Pain & Gain

  • 2013


MOVIE IS useful entertaining disturbing cinematic criminal
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45 %
50 % Rotten
$ 87 Million
See Where to Watch Pain & Gain
Positive Reviews 76
Negative reviews 43
Average Rating 2.8/5
useful entertaining disturbing cinematic criminal

  • All
  • Positive
  • Negative
2.0
Any pretensions of satire, moral ambiguity, or social commentary get lost in a hurricane of empty, mindless spectacle. Av Club
1.5
Set in sun baked, steroid addled 90s Florida, Pain & Gain buffs up an ostensibly true story of greed and ruthless ambition into a comic book macho fan .. Av Club
1.5
While not entirely successful though, theres a lot to like about Michael Bays little $20 million dollar crime comedy, starting with some very good per .. Den Of Geek
4.5
Yet it isnt enough; not when scumbags like Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub) walk away with millions from their Schlotzskys empires. Den Of Geek
3.0
Anything sounds plausible if youve got enough cocaine coursing through your bulging veins. EW
3.1
Pain & Gain is irrepressibly sleazy, frequently exhausting and sometimes as bitterly funny as its creators think it is. Rogerebert
1.0
His characters are aggravatingly idiotic, the mood is belligerent, and the pacing is erratic.But worst of all is the humor. Common Sense Media
3.5
With a very fine ensemble cast recruited to play an array of overtly despicable characters, this unapologetically vulgar, sometimes quite funny, often .. Variety
4.0
Each and every shot is bright, warm and loaded with sweat and commercial level clarity. We Got This Covered
4.0
This is a good movie, one that manages to be both entertaining and provocative, often at the same time. We Got This Covered
4.5
He doesnt make great movies (though I would argue mightily for Armageddon and Bad Boys II being very good) but rather cold, explosive, larger than lif .. Austin Chronicle
3.0
Its a tale from the roaring 1990s, and shot in an archly 90s pulp fiction style. The Guardian
3.1
The result is an equally riotous and repugnant film that simultaneously derides and epitomizes everything wrong with modern Americaregardless of wheth ..
4.5
Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg) is a personal trainer who feels like hes not getting what hes owed from the American Dream. Collider
3.5
As the film goes from straight ahead satire to a mixture of Three Stooges slapstick and bloody violence, you cant quite believe what youre seeing and .. Vulture
2.0
The opportunistic lowlifes at the center of things could scarcely be more misguided and can only be made vaguely appetizing by virtue of movie star ap .. The Hollywood Reporter
2.5
Usually Dumb, Dumber and Dumbest type comedies leave me cold, but this tale of the crime spree of three near idiots is somehow both comical and charmi ..
4.0
Michael Bay proves he doesnt need pyrotechnics to make an entertaining movie in the darkly comic true crime tale Pain & Gain, featuring Dwayne Johnson .. IGN
3.0
Suffice it to say, Pain & Gain is not going to overshadow The Fighter, Boogie Nights or the raunchy fun of Ted on Wahlbergs vita.
3.0
The movie is loads of fun, inventive and sharp when its introducing us to its brainless musketeers, but then gets flabby once the story proper kicks i ..
4.0
Mackies relative lack of fame allows him to be the butt of the movies dumbest jokes, but also the character most capable of surprise. Cinema Blend
3.0
The final product is a mixed bag and you may not like yourself for being entertained by it, but at least its original. Cinema Blend
3.0
Wahlberg and Johnson are the saving graces of an in your face movie about weightlifters who kidnap, extort and dismember their victims. Ny Daily News
4.0
With three fantastic lead performances and a healthy dose of style, those who can appreciate an action packed black comedy will savor the ride. JoBlo
2.5
The story itself is stranger than fiction, with a number of moments that will illicit nervous laughs or cringe inducing squirms which should be enough .. Screen Rant
2.5
As a genre mashing exercise its almost interesting but, really, why bother The Globe And Mail
2.0
By trying to pummel you into euphoria by sheer excess, its desperation only manages to bring on fatigue. One Guys Opinion
3.1
Not bad, but its obvious Bay doesnt have the lighter touch this story, even at its ugliest, required. Rogers Movie Nation
3.8
This isnt great cinema, but its vastly entertaining in an overblown, in your face sort of way. ReelViews
3.0
10 1 4 / 10 After the 2011 release of the global blockbuster Transformers: Dark of the Moon, director Michael Bay wanted to challenge himself again. Blu Ray
2.0
Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie are impressive as the criminals; their focused, deadpan performances balance out the hyperactive dir .. Chicago Reader
3.8
This is sleazy, abrasive entertainment, and thats a compliment without backhand. Mark Reviews Movies
2.0
It is refreshing to see Michael Bay make a film that has grounded story instead of a special F/X extravaganza.
