Alicia
I love this movie so much
Supelice
Dreadfully Boring
Sexyloutak
Absolutely the worst movie.
Staci Frederick
Blistering performances.
gina-r-2
I think that it was an excellent rip off. John was twice the Basil that Cleese was. Sure Cleese was first and for purists the only one but J.L. was to say at the least exceptional. No one would ever have the guts to try this again but I wish someone would carry it on.I think the only thing that could possibly make it funnier would be to combine the two. Have the Fawlty towers gang do one show and then Payne do the next, then combine the two casts for a final show. Alternating Basil and Royal, What could be funnier. Mix the two casts for some real guffaws. I would like to know if Payne is available on DVD, I have Fawlty Towers and could only imagine watching the two side by side. If you have never seen Payne,,,,,,,imagine Royal and Constance Payne even the names crack me up. Love it for what it is, an absolute rip off thats just as funny and sometimes funnier that the god of comedy, John Cleese
Theo Robertson
Suppose you`re an executive of a TV company and a producer runs in saying " Hey let`s rework FAWLTY TOWERS and set it in America " What would you do ? I think the more humane amongst us would sack the producer on the spot , while the less humane would decapitate him for having an idea so bad it borders on the psycotic . I doubt if anyone would say " Hey what a great idea , lets do it " PAYNE isn`t as bad as it could have been , the worst thing they could have done is copy the scripts word for word and hope for the best, but it`s still a bad sitcom. Royal and Connie Payne love each other and it`s revealed Royal is a great lover not something that can be said about Basil Fawlty who we can believe hasn`t had sex for many years. So you see the character interaction of Sybil and Basil is missing as is the class obsession and sarcasm of Mr Fawlty which made him one of the most memorable people in television history . There`s a bellhop who `s Mexican which means he can speak Spanish and is a Manual to Royal Payne`s Basil Fawlty and that`s about the only half decent crossover from the Cleese/Booth masterwork . PAYNE is only worth watching for the novelty value
Bellybub
John Larroquette is delightfully rude and self-serving as hotel owner Royal Payne in this Yank version of "Fawlty Towers"! Certainly, his version of crass attitude is different from John Cleese's, as it should be. Some viewers might say that the relationship between Payne and his wife Constance (JoBeth Williams) seems too flexibly forgiving, but there IS a definite viper-like chemistry between the two, like a more sarcastic Nick & Nora Charles. I also like (even though it is a comic-relief ethnic stereotype) Rick Batalla's portrayal of Mohammad, the bumbling bellhop. Just like Manuel in "F.T.", he is cringingly subservient to his boorish boss ... I'm waiting for a dressing-down scene of "This Royal's wife. This Royal. This smack on head." And Larroquette will give Batalla a smack on the head ... let's wait and see!
Tony DeCaro (Aldo-9)
This show is no where near as good as Fawlty Towers, first off John Larroquette is no where near as good as John Cleese. Royal actually likes his wife, where is the hatred that was shown between Basil and Sybil? The maid- nothing compared to Connie Booth. While it is sporadically funny, I cant help think of Fawlty Towers whenever I watch.