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Directed by
John Woo Written by
Philip K. Dick, Dean Georgaris Cast
Ben Affleck, Aaron Eckhart, Uma Thurman, Paul Giamatti, Colm Feore [more]
Release Date
• USA: Dec 26, 2003
• UK: 16 Jan 2004
DVD Release Date
• R1: May 18, 2004
• R2: 17 May 2004
Budget USD 60,000,000
Official Website:
Paycheck Website
MPAA Rating
Rated PG-13 for intense action violence and brief language.
Running Time
1 hour, 59 minutes
Country USA
Production Companies
Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks SKG, Davis Entertainment, Lion Rock Productions, Solomon/Hackett Productions
Studio Paramount Pictures
More info on IMDb.com
Other Titles
• Paycheck
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Paycheck Reviews |
The story, adapted by Dean Georgaris, doesn't come within a light year of science-fiction plausibility, and after a while Woo gives up trying to sell it and reverts to the action choreography that made him a master of Hong Kong martial-arts movies. The second half of the film is one overlong action sequence linked to another. [read review] 
--Jack Mathews (New York Daily News)
Woo keeps the guns flashing and the action churning. If he slowed the pace down, the audience might puncture the movie's fragile logic. But an action picture that poses some fascinating futuristic questions and gives Albert Einstein his props is a small guilty pleasure. [read review]
--Ron Weiskind (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
What we do get here is plenty of chases, shoot-outs and fights that are flashy but not particularly impressive, especially by Woo standards. There’s also some space/time bullcrap, an underwritten romantic interest played by Uma Thurman, a little comic relief courtesy of Paul Giamatti and more holes in logic than in a third-grader’s explanation of Einstein’s theories. [read review] 
--Kevin N. Laforest (Montreal Film Journal)
Constructed as a large tribute to the works and textures of Alfred Hitchcock, “Paycheck” is an entertaining little mystery that enjoys its Wooisms and homages, and really only bites off more than it can chew in the final 30 minutes. It’s disposable, but Woo makes it enjoyable and rewarding. [read review] B+
--Brian Orndorf (FilmJerk.com)
Thank goodness Woo can still direct an action sequence like a master. He mixes up angles, film speeds, and motion with enough creativity and surprise to fill three Bad Boys sequels, providing one satisfying motorcycle chase scene that’s even a little frightening. [read review] 
--Norm Schrager (FilmCritic.com)
We expect ridiculous stories from John Woo. We also expect action sequences so phenomenal that we don't care that the story is ridiculous. Trying to mix mystery and action is not something that is unimaginable but, to be plain about it, even if we were still chemically enhancing the experience the script totally bites, folks. [read review] 1/10
--Chuck Schwartz (The Cranky Critic)
Yet despite the energy of Woo's directorial attack, the story itself loses propulsion in the second half. Without ever quite becoming boring, "Paycheck'' seems to narrow into a routine pattern, and a plot that at first had nuance and the hint of a broader meaning degenerates into chases and standard action. [read review]
--Mick LaSalle (San Francisco Chronicle)
'Paycheck" begins with a thought-provoking idea from Philip K. Dick, exploits it for its action and plot potential, but never really develops it. By the end, the film seems to have lost enthusiasm for itself and should be scored with "Is That All There Is?" [read review] 
--Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)
Paycheck is without a doubt one of the worst films I have seen this year, and I will even admit with total honesty that I liked Gigli more than this, and was actually at one point praying for the projectionist to show that title instead. [read review] C-
--Lee Tistaert (Lee's Movie Info)
With a script that waffles between being hilariously absurd and insultingly stupid, and action scenes that won't cause anyone's pulse to skip a beat, Paycheck is less appealing than a lump of coal in a Christmas stocking. [read review]
--James Berardinelli (ReelViews)
This smooth but bland thriller may be the best we could expect from such a collaboration, especially when Ben Affleck, an actor whose calm exterior reflects an inability to project an inner life, enters the mix. [read review] 5/10
--'JoBlo' (JoBlo.com)
This smooth but bland thriller may be the best we could expect from such a collaboration, especially when Ben Affleck, an actor whose calm exterior reflects an inability to project an inner life, enters the mix. [read review]
--Elvis Mitchell (The New York Times)
What “Paycheck” boils down to in the end is an exercise of the usual action sequences on the level of self-parody; a bird flies by in slow-motion but it feels completely out of place. [read review] 4/10
--Scott Spicciati (Movie-Vault.com)
Paycheck could have been an intriguing psychological thriller, but John Woo stopped payment on that good idea and resorted to what he knows best: the schlocky actioner. [read review]
--Guylaine Cadorette (Hollywood.com)
There's one pretty good car chase in "Paycheck" - but otherwise, there's little to suggest this pedestrian sci-fi thriller was directed by actionmeister John Woo. [read review]
--Jonathan Foreman (New York Post)
Enjoyably stupid action thriller that even Ben Affleck can’t ruin, although fans expecting a return to form from John Woo are probably going to be disappointed. [read review] 
--Matthew Turner (ViewLondon)
Speaking of waste, the great John Woo directed and stumbles again, as he did with Windtalkers. A dove flies in to complete Woo's self-parody. Sad, sad. [read review]
-- (Rolling Stone)
Everyone earns their wages on "Paycheck," a solid, entertaining thriller with a bounty of silly but fun gunplay, hand-to-hand brawls and car chases. [read review] 
--David Germain (San Francisco Examiner)
North By Northwest without genius. Minority Report without pretensions. Don't think. Enjoy. Forget. [read review]
--Nev Pierce (BBC Films)
The future isn't what it used to be in fun sci-fi action thriller from John Woo. [read review]
--Kirk Honeycutt (Hollywod Reporter)
An apt title; I think it's the only reason these guys showed up. [read review] 
--B. Alan Orange III (MovieWeb)
Enjoyable, if completely ridiculous, popcorn fodder. [read review] 6/10
--Gary Panton (Movie Gazette)
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