2.0
It is refreshing to see Michael Bay make a film that has grounded story instead of a special F/X extravaganza.
2.5
There are many sequences in the movie that feel as though they couldve either been seriously edited down or eliminated altogether, and as a result, Ba .. Reel Film Reviews
2.8
Its saving grace is that much of it is quite funny in an over the top, outrageous kind of way. News Review
3.5
Granted, a film should be able to stand on its own and be judged on its artistic merits and entertainment value alone. Screen It
0.6
In between scenes of the muscleheads torturing their victim, Bay indulges his taste for treating women as sluts and grisly brutality as a nifty excuse .. Rolling Stone
1.5
The concept album that is Arethas Gold follows the chronology of Aretha Franklins hits, all released in 1967 and 1968, apex years of the decade not ju .. Pop Matters
3.1
Initially, Pain & Gain is such a high speed ride into the American heart of darkness (Ken Jeong plays Lugos favorite get rich quick guru) that all the .. News Day
3.0
Its official. Michael Bay, director of the Transformers clobberfests, knows how to make movies about humans, too. The problem is, he thinks humans are .. Cs Monitor
4.4
Its trite and rote and dull.Bay puts the ow in loud, the sham in shameless and the bull in predictable. New York Post
2.0
Even when Pain & Gain plumbs the depths of tastelessness, it looks and moves like a high powered sports car. Film Journal International ..
2.5
But you cant thread a needle this fine with a script filtered through Bays puerile id. Az Central
1.3
The difference is that the Coen brothers held us expertly in a spot between ironic laughter and appalled fascination.Bay just rubs our nose in mayhem .. Boston
2.0
They survive (and thrive) for as long as they do only through brute force and moral vacancy, a potent combination for criminal mischief makers. Npr
2.5
Bernie, the Jack Black/Shirley MacLaine story of a real life Texas killer, was brutally funny, disturbing and honest, fun to watch without making fun .. Star Tribune
3.1
18A Putting aside the real life maimings and murders, Michael Bays comic crime drama Pain & Gain brings fun to the multiplex with its story of knuckle .. Toronto Star
1.0
Agony: Mackie, Wahlberg and Johnson in the tedious action movie Pain & Gain Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne The Rock Johnson and Anthony Mackie have all done go .. Daily Mail
4.0
Dont even pretend you dont want to see this, and dont come complaining to me if you feel dirty afterward. Salon
2.0
The beauty of all this is that even if only half of it has any semblance to the true story, its outrageously incredible which is what makes it work.
2.0
Susan Grangers review of Pain & Gain (Paramount Pictures) Unfortunately, this is a true story, begins the narration Inspired by self help guru Johnny .. Susang Ranger
0.5
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4.0
Its vigor, profusion, and raucous humor dont advance the art of storytelling but the movie simply outruns, outjumps, and outshines many of the neuroti .. New Yorker
2.0
All coverage within bostonherald.com from the last 14 days remains free of charge. Boston Herald
4.0
More accustomed to mega budget blockbusters like the Transformers series the director pares down the explosions and car chases but ups the verve, wit .. Express
1.9
The look and nasty, insincere vibe of the picture carries the assurance of every Bay project. Chicago Tribune
4.0
A bleak, bitter, wicked pleasure that holds up the underpinnings of modern America self help, Jesus, and violence for ridicule. Flickfilosopher
3.0
The finished product lacks the finesse that Tarantino might bring to such a hilariously amoral predicament, but the central triumvirate are excellent, .. The Irish Times
2.0
It is fun, for a while, an irreverent crime yarn filmed in Michael Bays signature adrenaline junkie style. Blogs Indie Wire
3.0
Shears should just be taken to this script and story in almost every scene. Blogs Indie Wire
2.5
The story is too inherently fascinating for Bay to completely screw it up, but he comes close. Las Vegas Weekly
3.0
... loud and brutal and sometimes quite stupid, it is wildly funny even in its darkest moments, and by my calculations, that makes this a genuine, no .. Hit Fix
3.5
This crude and ugly entertainment is as crass as everything this depressingly successful filmmaker has done. Cnn
2.5
Isnt that a knee slapper.Aside from Bays visual style, the movies only real asset is the cast. Aisle Seat
3.8
In Bays movies, thats something the cops put you in when you start mouthing off.But even with all that, the picture still manages to be a strange cont .. Nj
3.0
This far out but fact based tale of criminal idiocy could have been a gory, clever subversion in the hands of another filmmaker, but Bay just doesnt g .. Oregon Live
3.8
However, the director still employs his trademark music video flashiness and broad, beer commercial humor, attributes that can feel cheesy and sacchar .. Movies Tv Guide
