On the Big Board |
Position |
Staff |
In Brief |
17/159 |
David Mumpower |
A sleek follow-up to Collateral, Miami Vice perfectly encapsulates the darker undertones of the frequently misunderstood TV series. And Naomie Harris is wonderful. |
40/47 |
Amanda Jones |
One of the blandest movies I have ever seen. (Was Jamie Fox's hair painted on?) |
47/52 |
Les Winan |
Aimless, shameless and pointless. Everyone involved should be ashamed. |
47/68 |
Michael Bentley |
Visually nice, but still manages to feel uninteresting and almost stale. Falls short of the TV series. |
137/200 |
Max Braden |
A couple of gun battles make this long long movie worth sitting through. |
Cue the Jan Hammer music.
Back in the 1980s, the decade became synonymous with the colorful, gritty series that remains associated most strongly with Michael Mann even today. He was the executive producer of Miami Vice, and it was distinguished by a number of his trademarks. From the show's cinematic approach to its contemporary soundtrack to a number of experimental images and colors, the cop series set itself apart as a slick, stylish representation of the Miami underworld. Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas had the central roles, with excellent supporting turns given by Edward James Olmos, John Diehl and Michael Talbott.
Now, that seminal series will be re-created as a feature length film by Michael Mann himself. He both writes and directs the 21st century update with Colin Farrell in the Sonny Crockett role, and Jamie Foxx portraying Ricardo Tubbs. In this modern take on the story, undercover cops Crockett and Tubbs will be contending with a multi-national criminal enterprise with a leader and CFO who is of Chinese/Cuban decent. She'll be portrayed by the marvelous Gong Li, and Naomie Harris (28 Days Later) will play Tubbs' love interest.
The series was wildly popular when it was on the air, and given the fact that Mann is the person behind the camera here, it should translate well to a big screen production. Look for Miami Vice to be a big hit during the summer season of 2006. (Kim Hollis/BOP)
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