Miami Vice

[Lord of The Curry 0]

I'd say I was dissapointed that no previous thread was started for this gem of a film but that'd be holding a level of expectations for this forum, something I found out long ago is a lost cause.

 

This is your best movie of 2006. Don't debate it, just go see it. Unless you like shitty movies, in which case The Benchwarmers is available on DVD currently.

 

This movie cements Mann's status as one of the best directors of this generation, maybe of all time. Sleek as hell, sexier then any T&A in a teen comedy and just cool as fuck. To preface my comments, this wasn't a perfect movie. Far from it. Not on the level of Heat or Last of The Mohicans but as good as Collateral and maybe better.

 

*SPOILERS AHOY*

 

From the opening moments in the nightclub this film draws you in and holds you there. I don't think I've ever used the term "with baited breath" to describe a moment in a movie. This one has quite a few of them. I think we'll be seeing a whole lot more movies filmed using digital technology because of this movie. It has a more visceral, raw feeling that totally compliments Mann's style of filming.

 

Colin Farrell isn't terrible and this is saying something for me because I hadn't liked him in a role up until this point. Sonny Crockett is a good person and he plays him as such. It would be easy for him to be a rebellious asshole who plays by his own rules but he doesn't roll that way and the character is better for it. The romantic subplot between Sonny and the female lead played by Gong Li doesn't do the movie any favours but in the end it doesn't take away from anything.

 

Jamie Foxx is too smooth. Once again he goes against the grain and plays Tubbs as a pretty serious (and badass) motherfucker. I'm sure a lot of people were going into this expecting some laughs at Foxx's expense. Sorry folks.

 

The plot is fairly basic compared to previous Mann movies but it works for the characters because in the end this movie isn't about drugs or fast boats. It's about two men who are at the edge of their own personal boundaries and how far they will go to get past the edge and do what's right.

 

Oh, and the violence is gully. Downright gully. The dude in the trailer getting his head blow to bits elicted a huge "OHHHHHHHHHHHHH" from our theatre as did Foxx blowing away Jose with the shotty at the end.

 

****.

[bob_barron 0]

I think I'm seeing this movie on Tuesday, so I didn't read all of your post LOTC.

 

Michael Mann is awesome though. Did anyone see the pilot of Miami Vice last Saturday on NBC? Great stuff.

[The Mandarin 0]

Nice. I stopped reading early as well but it's cool to know it was on the level of other Michael Mann films.

 

I wouldn't doubt that this is the best movie of 2006 thus far. It's been even shittier than 2005, unless the boring trailers have been deceiving me. MI:3 was a'ight, though.

[bob_barron 0]

I don't doubt this film will rock, but it's going to be hard to top Little Miss Sunshine as best film of the year. That movie makes up for every shitty film I've seen this year

[The Niggardly King 0]

This one is a great film... though it might be a step below Collateral.

 

The only people I know of who thought the movie sucked are the ones who were expecting it to be exactly like the damn TV show.

[cabbageboy 0]

Curry, I can't say I share this much of your enthusiasm. It was at best maybe a **1/2 movie, maybe worse than that if you're a fan of the show. The whole first half of the film was extremely dull (I had to fight to stay awake and that rarely happens).

 

I've noticed a strange trend in Mann movies where he doesn't explain enough shit. Sure, going in I'd think most people have some working knowledge of Crockett and Tubbs, but I'd have liked if they gave a run down of the rest of the cops. I didn't even realize these were the same actual characters until checking imdb.com, since I don't recall anyone's name being mentioned aside from Trudy. And with Trudy I then had to strain to recall if she and Tubbs were ever dating on the TV show.

 

I agree on some of the good stuff though. The new Gina had the best moment in the entire film with the trailer scene, which also drew a round of applause at my theater. Ditto the finale with Tubbs being a bad man.

 

I missed stuff like Elvis the alligator on Crockett's boat though. It added humor and also humanized the character.

 

To me, this film wasn't a huge debacle but also not really one of Mann's better works. It's a curio for fans of the show, who will then want to go home and watch the box set for Season 1.

[The Mandarin 0]

I don't doubt this film will rock, but it's going to be hard to top Little Miss Sunshine as best film of the year. That movie makes up for every shitty film I've seen this year

 

Well, yeah, I was kinda talking about the first half of 2006. I've wanted to see "Sunshine" ever since I knew Carell was attached and of course it's gotten amazing reviews. The Borat movie could be hilarious as well. So the latter half of the year could be better.

[bob_barron 0]

Wait- there's no Elvis the alligator? Fuck that shit.

 

EW had an article last week about how hard it was to film the movie. Interesting stuff

[Darthtiki 0]

I thought the characters lacked the development unlike the original series. That being said, I did enjoy the film and loved the composition of the piece. Kudos to Michael Mann for using HD...I think it made the picture.

