"Vice" old & new

• email this story
• read comments (43)
• post a comment
• 
  
  

It's been 22 years since the first Miami Vice season on the tube in '84-'85, and I never rented the February '05 Vice DVD that had that entire season on it. But reader Dewey Yeatts of Whitehall, PA, is saying that Michael Mann's just released Miami Vice features is based on a February '85 Vice episode called "Smuggler's Blues," in much the same way that Mann's Heat ('95) was a big-star feature version of the 1989 TV movie he wrote and directed called "L.A. Takedown."

Is there anyone who's seen the big-screen Vice who also remembers "Smuggler's Blues" in detail? And if so, does Yeatts have it right?

Here are Dewey's similarites: (1) The movie and the episode "both open with the death of a drug runner/informant and his family"; (2) "What follows is a federal officer pulling Crockett and Tubbs into a secret meeting also attended by Lt. Castillo. In both versions, the Fed knows about a leak in the system, and pleads with Crockett and Tubbs to go undercover and make contact with a drug lord"; (3) "In both versions, they hit the underworld to obtain transportation (in the TV show, they wind up in a plane piloted by Glenn Frey -- in the movie, they go to work on the competition's 'go fast boats' and then fly their own plane to Latin America)"; (4) "They then make contact with a drug lord, and the meetings in both versions are weird (though for different reasons"; (5) "After the meeting they go back to their seedy hotel room and check the doors and windows. (To my eye, the room in the movie seemed to be the exact same one from the episode -- the movements of the detectives seem very similar during the sequence.)"

"The movie at this point sets up more twists and plot points, which is normal, since the film has nearly three times the running time of the episode," Yeatts writes. "But Crockett's seduction of Gong Li's Isabella is right out of the TV show's playbook. How many episodes involved around romantic entanglements that dovetailed with the "case"? And how many episodes revolved around one of the girl detectives being put in danger? (See next item...)

"In the TV episode, on the partners' return to America, Trudy is taken hostage by the bad guys and wired for explosives. In the movie, upon the partners' return to America, Trudy is taken hostage by the bad guys and wired for explosives. (It should be noted the radical difference in the way these scenes are handled in each version.)

"To my mind, the film may have lacked the show's pastel fashions, had hipper music (in 20 years will the movie soundtrack seem dated? Of course it will) and almost zero humor (though I felt there were a few dry lines that crackled.) But overall, the movie to me played like a larger-scale episode. The story beats from "Smuggler's Blues." The romantic issues. The lady-detective-in-peril. Scenes of cars and boats going very very fast. (Mann did resist the urge to go Phil Collins on us however.) The end, where they are to meet at a point along the river, reminded me of a similar sequence in the pilot episode.

"In the end, Mann did not make an homage -- he just made a better version of what was already pretty cool and cutting edge. The fact that all the major cop characters had exactly the same names (Switek, Zito, etc.) says that Mann was not turning his back on his creation -- just enhancing it."

"One last thing: although the Cro-Magnon audience I saw the film with was restless at times (you don't want to know about Friday night screenings in my neck of the woods`-- mouth breathers, the lot of them), the crackerjack third act (the siege in the trailer, the firework-laden finale) sent them out of the theater crackling. So the word of mouth may be better than you think. Let's hope so. This is the movie that should get a sequel."

comment #1

michael Tyree says ...

I went to the movie with 6 others and only 2 of us liked it, in fact loved it...and it was my roommate and I. Let's face the facts that the story was a little confusing and we never really find out the central question of who was informing the bad guys, but that didn't matter and it shouldn't matter. The action and violence was badass and how anyone couldn't love how the bad guys at the end were literally Blown Away is beyond me. There was clapping after the film, I just feel that most boyfriends were too scared to clap because their girlfriends didnt get it and didnt like Colin's greasy hair...but that is what all girlfriends will probably think.

comment #2

tom says ...

miami vice SUCKED,face it,jeff

comment #3

guy steele says ...