3.0
Bay keeps the film moving.What engages in the audience is the portrayal of the kidnappers as nice guys who stupidly turn to violent crime even though .. Maki At The Movies
3.8
Its easily the most entertaining movie Bay has put out in years, possibly ever. Three Movie Buffs
1.0
Skin colour and penis size/functionality is how this character is often defined throughout the script. Digital Spy
2.0
Even if the characterization were true, it wouldnt deserve such treatment.But maybe thats all we can expect from Bay, who clearly understands soulless .. Tamp A Bay
3.0
It fails to give its female characters anything interesting to do and features a misguided late arriving bid for philosophical relevance.But its also .. Flicks
3.1
It seems like the movie wont totally kick in until that gimmick goes away, and it never does. Red Eye Chicago
0.0
At times the movie has a stunning George Saunders level sci fi blues... but really, its NYC hipster existentialism. Ft
3.8
Or maybe, just maybe, Bays underlying talents have nothing to do with CGI effects, after all. Dustin Put Man
3.0
Spirited and very funny, this movie should actually be rather disturbing since its a true story about torture and murder.But director Michael Bay is s .. Contact Music
3.5
When will they realize thats the equivalent of asking a zebra to drop its stripes Film Racket
4.4
The movie doesnt need his heart, just his huckster touch.He can sell the hell out of a hedonistic vision to the point of self parody, thereby capturin .. Larsen On Film
2.0
Unfortunately, its been turned into a dull, uneven movie by director Michael Bay (Bad Boys, Transformers).There are times when the film wants to be a .. The Film Pie
3.0
This story feels made for Tony Scott.).The reason that all this speculation is fun is simple the movie nearly works in spite of Bay and not because of .. Hollywood Chicago
1.0
Bays worst film to date and the biggest piece of evidence yet in the case against him. Cinemix Tape
2.5
You dont need to be rooting for Danny, Adrian, and Paul to make off with the money or even for Kershaw to get his hard earned fortune back; its much m .. Shockya
3.5
PHOTO: UIP Monty Python And The Holy Grail pokes fun at mediaeval England. Straits Times
1.0
Based on a true story told in the Miami New Times, this is a sad tale that Bay shoots as slapstick comedy. Metro New York
2.5
Rather than take its true crime caper inspiration seriously, it pawns off its real life players as dumb action figures and has little respect for the .. Film Comment
5.0
You take amino acids, what kind of amino acids do you take.Do you take em in pills or do you take em in powders its never ending. Flavor Wire
4.0
Super slow motion, an excruciatingly lurid colour scheme and a plethora of those trademark 360 degree pans all but wink; while the jet black, perfectl .. The Skinny
2.0
From here on, Bays tale of greed and ruthlessness gets entranced by squirmy violence, overbearing spectacle and a hand being charred on a barbecue.It .. Scots Man
2.0
This is a problem when it comes to the smaller scale skills demanded by this crazy, cartoonish satire on the American Dream, whose violent pinballing .. Metro
2.5
His slow motion prowess and action film chops add a surreal element, but Bays camera leers at the world the same way his characters do. He wants to ce .. Scene Stealers
0.5
Its by no means the only determinate of what works but its a great start; it gives the film its best chance of life. The Ooh Tray
4.0
Michael Bay, burdened with glorious purpose, pours his everything into Pain & Gain; the closest thing to an indie spirited passion project he will lik .. Streaming Quickflix
3.5
Watch a clip from the film Mud..Two teenage boys encounter a fugitive (Matthew McConaughey) and form a pact to help him evade bounty hunters and to re .. Wsj
3.0
But at least it looks slick and tells a story.In essence, its the cinematic equivalent of a song having a beat that you can dance to. Fat Guys At The Movies
2.0
It sure feels like it every time Bay betrays his bad boy self satisfaction in rendering nasty true crime material as farce, in the deflationary soundt .. Bfi
3.0
Bay offers his signature tongue in cheek machismo that gives the film a Bad Boys style charisma, but it makes the movies more serious moments incredib .. The National
1.0
We probably shouldnt be surprised that Bays bijou effort is no art house meditation. Entertainment Time
2.0
But after a few laugh out loud moments the humorous dark material gets frustrating and ever more repulsive. Daily Film Fix
4.0
The movie announces that its based on a true story, and when the word unfortunately appears on the screen, you know this is going to be the sort of co .. Grant Land
4.4
And in this dark comedy crime thriller by action film director Michael Bay, the killers are the protagonists. Toledo Blade
3.0
The comedy loses any satirical edge the director might have sought when it alienates its audience. Movie Chambers
3.8
