Coverage:
by
Laurence Washington

I didn’t much care for "Miami Vice" during its five year run in the ‘80s. I basically didn’t like it because I couldn’t tell the good guys from the bad guys. Enter "Miami Vice" the movie 2006. Although the feature film is based on the 1980's TV action/drama, and its creator Michael Mann is still at the helm, I didn’t have trouble distinguishing the lines between the bad and the good guys. Gone are original cast members Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas. They have been retrofitted by box office draws Colin Farrell (Sonny Crockett) and Jamie Foxx (Ricardo Tubbs), two names that will probably guarantee this undercover cops and drug dealer romp around South Florida will be a hit. After two FBI agents are gunned down, the FBI recruit local cops Crockett and Tubbs to go undercover to plug the leak in the FBI and bring down drug kingpin Jose Yero (John Oritz) and his partner, Isabella (Gong Li). Crockett and Tubbs pose as transportation experts to infiltrate Yero’s drug smuggling operation. However, Crockett doesn’t count on falling in love with Isabella, dangerously intertwining his love life and his career. Michel Mann knows how to protect the box office and deliver as the film’s third act focuses on speedboats and numerous firefights that turn Miami Beach into a drive-by shooting gallery. Although the thrills might leave the audience on the edge of their seats, like "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Miami Vice" runs 30 minutes too long. But unlike Pirates, I could tell Mann exactly where to make the cuts in this film.