I haven't seen Vice yet (Plan to today) But when Smuggler's Blues first aired it was considered one of the best Vice episodes. I can tell you one thing today's vice won't have in common with that older episode even if the plot is the same: Glen Frey's music. He had a costarring role and was able to place a couple of his songs from his solo album. Now at the time these songs were huge but time has told the tale: Don Henley was the more talented Eagle.
p.s. Just incase someone says no Joe Walsh was the talanted one let me point out he came later and wasn't part of the original lineup.

comment #4

gh says ...

my girlfriends comment after the movie -- "it was too... soft".

like I'd never heard that before. yuk yuk.

comment #5

gh says ...

Personally I though it was pretty great. The video look made it feel like hyper-real voyeuristic surveillance footage. But Li and Farel had zero chemistry... which sorta worked for the detatched vibe... but didn't make it any more compelling to sit through those stretches.

comment #6

Bill W. says ...

This was the most boring movie of the summer. Even THe Lake House moved faster.

comment #7

Chris D. says ...

Good call, Yeatts. But then Mann is just staying true to the formula that was always there. Crockett falling for the wrong woman. Tubbs warning his partner to be careful. Trudy in jeopardy. I have found something in all of Mann's work, even the less than stellar. Well, maybe not The Keep. And the music over credits sent me chuckling out of the theater.

comment #8

c fontana says ...

Has anyone actually watched 'Heat' lately? I still love it, but Pacino's ludicrous over-acting, De Niro's self-satire, and the abysmal, laughable dialogue nearly sink it. The "face-to-face" scene is hilariously hammy, something befitting a Vinny Chase snippet from 'Entourage'..."I AM Queens Boulevard"-->"Brother, you are goin' DOWN".

The mood Mann sets is brilliant, but good god, the dialogue is just silly.

comment #9

macca says ...

I do think that it had a "Smugglers Blues" feel to it that really hit home for me after their first meet and they go to the hotel, guns out, which was straight off the tv show. I never felt like it took away from the movie, but it did take away some of the hope that I was going to see something unique and unexpected unfold infront of me.

I think that Jeff hit the nail on the head when he said that this was not Mann's best, but was still better than most others efforts. I did enjoy the movie, specifically the 1st and 3rd acts. I also think it take a lot of nerve to not even have opening credits...and I loved it.

I hate to say it but I felt that C. Farrel was the weak link. Between his inability to connect with anyone (audience or characters), hold his accent (sometimes I though he was playing Texas) or have any real action beats, he was badly utlizied.

And does anyone know what M. Mann's love afair with Chris Cornell is all about? 2 Audioslave tracks in Collateral and 3 (or 4) in Miami Vice. Odd.

comment #10

Nicol D says ...

Bang on!

I am a bit of a Mann freak and own both available seasons on DVD.

Most of the major plot points/beats from the movie as told by the reader are indeed from Smuggler's Blues. I watched it again last week and after seeing the film Saturday, that is the episode Mann elaborated on.

Everything the reader commented upon including the Trudy abduction is correct.

The film was fantastic and was very much like the series (cold opening, abrupt messy ending, story beats etc.)

I think people are not liking the film because they remember the series incorrectly. This does not capture the look of the series but it does capture its dark soul and essence.

Also , Mann does not deny certain elements of the series (ie. Crockett may live on a boat, Tubbs may be from New York, Crockett may have an ex-wife and child) he just doesn't deal with them.

The film is flawed but still fantastic. It is also a major landmark in digital cinema and will be known as such.

I know it is a long shot but I would love a sequel. Mann could just produce and come up with the story now that he has set the tone.

The only actor I would have looked harder for is the one playing Castillo. Olmos was such a huge force of nature on the show that the new actor, Henly, did not match up. He seemed very generic. Not bad, not great.

Still though, excellent film.

comment #11

says ...

According to Olmos, Mann did ask Olmos to reprise his role as Castillo, but Olmos wanted to commit to his Galactica schedule. It's certainly testimony to the power of Olmos that he's the one thing from the original series that would've fit in this new Vice.

