Maidgethma Wonderfully offbeat film!

Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Martin Bradley Daryl Duke's "Payday" is a film that has barely seen the light of day, at least here in the UK. It came out in 1973, at a time when the American cinema was going through something of a renaissance and while it is far from being a classic and very rough around the edges it certainly didn't deserve its fate. Rip Torn is the thoroughly nasty, small-time country and western singer who will do whatever it takes to further his career and step on and over whoever gets in his way in the process. It's easy to see why the film wasn't a success. Apart from Torn, who makes the most of a mediocre script, it's poorly acted and has very much a B-Movie feel to it. However, it has built up something of a cult reputation probably stemming from the fact that it's been very little seen.

LeonLouisRicci Occasionally, in the Art of Movie Making, all things come Together with a Synchronistic Symmetry and the Result is a Near-Perfect Picture that seems as Well Crafted as it Possibly could be.This happens, No Matter the Budget, Production Capabilities, or the Artisans Applying Their Craft. This is one of those Movies.A Gritty, Early Seventies Character Study of a Merle Haggard Style Country Music Singer. A Mid-Level Star that Humps the Highways Playing Honky Tonks and the Sort, and with His Charming Crusty Ways, takes Advantage of Anyone on His Path to one more Payday.It's that Payday, along with Pills and Alcohol, that Fuels the Folks in the Band and the Entourage that is Small enough to fit into a Cadillac and one more Trailing Vehicle.Rip Torn Simply Embodies the Type and becomes completely Lost in the Role. He's "In the Skin" of this Self-Centered Warbler as He Encounters Groupies, Payola DJ's, and some Irate and Hostile Folks who Don't Care much for His Lecherous Ways.The Movie is Mesmerizing with its Neo-Realism and Not One Scene seems Forced or Faked. The Dialog Crackles with Down Home Cynicism and Playful, Uneducated Insight, Fractured by a Hard Reality Colliding with the Hard Living.A Compelling, Watchable, Car-Wreck of Real People Realizing the World Around Them and What They Want isn't always What They Got Coming. A Must See, Little Known, B-Movie that hasn't lost a bit of its Edge. Primitive Movie Making at its Best.

Scott LeBrun Rip Torn is superb as county & western singer Maury Dann in this bluntly honest, unsentimental look at the life of an unrepentant reprobate. He's a self-centered hellraiser who thinks nothing of other people and only of what they can do for him. He counts on the loyalty of people such as his long suffering manager, Clarence McGinty (Michael C. Gwynne) and chauffeur / bodyguard Chicago (Cliff Emmich) in order to get him out of various scrapes. While the unknowing public celebrates his music, they often have little idea of how lowly he is as an individual. Incisively written, by Don Carpenter, and efficiently directed, by Daryl Duke, "Payday" deserves a great deal of respect for the matter of fact way it portrays characters and events. It's left up to the viewer to make any judgment calls. It also works as a too convincing portrait of life on the road for any musician, and the trappings - women, drugs, etc. - that go with it. It's essentially a character study, and the character in question is definitely unappealing, but that is what makes the material as compelling as it is. Even when Maury ends up killing a man, there is never the slightest suggestion that he will sober up and realize the consequences of his actions. Some viewers may take exception to a tale where the main character is irredeemable, but others are certain to find this rather refreshing. A mighty fine soundtrack includes four Shel Silverstein songs, including the opener "She's Only a Country Girl". The acting is exceptional from not just the charismatic Torn but all of the major players as well: Ahna Capri as Maury's fed up girlfriend Mayleen, Elayne Heilveil as naive groupie Rosamond, Jeff Morris as band member Bob Tally, and Henry O. Arnold as young aspiring c & w star Ted. Keep an eye out for future 'Dukes of Hazzard' co-star Sonny Shroyer as an attorney. Director Duke and crew create a wonderful folksy atmosphere at all times, having shot the film on location in Alabama. By the end, one may not like Maury Dann, or even understand him, but they definitely won't forget him. It's just a shame that "Payday" isn't too well known, because it can easily stand alongside more famous productions such as "Tender Mercies" and "Crazy Heart". It's a true unsung gem from a decade that produced more than its fair share of great films. 10 out of 10.

Miksa76 I saw this about 3 years ago - I got to admit I was slightly inebriated after a lot of alcohol, but still some of the scenes penetrated my mind clearly, with their pull-no-punches cynicism. Maury Dann (played by Rip Torn) was one of the most memorable crooks I've ever seen in film. This sombre character study from the 70's addresses the themes of power and using people, set in the world of country & western music. As Dann's world slowly but surely crumbles, we see glimpses of the past of this cynical singer star trying to hit it big and the bleak relationships around him.I agree with the previous writer, that the film is (sadly) largely unknown, despite a great script by the writer Don Carpenter and a staggering performance from Rip Torn.