stylish and competently made, director John Moore conjuring up the requisite dark visuals of the environment Max Payne inhabits; whether it be the men's room of an underground metro station, or the dark and dank interior of a flea-bitten hotel. The production does quite well on a relatively low budget ($35 million) and the visual effects of the demonic hallucinations are quite something to behold. Unfortunately these effects, the movie's trump card, also turn out to be the picture's weak-link. Put simply; there is no reason for them to be there other than to look good. The director should have done more with this idea other than for the visions to be simple hallucinations. It would have been more interesting for the winged demons to have featured as real creatures - those that can only be seen whilst under the influence of the narcotic. Regardless of whether this aspect of the story is an internal part of the game is irrelevant. The director of a major motion picture is duty bound to give us a little more than simple `eye candy'. And sadly the aforementioned gunplay is actually a bit dull and poorly choreographed - the slow-motion shootings (inspired by the game play) are completely unnecessary, only really becoming exciting as Max, having forced to ingest the drug himself, goes postal on the assorted minions and security guards as he works his way up to the roof-level heli-pad for the final showdown with Beau Bridges' pharmaceutical corporation head honcho.

Chris O'Donnell also appears half way through as a slightly weasely corporate henchman, and demonstrates that he's been eating a few too many pies since his glory days playing Dick Grayson in Batman Forever. Mark Wahlberg's acting is pretty good, and is back on a surer footing after the embarrassment of The Happening earlier this year. Mila Kunis does an adequate job as Mona Sax and Beau Bridges delivers a new line in movie villain stereotypical stoic scene-chewing.

The DVD extras include a commentary from John Moore as well as the usual making-of documentaries and talking-head featurettes.

Excellent style, good fight scenes, average acting, basic plot.
The title says it all really.

In terms of style and special effects this film really hits the mark, it is truly an excercise in visual style while remaining true to the graphic novel style of the game, although the overuse of the valkerie special effect at the beginning may leave some audience members a little confused if they haven't played the game, but that confusion wont last long.

The fight scenes when they happen are great, some of the scenes I suspect were inspired by the John Woo school of action. But it does take a little while for the action to get going, and when it does, it does leave you with an aftertaste of 'is that it?' And just how many bullets does hollywood think one clip holds?

The acting and the plot are basic. Everyone sleepwalks through this film, there are no great thesp moments or oscar winning performances here, and the plot as you would expect is basically true to the game. The 'twist' itself you see coming a mile off.

This shouldn't detract however from what is essentially an enjoyable film. The basic plot allows you to follow it through without thinking and just enjoy the action and the stunning visual effects. Basically a worthy film for a blokes night in front of a large HD television and a really big pizza!

I would wait untill it came down a little in price though, whilst I was happy to pay £6 for this I'm glad I didn't buy it straight away!

Better then expected after reading some of the other reviews.
I have played and completed both the Max Payne games on the PS2. Max Payne the movie follows the story of the first game in some areas, whilst adding it's own ideas which works for me overall. I can understand why some fans of the games may not like what John Moore the director has done with Max Payne. I think some people wanted lots and lots of action which might sound good but to much action with little story is boring for us more mature/intelligent people. Max Payne has a good dark atmosphere and Mark Wahlberg gives Payne soul. Olga Kurylenko is dead sexy like she was in the Hitman film too and the action is slick. Max Payne won't set the world on fire but I prefer it to that brain dead film called Shoot Em' Up!!!