The New Cool

I have to admit that stepping into the theater, I had lowered expectations for Miami Vice. The theatrical trailer made it look like an MTV style action flick full of unintentional cheesy dialogue. Well... after seeing it, all I can say is that this film went beyond my expectations. I thoroughly enjoyed it! Before we get into what I liked about Vice, lets set a few rules for watching it:

1. Try your best to ignore the plot. Why? Because its not all there. These days its hard to create an original cop story, and writers sometimes try to get too creative. I enjoyed the plot, but I can totally see how people would get confused or feel cheated by all the "unanswers".
   
2. Do your homework. If you're not already a fan of the original Don Johnson/Philip Michael Thomas hit TV series, do yourself a favor and get to know the background. The movie doesn't explain how Crockett and Tubbs became agents, and for good reason! I am very happy that this movie isn't three hours long.
3. Treat all the drugs, money, and reasons for the "mission" as MacGuffins. It is a bit confusing, and it is ultimately unimportant. In some movies you just have to ignore certain plot devices that move the story forward. I hate it when critics overemphasize on story and plot in action thrillers.
   

Okay. I liked the new Vice because it was beautiful, the action was exciting, and it was so damn cool. I haven't seen a movie this cool in a long time. I have seen Jamie Foxx in Any Given Sunday, and he was not cool. However, in this movie he is the epitome of cool. Despite the 80s hair style, Colin Farrell plays a very smooth Sonny Crockett.

It must be said though that Vice is very much a man's wet dream. From the fights, to the gun fights, to the cars, planes, boats, and "hard" dialogue, I can see how men would enjoy this film right off the bat. A lot of the "coolness" comes from material objects. Everything from the condos, to the man toys, to the clothes, all look expensive. Women may have to look for appeal elsewhere, such as in the actors, or the beauty of each scene.

Speaking of beauty, Michael Mann and his crew did an excellent job of making each and every scene just exquisite. Whether its a scene with action, actors and dialogue, supercars racing on the street, or racing boats cruising at top speed in open water, they all look fantastic. They really know how to make something good look even better.

The music in the film is well done. I'm sure Mann was trying to keep with the formula that made Vice successful in the first place: the MTV style. Back in the day, it was Jan Hammer's opening theme, and background music by various hit bands that made the TV series so popular. Mann did a decent job of compiling a good soundtrack and inserting those tracks at the right moments in the film. Two disappointments: 1) Jan Hammer was not invited to do a track or two, 2) Mann made no effort to recreate the most famous scene from the TV series, despite putting a modern cover of the Phil Colins song, that was integral to that scene, in the end credits. Missed opportunities.

Perhaps what I enjoyed the most was that it was a darker, higher budget version of the 80s TV series. Not only did it bring back memories, but the movie did an even better job of portraying how slick Vice was. I feel I've said enough. If you go see this movie, watch it for what it is, and perhaps you'll enjoy it too.