Paycheck (2003)
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A memory-wiped engineer must use a mysterious envelope of items to outrun the FBI and a tech CEO after discovering a machine that can see into the future.
The story
In the near future, Michael Jennings is a reverse engineer who specializes in recreating competitor technology. To protect his clients and himself, he undergoes memory wipes with the help of his friend Shorty. Jennings is offered a lucrative three-year job by James Rethrick, the CEO of Allcom, which requires him to stay on campus. After being injected with a memory marker, Jennings is given a tour of the facility where he meets biologist Dr. Rachel Porter and physicist William Dekker. However, three years later, Jennings wakes from a memory wipe to find his stock options gone and himself detained by the FBI.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Michael Jennings, a reverse engineer who uses memory wipes to protect his work, accepts a three-year job at Allcom under CEO James Rethrick. After three years, Jennings wakes up to find his stock options gone and himself detained by the FBI. He discovers an envelope of items left by his past self, which contains a fortune cookie message matching a lottery result. He realizes he built a machine at Allcom capable of seeing the future and planted the items to help him. Jennings learns the machine's use led to a future of market crashes, pandemics, and nuclear strikes. He teams up with Dr. Rachel Porter to destroy the machine. They infiltrate Allcom, where Jennings booby-traps the device. During a final confrontation on a catwalk, Jennings uses a watch from the envelope to dodge a bullet, killing Rethrick. Jennings and Porter escape, and the FBI declares Jennings dead. They eventually move to the countryside, where Jennings finds a winning lottery ticket in the envelope.
- First release year
- 2003
- Runtime (minutes)
- 119
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- John Woo
- Writers
- Dean Georgaris · writer
- Cast and characters
- Ben Affleck · Michael Jennings; Aaron Eckhart · James Rethrick; Uma Thurman · Dr. Rachel Porter; Paul Giamatti · John Wolfe; Colm Feore · William Dekker; Joe Morton · Agent Dodge; Michael C. Hall · Shorty; Krista Allen · The Projection
- Genres
- science fiction; action
- Themes
- Memory Erasure; Time Travel; Corporate Espionage; Consequences of Technology
- Tone and mood
- Action; Suspenseful; Techno-thriller
- Premise and plot tags
- Amnesia; Holography; Time Travel; FBI; Memory Alteration
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1953 short story by Philip K. Dick
- Reception
- The film received negative reviews from critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 27% and a Metacritic score of 43. However, it received a B- CinemaScore from audiences and some critics praised its timing and rhythm.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 27% · review count: 153; Metacritic · score: 43 · scale: 100 · review count: 34
- Awards and nominations
- Golden Raspberry Award · Worst Actor · Won
- Production trivia
- The film includes two Mexican standoffs and a birdcage similar to the one in 'Hard Boiled'.; Matt Damon was offered the role of Michael Jennings but declined.; John Woo did not direct another American feature film until 2023.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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