July 28, 2006
Crummy, Pointless, and Brain-dead
The old TV series with Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as vice cops Sonny Crockett and Rico Tubbs was of zero value, but it had some style, and more dark mood swings than a rock band. The movie just lies there, dumb, empty, Valium’d—and a colossal waste of money.
The sexy Chinese drug lord (Gong Li, of all people) looks great in spaghetti straps, but you can’t understand a word she says. The script is meaningless babble. And the criminal waste of Gong Li is grounds for sending Michael Mann to Hollywood hell for an unlimited stretch at hard labor.
I couldn’t understand a word Gong Li said in Memoirs of a Geisha (an awful movie), so maybe she should stop taking English-speaking roles.
Cat: | Time: 5:08 pm (utc+8)
July 28th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Yeah, I hated geisha too. Anyway, I was thinking about watching this movie tonight, but now, maybe not. :)
July 29th, 2006 at 4:55 pm
syl: The WSJ reviewer (Morgenstern?) liked Miami Vice so maybe you should see it and let us know what you think.
July 30th, 2006 at 1:35 am
michael mann is a friggin genius and we all know it — I am intentionally ignoring all reviews of ‘vice before I go 2 see it. Most critics don’t understand Mann’s style anyways…..hate to sound like a purist, but you know it’s true..
July 30th, 2006 at 12:30 pm
I liked the movie better than I thought I would, mainly due to Gong Li’s performance, which was stellar. I didn’t have to understand what she was saying, I could see it in her exotically beautiful face. It was Naomi Harris who was completely unintelligible to me.
July 30th, 2006 at 1:40 pm
jpmist: Most Chinese find Gong Li “common” and even unattractive, oddly enough. (I think they’re nuts.)
July 30th, 2006 at 7:04 pm
CM, I agree with your comments on Gong Li. I also heard the same about Ziyi from Asian men (and I think they must be blind).
July 30th, 2006 at 8:05 pm
Eyal: People here seem to think Zhang Ziyi is quite pretty (much moreso than Gong Li), though they also call her “lucky” which is a code word for a user of the “casting couch.” Anyway, old guys like us probably will always like Gong Li because of her performance in Ju Dou (the root cellar scene).
August 2nd, 2006 at 8:39 pm
Hi - Memoirs of a Geisha was a great movie I thought. It had a very good story line. I had no trouble understanding her English - perhaps you have been away from Gweilo-land too long Chairman?
August 2nd, 2006 at 9:17 pm
Rod: Yes, I only understand Gong Li when she speaks Chinese for some odd reason. ;-)
August 5th, 2006 at 11:43 am
I wonder if Rex saw the same movie as I did. MV had a plot, gritty realism and innovative camera work. Oh and Gong Li didn’t play a Chinese drug lord but the investment manager and assistant to the real drug lord. And not only could I understand her Engish but her small Spanish dialogue was ok too.