Miami Vice
2006 · Directed by Michael Mann
Original language: English
- action
- crime
- thriller
The story
A case involving drug lords and murder in South Florida takes a personal turn for undercover detectives Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs. Unorthodox Crockett gets involved romantically with the Chinese-Cuban wife of a trafficker of arms and drugs, while Tubbs deals with an assault on those he loves.
What it’s like
Digital video gives Miami Vice a grainy, nocturnal sheen: handheld camera that drifts close to faces in cramped cars and nightclubs, long unbroken shots tracking through humid streets, and an ocean-blue and sodium-orange palette where neon bleeds across wet asphalt and speedboats throw spray into hard daylight. Night scenes are lit by headlights, strobes and the blue of a monitor, so the city feels both glamorous and unmoored. Sound leans on a pulsing electronic score and a soundtrack of pop and dance tracks, punctuated by sudden silences and the blunt crack of gunfire that arrives without warning. The vibe is sleek, sun-bleached melancholy, the kind of thing to sit with late at night when you want atmosphere more than resolution. Pacing is deliberate and often languid, with long stretches of watching and waiting broken by abrupt, brutal violence, including several shootouts and a graphic killing or two, and some sexual content and strong language. The emotional arc follows two weary men who grow more isolated as their cover erodes and a romance and a personal attack pull them off course. It suits adult viewers who enjoy stylish, mood-driven crime films and are comfortable with hard edges.
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