Payback

"Get ready to root for the bad guy."

Feb 5 1999 R 1h 40m
Action, Crime, Drama

With friends like these, who needs enemies? That's the question bad guy Porter is left asking after his wife and partner steal his heist money and leave him for dead -- or so they think. Five months and an endless reservoir of bitterness later, Porter's partners and the crooked cops on his tail learn how bad payback can be.

Plot

Porter is bad, but his neighbours are worse. Street-wise and tough, an ex-marine, he is betrayed by a one-time partner, and shot in the back by his junkie wife. He survives and returns, looking to recover his share from the robbery of an Asian crime gang. The money has passed into the hands of "the Outfit", a slick gangster organisation that runs the city. He has to make his way through a world populated by heroin dealers, prostitutes, sado-masochists, gunmen and crooked cops, a place where torture is a way of life. His only friend is a former employer, a prostitute, and her loyalty is in question, given she now works for the Outfit. He makes good early progress, but then falls into the hands of Fairfax, the crime boss.

Written by

Donald E. Westlake, Brian Helgeland, Terry Hayes

Directed by

Brian Helgeland

Production Countries

United States of America

Production Companies

Warner Bros. Pictures, Icon Productions

Languages

English

Awards

2 wins & 2 nominations

Scores
# of Votes
153,006
Average Rating
7 out of 10
Metascore
46
Popularity
NA