Payday

Rip Torn steals the film and lifts it above its drive-in milieu. It played briefly in NYC and the cast works hard enough to make it a good rental. Many of the actors had only TV credits and this could have been a breakthrough film. It was marketed poorly. It also has a good 'road' feel to it. This road feel could have made it a nifty period piece. Why it never made a punch is hard to tell. However a preview audience in NYC found a lot to like about it, including the Torn character's disregard for the other characters. It's worth a look and should make a good double bill in a rep cinema with Coppola's "You're A Big Boy Now" where Torn and the Lovin' Spoonful soundtrack help to save that film. The film was also released at a time when everybody was trying to "recreate" Easy Rider, et al.

For those of you who are familiar with Rip Torn as irascible and authoritarian yet lovable characters such as Artie in "The Larry Sanders Show" and Zed in "Men in Black" be prepared for a shock. In this film there is nothing likable about Torn's character Maury Dann, a country singer currently on tour through the south. There is no wisdom behind his cynicism - he is all about using people. Specifically he is all about indulging in all the sex and substance abuse he can without regard to what it does to others. His life takes a turn to an even darker place when the boyfriend of one of his one-night stands catches up with him in a restaurant one day. This is one of those character study films that were very popular in the 1970's, and Torn does a great job playing a totally ruthless individual who has a totally different on-stage persona from his actual personality. He even does a fine job singing the country and western songs. Payday was directed by 1974 National Society of Film Critics Award winner Daryl Duke.

It's a hidden gem worth seeking out.

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.

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.

This is another one of those brilliant character studies that proliferated film screens in the early 1970's. Rip Torn gives a superb performance as Maury Dann, a mercurial, drunken country/western singer whose life ultimately careens out-of-control during a road tour. Payday is probably the most accurate filmed depiction of a musician's life on the road that you'll ever see: endless drug abuse, random sex, sudden violence. It's all here in one well-written, astutely directed package. Sadly, Payday is seldom seen in revival houses or on television. This is a true gem worth finding.