(It's also interesting that Olmos passed up Vice for Galactica, a television show that's even darker than virtually anything on a movie screen these days. We've come in the last twenty years, baby.)

comment #12

says ...

According to Olmos, Mann did ask Olmos to reprise his role as Castillo, but Olmos wanted to commit to his Galactica schedule. It's certainly testimony to the power of Olmos that he's the one thing from the original series that would've fit in this new Vice.

(It's also interesting that Olmos passed up Vice for Galactica, a television show that's even darker than virtually anything on a movie screen these days. We've come a long way in the last twenty years, baby.)

comment #13

Joe Greenia says ...

Mann'a a commited recycler. Whole hunks of dialogue from Heat were lifted, almost word for word, from the old Crime Story show.

comment #14

richard crawford says ...

No matter. I think the movie is masterful. the first half is uninvolving....A KIND OF JUNK YARD L'AVENTURA and then BINGO.....IT soars. Colin Ferrell is the soul of the movie. Michael Mann is a v.interesting director.

comment #15

clarkman says ...

Mann's alternately hit & miss with me ... this was more miss than hit. Enjoyed it while watching it, but afterwards the experience was a big null void in my consciousness.

Ditto macca's comment about Chris Cornell. Mann's 80s soundtracks are faves of mine: Tangerine Dreams' THIEF and THE KEEP, the timless bizarro mix of MANHUNTER ... but what explains his obsession with derivative growly rock ballads these days?

Personally, I hate it when movies rely on the lyrics of a pop song to tell you what emotion you're supposed to be feeling. If the acting, editing, and camerawork can't do that for you, a lame song is not the answer.

comment #16

oddDuck says ...

Agree on the questionable music choices, and especially the Audioslave (which is admittedly, a band I can tolerate). Mann can simply do a lot better than these generic rock ballads and "nu-rock" crap songs (like the linkin-park jay-z craptacular song and that awful phil collins cover). I love Mann's movies, but seriously, what the fuck is up with some of his music choices?

comment #17

says ...

I walked out -- only the second time in my life. The first time was the Hot Chick. Truly horrible.

comment #18

christian says ...

i knew "collateral" was a bad movie during that scene where the coyote crosses in front of the taxi and while cruise and foxx stare pensive, some awful early 90's style song rises with lyrics like, "i'm just a man/a man on the run/..." something like that. turgid and self-serious. i actually laughed out loud in the theater.

"miami vice" looks like mo' of the same.

comment #19

Aladdin Sane says ...

Mann also likes to utilize Moby too. He featured a couple songs in Heat and used the song 'Anthem' very effectively in MV.

Anyhow, the more I think about the film, the more I liked it. I remember my parents watching the show, but I am a little young to remember it - I was more preoccupied with GI Joe, Transformers and the A-Team at the time. Essentially I was going in with a blank slate. My father enjoyed it though, and even went so far as to say he'd see it again (which is something he rarely says).
I thought Farrell was great in it. I don't really know why people think he sucks, but I guess it's just preference. I thought he was as good in this role as he was in The New World.
I do think it would have been interesting if the movie had focused on the character of Tubbs more - maybe if there's a sequel they will. Foxx was fantastic.
Anyhow, not sure where it sits for the year overall, but it's the tops of the summer.

comment #20

nickc says ...

Miami Vice is the most entertaining movie of the year and another kick-ass Michael Mann movie. Saw it for the second time last night and it got better and better. Loved every single frame of it.

comment #21

Rob G says ...

I echo Nick C.'s comments: Vice is by far the best studio film to hit screens this year. It's flawed, no doubt, but Mann's craftmanship blows every other major release off the screen.

The man shows everyone else how it's done.

comment #22

jean says ...

I feel bad for the guy who said he walked out. Means he missed that great shoot-out at the end. But he shattered any credibility when he said the other film he walked out of was THE HOT CHICK. Most of us had the good sense to pass on that one in the first place...

