Miami Blues (1990)

An ex-con's first act of freedom is moving to Miami where he restarts his old criminal ways with even more potency.

Director:

George Armitage

Writers:

Charles Willeford (novel), George Armitage (screenplay)

Stars:

Fred Ward, Alec Baldwin, Jennifer Jason Leigh

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alec Baldwin	...	Frederick J. Frenger Jr.
Cecilia Pérez-Cervera	...	Stewardess
Georgie Cranford	...	Little Boy at Miami Airprt
Edward Saxon	...	Krishna Ravindra at Miami Airport
José Pérez	...	Pablo
Obba Babatundé	...	Blink Willie, Informant
Fred Ward	...	Sgt. Hoke Moseley
Jennifer Jason Leigh	...	Susie Waggoner
Charles Napier	...	Sgt. Bill Henderson
Matt Ingersoll	...	Mourning Hare Krishna
Jack G. Spirtos	...	Pickpocket Victim
Raphael Rey Gomez	...	Pickpocket
Tony Paris	...	Pickpocket's Accomplice
Wendy Thorlakson	...	Toy Store Cashier
William Taylor Anderson Jr.	...	Crack Dealer

Storyline

When Fred Frenger gets out of prison, he decides to start over in Miami, Florida, where he starts a violent one-man crime wave. He soon meets up with amiable college student/prostitute Susie Waggoner. Opposing Frenger is Sgt Hoke Moseley, a cop who is getting a bit old for the job, especially since the job of cop in 1980's Miami is getting crazier all the time.

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Plot Keywords:

neo noir | prostitute | girl stripped down to panties | female frontal nudity | sex scene | 

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Taglines:

Real badge. Real gun. Fake cop.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 April 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Le flic de Miami

Filming Locations:

Kendall, Florida, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,002,997, 22 April 1990, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$9,888,167

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tristes Tropiques

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was produced by Jonathan Demme and contains as part of cast and crew many individuals who worked in previous and future films directed by Demme. In the cast, actors Obba Babatundé, Charles Napier' who are regular cast members in several Demme films; producers Edward Saxon, Kenneth Utt and Gary Goetzman' - who also appear as actors in this movie; Martine Beswick was in Melvin and Howard (1980) and Alec Baldwin was in Married to the Mob (1988); the cinematography was provided by Tak Fujimoto; editing by Craig McKay; costumed designer Eugenie Bafaloukos worked as costume supervisor in Something Wild (1986) and casting director was Howard Feuer.

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Goofs

When they have to buzz you in through a locked coin shop door, they also have to buzz you out. But Frenger just goes through the door after shooting Pedro and the coin shop owner. No one buzzes him out, and the door would be locked.

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Quotes

Frederick J. Frenger Jr.: Everything's turning... all orange... and silver.

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Connections

References Gandhi (1982)

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Soundtracks

Felicia My Love
(uncredited)
Music by Les Baxter

User Reviews

Alec Baldwin walks away with quirky crime picture, having the time of his life

Alec Baldwin sports a great haircut in Miami Blues and knows it. He struts and swaggers through the movie like the cock of the walk, having a high old time and giving us one, too. It's an exhilarating, watch-this performance that can't help but call attention to itself but luckily happens to fit the character.

The character isn't so much fun. He's a happy-go-lucky psycho just sprung from prison and landed in Miami, where he brushes off a Hare Krishna acolyte in the airport by breaking his finger (the poor guy dies of shock). At his hotel he orders up a hooker (Jennifer Jason Leigh); they hit it off and pair up, mainly because `Princess Not-So-Bright' has trouble with independent thought. Then Baldwin is off and running through Dade and Broward Counties, stealing wallets and identities, staging impromptu holdups, and running giddily amok.

Tired old cop Fred Ward picks up his scent, and even shares a meal of many brews and Leigh's pork chops with the couple. But Baldwin turns the tables and ambushes Ward in his ratty old residential hotel, putting him in the hospital. The upside is that now Baldwin's got a new identity – Ward's – with a gun and a badge to prove it. Flamboyant and reckless, he continues his felonious spree like an overgrown kid playing cops and robbers. But he can't keep it up forever, not even in the anything-goes milieu of South Beach....

Miami Blues is drawn from a crime novel by Charles Willeford, who wrote (he died before the picture was adapted) in the playful, inventive Elmore Leonard vein. There's not much plot, just enough to hold together the characters, which it's about (and the movie's full of quirky characters, memorably including Shirley Stoller). But, though Ward gets top billing and Leigh flashes her credentials as a graduate of the Meryl Streep Academy of Accents, it's Baldwin's movie. If you're fond of ham, you're in for a feast.