[treble 0]

I liked it, but wouldn't say it's as good as Collateral. Obviously, it looks awesome, and that was pretty much my favourite part of the movie, that and the 2 death scenes Curry mentioned.

 

Maybe I didn't like it that it was too serious. I know it's not a comedy and didn't expect tons of laughs, but I thought there'd be a few smartass comments thrown in there once in a while and there really wasn't, aside from the 'Havana, Louisiana' thing after Crockett came back from Cuba.

[buffybeast 0]

I quite enjoyed Miami Vice. However, I had difficulty making sense of the plot at times. I confused locales as well. Were they in Port au Prince, Miami, Cuba? Colin Farell is a terrible actor. There were times where he appeared to just be reciting his lines as if reading them off a paper.

 

Overall, Miami Vice is probably the second best movie I have seen this summer (behind POTC:DMC).

[Angelus 0]

Colin Farell is a terrible actor. There were times where he appeared to just be reciting his lines as if reading them off a paper

 

I don't know where the Collin Farell hate come, he was great in Tigerland

[dubq 0]

Curry, you're nuts. This movie was crap. Pure, unmitigated crap. I can name at least 5 other movies, off the top of my head, in 2006 that beat the shit out of this one, IMO.

[dubq 0]

Colin Farell is a terrible actor. There were times where he appeared to just be reciting his lines as if reading them off a paper

 

Bolded so that Angelus can understand where the Colin Farrell hate is coming from.........

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Curry, you're nuts. This movie was crap. Pure, unmitigated crap. I can name at least 5 other movies, off the top of my head, in 2006 that beat the shit out of this one, IMO.

 

Have at it.

[Anakin Flair 0]

Did Colin even do any press for this movie? I remember when he and Fox were on SpikeTV pimping the movie- Fox did all of the hype, and Colin just sat there looking bored.

[Guest Hotbutter Spoontoaster]

Curry, you're nuts. This movie was crap. Pure, unmitigated crap. I can name at least 5 other movies, off the top of my head, in 2006 that beat the shit out of this one, IMO.

Have at it.

V For Vendetta.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Did Colin even do any press for this movie?

 

He had a psycho person come up to him at the Tonight Show.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Curry, you're nuts. This movie was crap. Pure, unmitigated crap. I can name at least 5 other movies, off the top of my head, in 2006 that beat the shit out of this one, IMO.

Have at it.

V For Vendetta.

 

Good movie, enjoyed it but wouldn't put it above MV. I can see why others would, though. Only thing I can see beating MV for me right now would be Thank You For Smoking.

[Lil' Bitch 0]

I'll admit it kinda dragged at first, but then it picked up. Overall, I liked it.

 

7/10

[The Mandarin 0]

I liked it.

 

It had kinda a slow build that was different from what I was expecting. I really liked the way it looked on the screen. The cinematography during the motorboat scene (you'll remember which one) was fucking incredible. It was like they replicated all the shots from cinematic mode on GTA. Also-- I don't think a lingering shot of the back of a person's head has ever ment more in a film. ..other than, y'know, Pulp Fiction.

 

The sets and locations seen in the movie were all beautiful and complimented the film nicely. There was kind of a lack of character development but obviously "what they do" has to take the forefront instead of "who they are".

 

I still think Collateral was better for its character depth, unpredictable plot and fucking INTENSE club scene (that I bought as the movies' finish); however Miami Vice didn't feel as "stupid" in some scenes and the last 20 minutes were much better. The violence was also more realistic in Vice and the end of the gun battle in the trailer was a feel-good moment Collateral was lacking.

 

The main difference, though, is that the first bit of Vice kinda felt like a chore to watch (after the skinhead shootout). I mean, it wasn't bad by any means but it lacked the unpredictability and the adrenaline rush in Collateral's first half (I seriously thought the cabbie was dead after he tossed the briefcase); as they establish the characters and scenarios while also throwing in some sweet violence and typical movie plot devices. Vice has a smarter, leaner build that leads to a more plausible conclusion at the end. But is it as fun as watching Tom Cruise's Vincent act like a complete SOB to Jamie Foxx and then being all courteous to his mother? Nah.

 

Neither are even in the same league as Heat, so I won't go there.

 

*** out of ****; best movie of 2006 thus far IMO. MI:3 had some totally righteous shit and Hoffman was insanely good, but it took a lot to suspend your disbelief with that one. T'was mildly retarded.

[Quasar 0]

The biggest problem with Miami Vice is that they set it in modern days and took away everything that made Miami Vice into Miami Vice (Pastels, 80s music.....etc).

 

Now, we're left with a buddy cop movie named "Miami Vice". This isn't Miami Vice at all, it's not even set in the same universe as Miami Vice, it has NOTHING in common with Miami Vice except for location and character names.

