Asner, Moore Are Reunited in ‘Payback’

Looking for some “Payback”?

As one might expect by that terse title, retribution is the theme of this new ABC movie, whose chief drawing card is the reunion of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” co-stars Ed Asner and Moore, teaming up for the first time in the 20 years since the demise of their splendid, Emmy Award-winning comedy.

In this shaky vehicle, presumably selected to tap the duo’s dramatic chops, Moore plays Kathryn Stanfill, a successful restaurateur who witnesses an unprovoked beating by Sgt. Brian Kaleen (Fredric Lane), an overzealous cop with a sadistic streak.

Enter Jack Patkanis (Asner), an unpopular internal affairs veteran who eagerly seizes a long-sought opportunity to bring down Kaleen by persuading the reluctant Stanfill to testify against him.

Before she can sob “Ohhh, Mr. Patka-a-anis,” Stanfill finds herself harassed by the conniving Kaleen and his cronies.

It starts innocently enough with a parking ticket outside the courthouse and a subsequent towing, but Stanfill’s curiosity is piqued when police suggest that her husband (Denis Arndt) may have made sexual advances on one of his students.

In the film’s most effective sequence, two gun-wielding officers order Stanfill and a frightened friend to exit a car, which he assumes was stolen. In each situation, of course, it’s the dirty work of Kaleen.

Later, undeterred by Patkanis’ warning to back off, the vindictive cop sets his sights on Stanfill’s troubled son (Adam Scott), who is arrested on a bogus murder charge.

Clearly, love is not all around for Moore’s sympathetic heroine, whose decision to do the right thing brings only misery.

For viewers, the primary problem turns on credibility, which is steadfastly strained as the angry antagonist intensifies his wide-ranging vendetta. A pertinent question to consider here is whether a real-life law enforcer would go so far to exact sweet revenge. The short answer: not likely.

The persuasive Moore and Asner handle their roles in this watchable yet improbable thriller with ease, and it’s satisfying to see them together again after all these years, but the bottom line on “Payback” is that it may leave you feeling slightly shortchanged.

* “Payback” airs at 9 tonight on ABC (Channels 7, 3, 42).