Not for the kiddies, this immensely entertaining flick is a hard R romp through seedy South Florida. Free Beacon
1.0
The technical aspects remind us why Michael Bay is such an awful director. Impulse Gamer
3.0
Were sorry, but this web site contains enhanced features not supported by the browser version you are currently using. Richard Roeper
2.3
The film never settles on what it wants to be, so you end up with a slick, Miami beach party sheen on a disturbing, sickening slab of boredom. Schmoes Know
3.0
Everything about Prince Caspian is just right in terms of cinematography, scope and vision; the tone is dark but hopeful, and epic but intimate. Eclipse Magazine
1.3
But remember, this is the same filmmaker who found it hilarious to give a Transformer giant clanging robot testicles.Its his execution that turns a bi .. MLive.com
4.0
Ultimately, cinema is a form of entertainment and this picture does nothing but entertain. Hey U Guys
3.5
There is humor.The film is definitely not played straight, but the story is darkly comical in its own right and thats where most of the humor is deriv .. Flixist
4.0
Producer and director Michael Bay is frequently derided and often with good reason for making ugly, soulless and incoherent spectacle films that have .. Cinema Autopsy
4.5
Its disdain for humanity is equal opportunity.Its pretty damn good, but way too long. Bad Ass Digest
2.5
If you think Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson look like theyre on steroids, you should see the screenplay. O Canada
3.0
The dialogue isnt quite as sharp as 2 Guns, but Pain & Gain has moments of great humour in between scenes that will make you wince. Birmingham Mail
2.0
Should the movie prove a hitand it would be foolish to bet against itPain & Gain would be just the latest success for two of the most skillfully manag .. Vogue
1.0
Yes, unfortunately its based on a true story and unfortunately THIS film exists. The Popcorn Junkie
3.0
Characters fill in the narrative blanks with first person narration while Bay concentrates on slam bam splat and blood laced punch lines.Too bad the s .. Oc Register
3.0
Oh, lets be honest, its his only *good* film since The Rock.When you remove the morass of CGI that plagues every other movie hes made in the last ten .. Blogs Houston Press
2.0
The characters can be funny, but should the actual act of killing be too Fox News
3.8
The leisurely pace and sterile production design more than recalls Kubrick, but Kosinski pays homage in the best sense, as not only is the film more t .. The Movie Report
0.5
And Dwayne The Rock Johnson gives an absurd but completely charming performance as an ex con falling off the wagon. Cines Nark
3.1
The movie is still good enough to see, but not really a must see. Dc5
2.5
What might have been a viable stranger than fiction tale is undone by ham fisted execution, numbingly brutal energy and dim wit.It all makes for plent .. Rss Feeds Usa Today
2.5
The story takes much of its comedy from such thoughts, basking in the simplicity of its characters ideas. Big Hollywood
2.5
Like its anti heroes, Pain & Gain imagines itself to be Robin Hood on steroids. Instead, its your drunk friend who thinks hes the life of the party an .. Topless Robot
2.5
He shoots everything in Awesome O Rama, which makes the action sequences bigger and the jokes louder.But Bay knows nothing of nuance, so the materials .. Deads
3.5
Although that movie wasnt based on a true story and was altogether more literate, it, too, took its inspiration from the foibles of the aggressively s .. Windy City Media Group
3.0
...the film occasionally approaches something resembling satire. Bays attempts at humour are not always insightful though a dead womans breast implant .. The Crat
3.8
That the filmmakers manic style overstays its welcome is no surprise though it perfectly suits this outlandish story. News Gazette
1.3
Well, at least in theory.In actuality, theres barely a titter in this overlong, dull and dimwitted tale. Ticket Sarasota
3.5
But the injections are very expensive.Paul has found Jesus but finding work is much harder. Las Vegas Informer
2.0
SHARE THIS ARTICLE Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Near the end of Michael Bays juiced up true crime comedy Pain & Gain, a caption reminds us that thi .. Bloom Berg
4.0
Its social commentary so slick and scathing letting it wash over you feels like getting lubed and chafed at the same time. Blogs Crikey
4.0
His films are big and empty and noisy; he made not one but three films about robots (the Transformers franchise). The Sunday Times
2.5
Pain & Gain is still a bad movie. Its just not the same bad movie Bay has been making for the past 15 years, and that has to count for something. Planit North West
1.0
You dont expect a real life story as nasty as this to be a pretty fairy tale. Times Colonist
2.5
Once a Victorias Secret commercial director, always a Victorias Secret commercial director, I guess. The Atlantic Wire



See Where to Watch Pain & Gain