“I don’t believe in heaven, I believe in pain, I believe in fear, I believe in death” – is heard in a voice over as a man suddenly appears out of the water gasping for air. New York City detective Max Payne is flailing around for his life in the icy waters, hovering above several bodies below him that had been given a similar fate. As Max Payne slowly starts to plummet to the bottom, the scene fades to black. Fade in, we are in the Cold Case Unit offices of the New York Police Department one week earlier. Max Payne is a three year veteran on the force who has not been able to get over the unsolved murders of his family. After trying to follow a lead, a woman is found dead with Max’s wallet and Max becomes the prime suspect. His former partner Alex Balder (Donal Logue) takes on the case. As he looks into it he notices a tattoo on the victim is similar to one’s connected with Max’s families’ murder. Alex tried to contact Max but with no luck decides to head over to his apartment. When Max arrives home he finds his door open and his former partner dead. Before Max can even think he is attacked and knocked unconscious. Now connected to two possible murders, Max needs to connect the dots that perhaps will lead to the answers to his family’s murders as well. That is of course if he can survive the watery grave we see him in at the beginning of the picture.
Max Payne is a fun non-stop stylized action movie. Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne does a great job as the broken down cop obsessively looking for clues. The film has a wonderfully gritty film noir style that works well to keep the suspense going until the end. Now available on DVD and blu-ray, the film comes with some great bonus features as well.
First up there’s a digital copy option for your portable mp3 players so you can take the movie with you everywhere. This is been a new trend that I personally enjoy. I prefer the comedies more since I can listen to them in the car, but either way it’s a nice added bonus. There’s also an option to watch the theatrical or now Unrated Director’s cut as well. The major differences between the two, is the appearance of blood. In particular, the flashback sequence of Max’s family dead is a bit more graphic then the theatrical release. Otherwise there aren’t any major plot changes between the two that would make you want to investigate both versions.
Other bonus features include a commentary track with Director John Moore, Production Designer Daniel Dorrance and Visual Effects Supervisor Everett Burrell. It’s interesting to hear how much the game really had a play in making this film. The documentary entitled The Picture is broken into two parts that are roughly twenty plus minutes each that are also full of information on the production. The Michelle Payne feature is a graphic novel that gives you backstory on Max’s wife. There’s also a picture-in-picture option and a video like diary entitled Behind the Scenes with Director John Moore.
Overall, Max Payne is a fun action movie. Some make get a bad taste in their mouths since it’s based on a video game. But have no fear, within a few minutes of watching the film you will forget all about that. Max Payne is a fun revenge picture with great special effects.
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