 "The jaws of the vice" | 2009-10-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A35AMPDFAB8JLT |
Michael Mann's "Miami Vice" is a dark and moody thriller which is only vaguely related to the TV show of the same name. Colin Farrell (Sonny) and Jamie Foxx (Rico) star in this exotic film which is filmed in a harsh grainy manner that accentuates the rough and seedy world depicted. As with "Collateral" this film was mostly filmed with a Thomson Viper Filmstream Camera with the rest filmed on Super 35mm.
Like other movies Mann has directed, such as "Heat" or "Collateral", we are dragged into the dark and dangerous places of the crime underworld. In "Miami Vice" we are taken from the bright beaches of Miami to deep within the heart of darkness of the South American drug world. I was impressed with the overall pace, and tone of this film. The movie oscillates between the wide bright expanses of the Miami coast during the day, and constricts into the narrow crowded shipyards, canals, and trailer parks at night. Like a boa constrictor this movie is constantly coiling and uncoiling as it snuffs out its victims one by one. |
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| "What is wrong with you people?" | 2009-09-28 |
| - Reviewed By bcsparker |
OK, I've read a lot of the lower-star reviews of this, and I'm completely floored by some of these comments. So please allow me to frame my review in the form of answering other people's opinions.
1. "It's called Miami Vice, but hardly anything happens in Miami." - It's called an international drug trade, people. That's why things take place in Haiti, Uruguay, Havana, Columbia, etc. These are the places that the drugs come from. In real life, the cops have to seek out these things at the source. Hell, if they were to just wait for this stuff to show up on American soil, they've lost half the battle.
2. "The action is boring and there's not enough of it." - Okay, it's not that it's boring, it's just shot and performed realistically. You people are so used to being spoon-fed flashy Hollywood action scenes, with jump-cut editing and unbelievably loud sound effects, that being confronted with an actual tactical gunfight, you don't know what to do. And as for there not being enough action, do you think undercover work is all shootouts?
3. "There's no chemistry between Farrell and Fox." - While they don't seem buddy-buddy, I think they have a realistic relationship. In their line of work, especially on the job, they have to be all business. Did you guys expect them to be cracking jokes and stealing each other's girlfriends? Along those lines, the number of people reviewing this that look back fondly on the "Bad Boys" movies physically disgusts me.
4. "It doesn't look like the show." - What the heck do you expect, pastels, pretty sunsets, and sailboats? Does it make you mad that Crockett's pet alligator doesn't make an appearance? The way I look at it, the original Miami Vice was Michael Mann's creation, so he can do whatever he wants with the film. The fact that he chose to make a movie that really digs into what guys like this do is refreshing, rather than putting on some glitzy "T&A and palm trees" spectacle.
5. "Gong Li looks horrible and her accent is bad." - First off, she is in her 40's. You don't have to look airbrushed at that age. Would you kick her out of bed? And as far as her accent, she speaks only Mandarin, so she had to learn all her lines phonetically, so give her a break!
6. People seem to have a problem with some of the terms the guys use. Listen, as hokey as it sounds, "go-fast boats" is actually a phrase people use to describe those watercraft. And as hokey as it may seem to hear things like "op sec" or "transpo", those are real terms used in this kind of work!
While people say they wish it looked like the show, I think what the real problem is that it doesn't look like that apex of bad television - "CSI: Miami". Here, there's no burnt-sienna skies, no cutaways to inexplicable helicopter shots of the Miami scenery or jump cuts to bikinis on the beach, no gaudily-lit police station shots. It actually looks like Miami, for chrissakes! I was sold on the look of this movie when Crockett walks out on to the balcony near the beginning and you see the amazing deep focus of the skyline and the night sky. The fact that this was shot on digital video enabled them to capture amazing things like the clouds. I mean, look at the boat race at the beginning - it's beautiful.
Now I won't say this is a problem-free film. I don't understand Tubb's overwrought concern for the prostitute in the club scene. And to me, John Ortiz's accent seems way to affected - it sounds like a white guy playing at being a Latino, even though John is hispanic. And yes, the fact that Colin and Gong Li's relationship is staring everyone in the face, and doesn't become an issue until later, is kinda dumb. And admittedly, a lot of inertia is lost in the middle when their relationship is being explored. But hey, every movie has problems.
Overall, this is a much subtler film than people expected. It's got a huge budget and it was a summer movie, so that fact that it went more for reality than glitz probably underwhelmed a lot of people. While it would rank it under "Heat" and "Collateral" in Michael Mann's ouvre, I still like it. And hey, any movie that stars Colin Farrell (who usually I can't stand and who I believe is one of the most egotistical actors ever), and is still watchable to me, has got to be quite an achievment! |
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 "Mann's Monument" | 2009-09-17 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2NH9Z9D2TZJLF |
| One of the most well-researched storylines in the genre, and a good experiment in new digital filmmaking technology. Fast-paced milestone capturing the high of going as far and as deep undercover as oxygen allows... |
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| "Movie" | 2009-09-10 |
| - Reviewed By User: A18EBS1CWQZJ3S |
| Purchased as a gift fot my hubby to add to his collection. Loved the movie. |
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 "Overall awful, but some great scenes" | 2009-05-07 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1DRKVXO300RUE |
| I think Michael Mann is one of the best directors out today. Consider Heat, Last of the Mohicans, Collateral, etc. Great stuff. And I particularly enjoy his style; I'm not sure if I'm right, but he seems to shoot a lot with handheld cameras and natural light (as opposed to well lit scenes w/ artificial lights). It makes for a very distinctive feel that I enjoy. This movie is in that vein, but with some challenges. The overall story is pretty decent, and certainly consistent with the brazenly neon miami vice of yesterday. The problem is the dialog and lines. A lot of it is incredibly artificial and downright awful. I actually laughed quite a few times in the theater while listening to colin farrell's lines. I surprised myself and bought the dvd, only to realize that i really enjoy a select few scenes. The opening boat race scene is good, but i especially enjoy the scene where they cigarette boat-it to cuba. very good music, the engine revving sounds great in surround sound, etc. So this is one most appreciated by enjoying scenes in isolation, and, IMHO, that's OK. |
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| "What can I say?" | 2009-04-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: AQ0JKWR6SWF4V |
I wish I could say that this movie was B.S. that Michael Mann takes himself way to seriously and that didn't realize that people were making fun of the show back in the 80's. But I can't. I loved it than and I love it now. Admittedly, there are a lot of elements of the 80's show that are left out. Nevertheless, the cineamotography is beautiful; Tubbs and Crocket are super corny and American James Bonds at the same time; and the women characters rock. I can't explain it.
And while I am very much a fan of Colin Farrell earlier movies, think he is a modern metrosexual Marlin Brando, I never thought I would appreciate Jamie Foxx as a serious actor, even after Ray. But doggone it. He's done it. A kitchy classic I'm sure, but Miami Vice was brilliant. |
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