Question: Can a man be a criminal and still be a man of principal? Answer: If he's Mel Gibson's "Porter" from "Payback", YES! If Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction" left you with a craving for more modern day creations of this genre, Brian Helgeland's "Payback" will definitely sate you. Clever, sexy, and full of pulp. "Payback" is another film noir for the 90's. "Porter" has been screwed royally by his heroin addict wife "Lynn" (Deborah Kara Unger), and his partner in crime "Val" (Gregg Henry), out of his cut ($70,000.00) of the heist they pulled on some other 'gangstas'. To add insult to injury, not only do they steal his cash, but they leave him for dead to boot! No slouch our man "Porter", he's not going down that easily. After getting some essential surgery [Oxford Health Plan this ain't] from "The Doctor" (David Dunard), and a bit of recovery time, the very resourceful "Porter" sets out to reclaim his 70K. Even crooks have their version of 'red tape' when it comes to righting a wrong, and believe me it's no less tangled or lengthy than that of the 'straight' world. Luckily for the viewer this makes for much action with some comedic elements thrown in for good measure. Think Lucy Liu is vicious as "Ling" on "Ally McBeal"? Sister, she's a pussycat compared to "Pearl". A dominatrix who gives as good (if not better) as she gets from client "Val", and she is most decidedly "hubba, hubba, hubba". Venerable character actors John Glover, Bill Duke, and David Paymer as (respectively) upscale henchman, crooked cop, and stooge for the 'outfit' (nee 'syndicate') are all in fine form. William Devane with trademark toothy grin as one of the 'outfit' bosses is a treat to watch. Other nice surprizes are Kris Kristofferson, and the always stylish James Coburn. Maria Bello is "Rosie", the 'working girl' who's always there for "Porter" when no one else is. Good soundtrack. In one scene, nice choice of James Brown's "This is a man's world", although I must say I was hoping they would have also used his "Payback"---HELLO, it's a natural given the movie's title!---but no such luck. Crackling dialogue, and great costumes{Mr. Gibson may I please have your leather jacket?:-)}assist in giving the film a look and feel that would do Mickey Spillane fans proud.