 

Why couldn't they do a movie where Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas reprise their roles and come back to fight druglords played by some big Hollywood star?

 

At least then, it'd be Miami Fucking Vice and not some bullshit buddy cop movie made to cop a buck off of the Miami Vice legacy from idiots who see this sorry excuse of a money whore and "OH MY GOD, it wasn't anything like teh show but MICKLE MANN ROCKS!". Bullshit, I want Miami Vice, I want Miami Vice. This would be like doing a Sopranos movie with Finlay in the starring role and having the whole family suddenly turn Irish.

[FroGG_NeaL 0]

The biggest problem with Miami Vice is that they set it in modern days and took away everything that made Miami Vice into Miami Vice (Pastels, 80s music.....etc).

 

Now, we're left with a buddy cop movie named "Miami Vice". This isn't Miami Vice at all, it's not even set in the same universe as Miami Vice, it has NOTHING in common with Miami Vice except for location and character names.

 

Why couldn't they do a movie where Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas reprise their roles and come back to fight druglords played by some big Hollywood star?

At least then, it'd be Miami Fucking Vice and not some bullshit buddy cop movie made to cop a buck off of the Miami Vice legacy from idiots who see this sorry excuse of a money whore and "OH MY GOD, it wasn't anything like teh show but MICKLE MANN ROCKS!". Bullshit, I want Miami Vice, I want Miami Vice. This would be like doing a Sopranos movie with Finlay in the starring role and having the whole family suddenly turn Irish.

 

 

That shit wouldn't sell, dude.

[cd213 0]

Michael Mann is one of the most overrated directors around right now in my opinion. His movies just drag and are very boring. I HATED Collateral. I found it to be weak in the writing catagory. I didn't like the style he used to film the movie. I have not liked anything this director has put out.

 

i just don't understand how he could ruin his own television show. He took a borderline comedy/drama and made it a total drama. Everything that was good about the show was missing from the movie.

 

I would say he is a bad director, Uwe Boll is a bad director, I just think he is overrated. But that's just my opinion.

 

As far as a movie like Benchwarmers goes, I thought it was a riot. There is nothing wrong with a movie being funny. I don't understand why people shit on comedies. It's not bad going to the movies for an hour and 35 mins or so to just enjoy something and laugh.

[Rendclaw 0]

I loved Collateral. If you don;t have the patience to wait for the payoff and notice the Jamie Foxx character growing through the movie as Vincent terrorizes him, you're going to dislike every Michael Mann movie made. He actually made me think that Tom Cruise had some depth as an actor.

 

For about ten minutes.

 

I'm going to go see MV, and see if its any good.

[cd213 0]

I loved Collateral. If you don;t have the patience to wait for the payoff and notice the Jamie Foxx character growing through the movie as Vincent terrorizes him, you're going to dislike every Michael Mann movie made. He actually made me think that Tom Cruise had some depth as an actor.

 

For about ten minutes.

 

I'm going to go see MV, and see if its any good.

 

I have a lot of patience. I have no problem sitting through slow moving movies. In fact I like movies with a slow build up more then a fast paced film. I just didn't think Collateral was a good movie. I didn't find anything good about it. I thought Foxx was bland and Cruise was horrible. I've never liked Mann and I probably never will.

 

I'm sure there are directors that I like that others don't like. Eli Roth is a key example. I like his stuff, but most people don't. M. Night is someone whose movies I loved. Everyone of them I enjoyed. That doesn't make them good movies, just that I liked them.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

If you don't like Heat, you don't like good films.

 

It's surprisingly that simple.

[Guest Hotbutter Spoontoaster]

Or surprisingly that subjective.

[MFer 0]

I just saw MV tonite and thought it was just OK. Jamie Foxx didn't really do much except fuck that black chick. The best part was when he said "just playin." That was some funny shit right there. I didn't think Colin Farrell was that great either. The movie just didn't seem to make it out of first gear. Not nearly as much action as I would've thought. BTW, I think that was the first movie I saw where there were no opening credits. Me and a couple of my buddies went. We went at 10, so it was easy to sneak in without paying. Plus we had alcohol so it was good times.

[FroGG_NeaL 0]

I just saw MV tonite and thought it was just OK. Jamie Foxx didn't really do much except fuck that black chick. The best part was when he said "just playin." That was some funny shit right there. I didn't think Colin Farrell was that great either. The movie just didn't seem to make it out of first gear. Not nearly as much action as I would've thought. BTW, I think that was the first movie I saw where there were no opening credits. Me and a couple of my buddies went. We went at 10, so it was easy to sneak in without paying. Plus we had alcohol so it was good times.

 

 

No fuckin' way. Jamie Foxx didn't do much except fuck a Black chick?