Payback (I) (1990) User Reviews

So bad it'll bring tears to your eyes!

[max-mitchell · 1/10 · 19 July 2006]

"A right-wing terrorist army Strike Force go on a murderous rampage in the quest to get their bloodthirsty hands on a defence contractor's awesome NK-2 assault weapon. A hardened Vietnam vet is hired to pursue the fanatical killers and does so with vengeance, after two loyal friends are callously slain by the Strike Force's ruthless members."

Wow! What a description! This film must be a real white-knuckle ride, part A-Team, part Deathwish, part Cobra/Nico. Right? Right? Yeah, right! The NK-2 is an assault weapon. A gun. Only, this one kills 10 people at once! The film opens with the most ridiculous and gratuitous booby shot (dead woman, topless, in the background). Someone is tripped up and killed. Someone has a knife thrown into their neck. A dude is in a bar and some "terrorists" (Pat Sharpe-look alike, one of the guys from Deliverance and their friend) burst in, riddle his body with bullets and run off. Plus Strike Force has about 3 members!

This film is ridiculous. But hysterically funny! The acting is terrible, the soundtrack, plot, locations, extras, outfits, everything is just so dumb! But it makes for great watching.

If you've sat through anything like The Annihilators, Death Wish 3 or Street Soldiers, you'll love this!

If you like watching people walk to their cars you will enjoy this one

[somethingtotallyoriginal · 1/10 · 9 December 2005]

This is certainly NOT an Oscar contender. I knew this would be pretty bad from the title on the cheap DVD, "Payback L.O.U. Death!" (What the hell is L.O.U. Death!???), but I never dreamed of this. It seems like half of the movie is composed of people walking; to and from their cars, in and out of places, and another endless parade of pointless, pathetic gestures. All brilliantly directed with no music, action, or purpose. Wasting time doesn't count. But as far as what this full length feature achieves, wasting time is the only thing I can think of.

Don't even let me comment on the acting. Its just embarrassing! If you want to watch a few 'actors' shamelessly embarrass themselves for an hour and a half, you get it here. But if you thought you could get away with retracing humour from them, you are in for an unpleasant surprise... it will be the saddest thing you have EVER SEEN! And trust me, its not something you want to watch or sit through.

The kind of movie where nothing in it is good. And everything in it is not just bad, its bad bad bad. So bad that I can't even find the right word to describe how bad it is. Like I said, embarrassing. And painful. A painful, embarrassing experience.

It doesn't end there, before its over they make sure they put us through only the most awkward, disgusting sex scene you have ever seen. Featuring the worst looking middle aged woman you have ever seen. If you don't have an attraction for your mother, watching this might cause you to puke! It is also interlaced with another gross sex scene of 3 men raping.... you guessed it, another ugly woman! All 3 leading woman in here are butt ugly. Which seems to be the standard for the most amateur of family home videos.

Apparently the person who made this was born into a family who have been in the film business since it started and have extensive credits. Their last addition to their family was undoubtedly a mistake. The man can't write, direct or do anything associated with film-making if his life depended on it. I suggest you find something that you're good at! I wish I can forget this but it leaves such a stink afterwords, I'm going to need therapy to get it out of my mind! I'm warning you, avoid this like the plague. Take it off every shelf and deposit it in the nearest garbage can. Wipe it clean off the face of the earth!!!

Almost perfection!

[mattratt-42427 · 3/10 · 5 March 2020]

This is so incredibly bad its good! Hits all the checks! Boobs. Check. Bad acting check. Terrible plot. Check. Horrible plot twist. Uhhhh check. Cheesy lines......yup. And heres a piece of advice when casting a lead female CIA op of whom you know has a sex scene......make sure shes under 45 or at least color her hair. The cheesy lines are just perfect! You will be crying from laughter with this one. Its GOOD/BAD personified!!!! Highly recommend!

Attack Of The Killer Mullets

[blurnieghey · 8/10 · 14 April 2020]

Ignore the Negative Nellie's commenting here--this movie is top shelf and worth every penny of the $0.50 I paid for it. In fact, now that I know how good this thing is, I'd happily pay ten times that! Some serious 80's action/adventure mullet madness going on here, combining all the elements I demand from a quality flick of this nature: horrible acting, nonsense plot, retarded dialogue, fake-looking action scenes, and pointless nudity. Oh, yeah, the nudity......ever wonder what the customer service lady at the local bank looks like in a sex scene? Find a copy of this and wonder no more.

"This one's for Molly!"

[macdonell_calum · 10/10 · 18 October 2006]

As with the other movies I comment on within IMDb, I'm giving this a 10 simply for the fact that it was something me and my friends watched and got a kick out of. Not because it was such a great movie that we stood up and were giving each other 'high fives' when something happened. No, it was more or less "This movie sucks....let's pick it apart because it'll be funny to rip on!"

'Payback' was that movie for us. I don't remember much in terms of plot, but I recall Roger Rodd was the star (tell me this guy didn't come from a pornographic film background. Perhaps this was supposed to be his 'big break' into mainstream).

A bunch of guys are killed by some group or organization, some girl named Molly gets killed or raped or something like that, some friend of our protagonist is captured (and tortured) and our 'hero' takes it upon himself to clean up this town!

Ho-hum action, lots of talking and walking, and finally, the two "twists" at the end: The old guy captured (and tortured throughout) by the bad guys is...wait for it....actually their leader! Now why would you go through the torture sequences if you were the leader? "Okay boys, electrocute me just in case one of the good guys shows up". Makes no sense. Oh, and the leader's number one henchman is actually an old Vietnam vet friend of Rodd's- unbeknown to captured guy/tortured gang leader guy. Yes, the twists aren't as surprising as those of, say, 'The Sixth Sense'- but I guarantee you this: There was no evidence whatsoever of these secrets being obvious to anybody watching. They just kind of "popped up" out of nowhere.

I remember Rodd and the henchmen/Vietnam vet standing face to face at the film's conclusion, after successfully defeating all wrongdoer's, and having this to say:

Roger Rodd: "A lot of bodies" Evil Henchmen/Vietnam Friend: "A lot of years" Both: "F*%K IT!"

They then walk away, it goes into end credits, and everyone watching realizes that they just wasted too much time watching this dreck.

Entertaining in a "Lets make fun of this shitty movie" kind of way, but that's about it.

Stupid, cornball action pic

[lor_ · 11 May 2023]

My review was written in April 1990 after watching the movie on City Lights video cassette.

"Payback" is a by-the-numbers action pic for the less discriminating end of the video market.

Lensed in 1988, tale concerns a prototype assault rifle sought after by various government and private factions. Roger Rodd is a former CIA agent hired by Jeannie Daly to find the missing Denise Dougherty, who developed the rifle and thus knows the weapon's secrets.

Addison Randall's script doesn't hold water; instead of searching for Dougherty, Rodd simply finds her hiding out in his apartment.

The bad guys comprise a right-wing extremist group called Strike Force, which is trying to take over the U. S. government. Rodd's employer Daly turns out to be the daughter of the senator who created Strike Force, so there's plenty of cornball treachery afoot.

Rodd is colorless as a Rambo imitator, and the rest of the cast is given routine assignments.