Even though I love Audioslave, I agree that Mann is very "brave" in his music choices, to put it nicely. But when it's a good one (Moby's "God moving over the face of water" from HEAT) it's transendent.. the perfect note for the mood.

comment #23

RONNEE says ...

Colin Farrell's "American" accent was the same one used by the new Batman last summer. Gruff but quiet and measured and totally unconvincing.

comment #24

says ...

"I walked out -- only the second time in my life. The first time was the Hot Chick. Truly horrible. Posted by: at July 31, 2006 09:09 AM"

HERE'S A FUNNY TAKE ON THAT.\

"Boredom at Its Boredest" by Michael Tully

http://blogs.indiewire.com/tully/archives/010848.html

comment #25

Chad says ...

Im a huge fan of the show, and the film DID recall the same story beats, editing and overall esscence of its TV counterpart. Even the music cues were similar, so anyone saying its nothing like the show except for the character's names is NOT as informed on the show as they think they are. Would having Crockett wear a pink shirt REALLY make everything better?

I also love how everyone is complaining that it didnt have enough action. HEAT had ONE major action sequence (and 2 smaeer ones at the beginning and end), THIEF and MANHUNTER had ONE mahot sequence at the end, and COLLATERAL actually got WORSE when the action-y ending popped up.

As for Colin's greasy hair... well, he is undercover, IN CHARACTER.

All of these are NON POINTS of debate... if you didnt like the story or performances or pace, fine... but think netx time before you write a criticism.

comment #26

Patrick says ...

'Miami Vice' was a piece of shit! Anybody who
liked it is clearly mentally out of it.

comment #27

Chuck says ...

I'm relatively unimpaired mentally, and I think "Miami Vice" is easily the best film of the summer (admittedly no large task.)

comment #28

Mathew says ...

"Boredom at Its Boredest"

That was pretty funny. I love this part: "...but due to lack of budget (digital video)" Now I know Mann shot it on HD for aesthetic reasons. He notes on the Collateral commentary that HD can see into the night and shadows better than film. However the average movie goer sees the digital artifacts and thinks "this looks cheap." Actually you don't have to be average just particular. I haven't seen the film but it seems from the comments and reviews that Mann has made a cops and robbers 'art' film. That's all and good but art films usually don't make money and with an overall budget of $200 million + (including adverstising) I wonder if Miami Vice will break-even.

comment #29

Patrick says ...

Well, whatever! 'Miami Vice' is trash and so are
those who like it. Any single episode of '24' or
'The Shield' blows 'Vice' right out of the water!

comment #30

Patrick says ...

Mathew - 'Vice' needs $240 million to break even.

comment #31

nickc says ...

nope...MV is yet another Michael Mann masterpiece.

comment #32

Thung says ...

That was from me Mathew, so are we friends now?

comment #33

J says ...

I am really upset at how bad this movie was. I expected it to be the usual self-serious Michael Mann-style thriller and, having read the script, knew how thin the plot was... but still!

Gong Li was horribly miscast, her lines very difficult to understand. Huge chunks of the exposition from the script were jettisoned (such as an opening scene where Crockett and Tubbs race boats and thus are already tied into the drug trade) in favor of (as far as I can tell) longer sex scenes. The ending had to be completely rewritten (due to Jamie Foxx's walkout) and now makes ZERO sense... I could go on.

Here's a question for the MV apologists, since our boys go undercover to root out who busted their informant, who did? The movie doesn't answer the ONE question it poses to exist... I suppose, having heard the tenor of people's apologies, that it doesn't matter because it's stylish and cool... but at least explain your inciting incident!

Oh yeah, and what with all the "best Mann opening ever" talk, here's a new statistic -- "largest Mann budget ever." This is a huge bomb. And they knew it from mid-production onward...

comment #34

sprofessor says ...

