Friday, April 08, 2005

No ties, no socks, no problem: "Miami Vice"

Forgive the lack of posts (again). Was out of town on business -- someone has to teach people how to make urinal cakes -- and then catching up on a few TV dramas. I'm a "Deadwood" man; just something about seeing more dirt on people than in the streets, I guess. Meanwhile, the missus wants to hook me on "Grey's Anatomy," which I find interesting only because it features Mitch's lady in "Old School." Remember? She was from Denver. ("The Sunshine State. Gorgeous!")

Anyway, the TV show I was dying to watch was "Miami Vice," which has to be considered a watershed moment in DVD history. For me, this is the true value of Netflix. Movies? I can find plenty of those on cable. But "Miami Vice?" The last time I stumbled across that on TV was maybe five years ago, and I was staying up past midnight for days on end during that limited run. Now there's a remake in the works. So yeah, you can say I was pumped for the DVD set, starting with the two-hour "Vice" movie that started it all.

But where to begin? How about with that legendary theme, stretched out for the series premiere and ending with a slow foot-to-head pan of Don Johnson, decked out not only in his trademark white linen suit but also eyeliner. Hmmm, didn't notice that back in '84, but who wasn't wearing eyeliner then?

Sonny Crockett ... calling him cool is like calling John Goodman "a tad overweight." Forget being president. Anyone who can persuade men to wear pastels and forgo socks with loafers ... that's power. And let's not forget that Ferrari convertible, which I lusted after for, oh, my entire adolescence.

Of course, today Don's acting seems, well, a bit over the top. Growling every sentence, breaking into a crouch and whipping out the gun at every opportunity ... and then there's the dialogue. Oh, man, you really have to hear it for yourself. Consider this advice to Tubbs: "This is Miami, pal, where there are so many players you need a program." Or "You're here on a courtesy pass, New York (Tubbs again), so I recommend you take a conversational detour right away, capisce?" For the record, he also used "comprende?" Wow, a regular United Nations.

Yes, it really was high comedy to see Crockett and Tubbs take on Calderone ("The Colombian") more than 20 years later, and I'm jazzed for the rest of the series ... and hoping there's a "Where Are They Now?" featurette on Philip Michael Thomas, the "Oates" to Johnson's "Hall." Besides, this should kill time until I can get to "Knight Rider." "A shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exist ... "

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