I'm a Max Payne fan and I am very skeptical about this direction. It is true this is starting to look like an overstylised Kane & Lynch (another franchise I love, despite how it abuses me every second I play it).
What really makes Max Payne is the character. He just goes on and on with his dark broody monologues and the universe is full of subtle and not so subtle pop culture references and self-references. The games take themselves so seriously and it is all really over the top without being nutty. It is like a satire that forgot what it is. The games take the noir theme further than any 80's or 90's renegade cop film ever did. It is a wonderful gaming experience.
This new direction however is not convincing me that Rockstar understands the character. While he is an excellent marksman and physically capable man, his gunfighting proficieny was never the theme of either game, so I don't feel that going into private security contracting is the obvious career change for him. I don't feel that the "I do this because I am good at it" suits Max Payne, but maybe Rockstar has some clever idea how to get Max into this situation without making it too simple a transition.
I am not convinced you can make Sao Paolo the setting for a noir story though, it is much too organic and energetic a place. The Max Payne universe is about organised crime, corruption and secret societies with splashes of the occult for flavour. I'm sure Sao Paolo has that too but of a very different kind.