I just saw the film earlier today. A very difficult film, not to mention unconventional for the crime genre, which its supposed to belong to. Mann overestimated his audience big time and I can't see this film being popular or even watchable amongst the type of folks the marketing was trying to attract.

I'll have to see the film again to really judge but i really loved it. Although i can certainly understand the negative reactions the film is receiving. The marketing is all wrong, as is the release date and people are expecting a totally different film. But it still doesn't deserve to be so quickly dismissed.

What it cost to make is a whole other issue. Mann was over indulgent and will probably have trouble getting a budget this size again.

comment #35

zoey says ...

I know Mann very deliberately chose not to use it, but I still think the original "Vice" theme blaring over the trailer would have added another $10 m to the first weekend take. On a talk show, Foxx referred to "In the Air Tonight" as the "Vice" theme. Uh. No.

comment #36

Steve Schalchlin says ...

After about an hour of a completely pointless "plot," attrocious acting, washed out cinematography, loud music, and garbled, unintelligible dialogue, I poked Jim in the arm to wake him up and we walked out.

comment #37

yet another fake David Poland says ...

I enjoyed the movie but why did the whole cast have to act like they had sticks up their asses. Everybody in the damn movie was so serious. The movie could have really used some humor. Dry, dark, whatever.

comment #38

Steve Schalchlin says ...

You're right. Not a speck of humor. Everyone was trying SO hard to act tough. The acting and the dialogue were like a parody of a really bad TV cop show. I literally could not take it. No amount of shaky "hip" camera could disguise the awfulness.

comment #39

oddDuck says ...

Interesting complaints about the lack of humor, which do have merit. I personally loved the tone. It was dark, serious and dangerous. Some of the dialogue teetered on the edge of cornball parody, but none of it took me out the movie's vibe. Also, someone wrote upthread:

"our boys go undercover to root out who busted their informant, who did? The movie doesn't answer the ONE question it poses to exist... I suppose, having heard the tenor of people's apologies, that it doesn't matter because it's stylish and cool... but at least explain your inciting incident!"

Well who said that was the ONE question the movie poses to exist?!? Sure, it's what gets the investigation going, but things quickly take a turn. Kinda reminds me of the plot twists in HBO's The Wire. I liked that things were messy in Vice. The cartel kingpin gets away, the informant is still hidden, Isabella's life is in tatters, Trudy's life is in jeopardy (although I guess we know she'll be fine). Everything's not tied up in a little neat bow. Maybe this ending doesn't follow the rules of screenwriting 101 100%, but who cares? It fits the vibe of the movie, and I loved it.

comment #40

CinemaPsycho says ...

Glen Oliver of IGN FilmForce mentioned this in his review. He's the only critic I've read who noticed the similarities, so I thought it was only fair to mention him.

I'm curious about who wrote the episode. Was it Mann? If not, then somebody should get some story credit for the film. I can't tell you how many reviews I've read that claim Mann created the series. I guess they didn't stick around to see Anthony Yerkovich's name in the film's end credits.

comment #41

Dixon Steele says ...

Come to think of it, has there EVER been a hint of humor in a Michael Mann picture?

Think about it...

comment #42

Susan Burchfield says ...

"Smuggler's Blues" was a beautifully filmed episode nominated for an Emmy Award for Directing for Paul Glaser.

comment #43

b says ...

out of all the crap put out by studios, i just don't see how mv rates such anger. walked out? wow. you must be one high standards havin' totally intense individual. it's not the best movie ever but i thought it did what it set out to: entertain me for a couple hours, not blow my mind or lead me to a higher spiritual plane. what do people expect from a cops and drugs movie?

i enjoyed it - even with the couple behind me who thought they were back home in their living room, commenting on every scene.

all i was originally going to comment on was the shitty music choices though. evidently others here feel the same. i loved soundgarden and rage against the machine, but somehow audioslave irritates the living shit out of me. weird. those parts with the audioslave dubbed over really brought me out of the scenes. totally shook me.

Post a Comment