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The Bottom Line

Writer/director Michael Mann begins his "Miami Vice" commentary track by saying the "Director's Cut" DVD label is actually a bit misleading. Mann goes on to say the theatrical release was also a director's cut and that this new unrated edition would be more accurately described as an extended cut.

Whether the "Unrated Director's Edition" is an improvement over the theatrical release is left up to each individual viewer to decide, but content-wise this new cut doesn't dramatically affect the tone or story laid out in the original version.



Pros

• Michael Mann's trademark style adds a little pizzazz to this undercover cop story
• The action scenes will leave your heart racing

Cons

• Any resemblance to "Miami Vice" the TV series is purely coincidental

Description

• 'Miami Vice Undercover' - Foxx and Farrell learn all about what it takes to be undercover officers from real agents
• 'Miami & Beyond' - Michael Mann and others discuss the need to film on location and the difficulties of doing so
• 'Visualizing Miami Vice' - From the camera angles, to the lighting, to setting up scenes
• Three behind the scenes featurettes focusing on weapons training, the Haitain Hotel scene, and staging the boat race
• Commentary by writer/director Michael Mann
• DVD Release Date: December 5, 2006

Guide Review - "Miami Vice" Unrated Director's Cut Edition

This big screen version of "Miami Vice" is very loosely based on the 1980s TV series and stars Oscar winner Jamie Foxx (reunited with his "Collateral" director Michael Mann) and Colin Farrell as two Miami cops who take on the drug trade.

Sonny Crockett (Farrell) and Ricardo Tubbs (Foxx) become involved in an multiple agency investigation of a sophisticated network of drug smugglers after stumbling onto an ongoing investigation. As they work to help take down some of the worst of the worst, their investigation leads them into deadly waters and - in Crockett's case - into the arms of the drug cartel's gorgeous financial whiz, Isabella (played by Gong Li). Will love/lust influence their work? Will two of Miami's finest be able to take down the bad guys without winding up dead? Those questions are answered in the theatrical release and this extended version of "Miami Vice."

The Bonus Features

The 'Making Of' style extras are interesting if not a little dry. The bonus features could have used more interviews or behind the scenes footage of Farrell and Foxx since the commentary track is done only by Michael Mann. And while Mann does a decent job of explaining the reasoning behind different scenes in the film, his delivery is very dry and analytical. That's fine in that you'd expect Mann to delve into his decision process, however it's not engaging enough to keep your interest for more than the first half hour or so. My suggestion: skip the commentary track unless you're really into Mann's work or you're a budding filmmaker.

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