Nearly 10 years since its release, there is still plenty to discuss when it comes to Michael Bay’s box office hit Pain and Gain. However, I was one of the audience members who didn’t gel nicely with the film and here is why.
I did’nt like Pain and Gain not because it was technically bad but because of its awful sense of morality and ill dudged humour. The film’s visual style did not help with this, it’s over the top, glossy and glamorous, but the subject material is nasty beyond belief. Considering the film is based off one of Miami’s most famous crimes, the film’s tone made the viewing experience hard to get through.
For a film like this, you have to keep it serious throughout and tone down the comedy and thrills as much as possible. Make it a drama, so it represents the story as true to heart as possible. There are some true crime stories where you can get away making it humourus and fun, however, this story is certainly not one of them.
The film gets the audience to root for the trio of Whalberg, Mackie and Johnson and the reality is that you don’t care because they are some of the most despicable people on the planet played by Hollywood’s most sought out and charismatic actors. Its a strange mix.
The film is taking a real life tragedy and at times attempts to poke fun at a few scenes, some of which actually happened including the now infamous barbeque scene. One of the more redeeming features of the film is the character of Ed Harris, who plays his part very well and his part doesn’t seem to exaggerated, a more down to earth segment to the whole picture.
However, the film never seems to help itself because of its lack of focus and direction. We get monologues from each character, therefore making the film feel sloppy. The opening few scenes are fairly entertaining but as soon as Kershaw is kidnapped, Michael Bay takes the audience through one of his roughest rides yet, the film makes you admire the moral innocence of his previous films such as Armageddon, The Rock and even to some extent Transformers, as all of the films never reached the disgust that Pain and Gain had reached for.
To add to this, the film did’nt get many positive reviews. In fact, one of the better reviews online that truly reflects the feelings I have towards it is Marc Kermodes review down below. Marc Kermode when into the film giving Michael Bay the chance to prove himself, considering that he has’nt been a true fan of his work.
However, this wont be a balanced piece unless I talk about the good. Like I said, Pain and Gain is a technically well made film. The production team knew exactly what kind of film they were trying to make and did it well. The music reflects the tone and the performances were full throttle, I just didn’t care about it because I find it disrespectful to the real people from the crime.
However, with all this said, should you see the film?
Its entirely up to you, although the film is offensive, it can be entertaining to watch and a fun adrenaline ride considering just how unique and ridiculous the story is. However, for more sensitive viewers, I recommend watching something else, the film just went too far tonally in some of the more darker parts of the story. For die hard fans of Bay films, the film pretty much has everything you would want and expect.
The film is showing on Netflix UK.
Author Bio
Sam is a content writer. He loves all elements connected with film and writes with passion, always. You can find him on Linkedin, where you will be able to read more articles. When he is not writing, you can find him practicing football
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