062 - Deep Cover

Synopsis: Policeman pretending to be drug dealer becomes drug dealer pretending to be a policeman (sort of..)

Director: Bill Duke

Actors: Laurence Fishburne, Jeff Goldblum, Clarence Williams III

Date: 1992

How viewed: Lovefilm rental

Rating: 4/5

David Meyer says:

It's a classic B-movie cop thriller with a twist set in the LA cocaine trade. Cynical? Oh my, yes. Swell shoot-outs, hilarious one-liners. Smart fun.

I say:

This film has everything that the previous film in my list (Mad Dog and Glory) didn't. It convinces. The street slang sounds right, the drug dealers (and their suppliers) look the part, the violence is explicit, and, unlike Robert de Niro in 'Mad Dog', Jeff Goldblum successfully plays against type, evolving into a truly scary psychopath. Fishburne is a cop persuaded to go undercover to nail the top guys in the drug supply pyramid. However he's too successful and starts to enjoy the power and the money, to the point where he resigns. However the last piece of the jigsaw he and Goldblum are planning goes wrong, but he makes amends eventually (well, sort of). As David Meyer says, it's a classic B-movie, and if you can stand the violence it's good fun, though it loses a few Brownie points for the voice over. However, recommended.     

061 - Mad Dog and Glory

Synopsis: Meek detective falls in love with gangster's moll 

Director: John McNaughton

Actors: Robert de Niro, Bill Murray, Uma Thurman

Date: 1993

How viewed: Lovefilm rental

Rating: 2/5

David Meyer says:

A whimsical, violent mixture of love story, crime story and comedy.

I say:

This is a film that fails spectacularly on all levels! It concerns a meek detective (or scene of crimes investigator? or police photographer?) who accidentally saves the life of a local gangster, who in turn tries to befriend him and gifts him a girl for a week as a thank you present. Detective falls in love with girl, gangster wants her back, culminating in stand-off, and eventual happy ending. So, let's see, the title is annoying as you expect a Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle (the detective is ironically called 'Mad Dog' due to his avoidance of all confrontational situations), Robert de Niro doesn't do timid, Bill Murray doesn't do psychotic, though against my better judgement I have to say Uma Thurman is passable! The film could have been pitched much lighter (sort of 'Irma la Douce', but then you'd have needed the equivalent of Billy Wilder and Jack Lemmon), or much heavier (but you'd have needed David Lynch and Dennis Hopper), but is actually just a mess. Even the publicity photo (above), is misleading - who looks like the timid detective, and who the gangster???