Payne In My Head

Okay, so Max Payne may have deserved its score. Granted, it stayed fairly close to the game's plot, and the film has an interesting grungy atmosphere to it. However, the movie falters in its execution. For instance, I like the portrayal of the effects of Valkyr, the drug, as demons, though apparently many people didn't get that insinuation (one particular moviegoer asked me, when I mentioned that the movie was based off a game, if there were demons in the game).

Basically, the movie is slow-paced and doesn't cater to its audience. I guess I admire that it doesn't dumb itself down, but many of the audience was simply lost as to what was going on. It's only thanks to my experience with the game that I could follow, though I seriously considered walking out of the theater at one point, I was so dreadfully bored. That's rare.

So, well, it is rather bad, but not in the same way that most movies are. It's simply too vague and has some seriously bad editing. Overall, though, it's not horrible in the sense that most movies are (that is, poorly-written and stupid). If you like really intense, non-catering movies, give it a try.