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Pain & Gain

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Pain & Gain

R

Released Apr 26, 2013

2h 9m

Action

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

49%

Tomatometer

199 Reviews

47%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Danny Lupo (Mark Wahlberg), manager of the Sun Gym in 1990s Miami, decides that there is only one way to achieve his version of the American dream: extortion. To achieve his goal, he recruits musclemen Paul (Dwayne Johnson) and Adrian (Anthony Mackie) as accomplices. After several failed attempts, they abduct rich businessman Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub) and convince him to sign over all his assets to them. But when Kershaw makes it out alive, authorities are reluctant to believe his story.

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Critics Consensus

It may be his most thought-provoking film to date, but Michael Bay's Pain & Gain ultimately loses its satirical edge in a stylized flurry of violent spectacle.

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Larushka Ivan-Zadeh

metro.co.uk

For [Michael Bay], storytelling exists only to justify senselessly bashing some big shiny noisy stuff into other big noisy shiny stuff till your ears bleed for mercy.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 5, 2017

Full Review

Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

Maybe he's trying to do 'GoodFellas'-style dark comedy (the copious voice-overs would certainly suggest it), but put as charitably as possible, Bay is no Scorsese.

Jun 21, 2016

Full Review

Nick Pinkerton

Sight & Sound

While Pain & Gain often frustrates, Bay's overwhelming cinematic sense is undeniable.

Jun 6, 2014

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

The felonies fall apart due to phenomenal stupidity - and audiences are supposed to laugh at the extreme amateurishness of this band of beefy crooks.

Rated: 4/10

Dec 4, 2020

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Adds up to more pain than gain.

Rated: 2.0/4.0

Sep 19, 2020

Full Review

Leigh Paatsch

Herald Sun (Australia)

A tonally erratic and consistently irksome true-crime farce that plays out like a GoodFellas for Dummies.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 11, 2020

Full Review

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Nathanuel B

I found this movie quite interesting for most of these actors. It gives storytelling to a crime, and it shines light on something that most rarely talk about. I thought the way that Mark Whalberg's character acts was very cool and I loved the character. It definitely had some holes, but the movie was satisfactory.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/04/25

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Beck M

Very entertaining flick. Spectacular. The rocks best acting

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/21/25

Full Review

mark g

The problem with this slapstick comedy is that the actual story is anything but. This gang were a violent and despicable bunch, which is why two of them were sentenced to death. I mean, it's entertaining and comical enough, but maybe it shouldn't be.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

12/14/24

Full Review

Audience Member

This was genuinely top 3 movies for me. This is funny, motivational, and entertaining. This is definitely a must watch.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/01/24

Full Review

Alfred Junior T

It is traumatic but teaches a life lesson that crime doesn't pay but is sad that 2 men died at the end

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/29/24

Full Review

Sue S

Having read a little bit about the true story, I think this movie is insensitive and cruel to the true victims. I can only say that I hope that the real individual who was tormented and tortured by this brutal gang wins in court in his lawsuit. His story was used without his permission and he was portrayed to be and unpleasant, crude and greedy man who deserved to be punished. He has not been compensated even though his story was used to make this movie. From what I've read of the actual criminals, there was nothing humorous or likeable about them. They are horrible, sadistic human beings. As for the movie alone, it just doesn't make sense. The personalities of the criminals don't match the crime. I couldn't finish it.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

10/13/24

Full Review

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Michael Bay

Director

Mark Wahlberg

Daniel Lugo

Dwayne Johnson

Paul Doyle

Ed Harris

Ed Du Bois

Anthony Mackie

Adrian Doorbal

Tony Shalhoub

Victor Kershaw

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - The Magic Touch

2:08

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - We Made It

2:04

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - The Neighborhood Watch

2:10

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - No One Calls Me an Amateur

2:13

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - Saving All God's Creatures

2:03

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - The American Dream

1:56

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - Easy as Robbing a Bank

2:13

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - Killing Kershaw

2:13

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - Gangster's Paradise

2:07

Pain & Gain: Official Clip - Grilling Hands

2:02

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Synopsis

Danny Lupo (Mark Wahlberg), manager of the Sun Gym in 1990s Miami, decides that there is only one way to achieve his version of the American dream: extortion. To achieve his goal, he recruits musclemen Paul (Dwayne Johnson) and Adrian (Anthony Mackie) as accomplices. After several failed attempts, they abduct rich businessman Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub) and convince him to sign over all his assets to them. But when Kershaw makes it out alive, authorities are reluctant to believe his story.

Director: Michael Bay
Producer: Donald De Line, Michael Bay, Ian Bryce
Screenwriter: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: De Line Pictures
Rating: R (Crude Sexual Content|Bloody Violence|Drug Use|Language Throughout|Nudity)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 26, 2013, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 7, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $49.9M
Runtime: 2h 9m

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