During the 1980s, U.S. Customs Service special agent Robert Mazur uses his undercover alias "Bob Musella" to become a pivotal player for drug lords cleaning their dirty cash. Later, he infiltrates the world's largest cartel, and helps expose the money-laundering organization of drug lord Pablo Escobar and take down the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, which had secretly taken illegal ownership of First American Bank shares in Washington, D.C. He survives the deception and has a long and productive career.
By the time Robert Mazur and his team launched Operation C-Chase, Florida was reeling from an unprecedented avalanche of drugs, cash and Cartel-related violence. Mazur remembered how the 1979 Dadeland Mall massacre put the community on alert. "This Medellín Cartel hit squad jumped out of this truck in broad daylight with machine guns in the middle of this mall and sprayed the guys they wanted to kill," he said. "It scared the hell out of the entire town because we never imagined the kind of violence that happened every single day in Colombia would now be exported to Florida." By 1984, Dade County in Florida had become the nation's most murder-prone metropolitan areas, with 23.7 murders per 100,000 population, while Florida's murder rate was surpassed by only three states. See more »
Goofs
The film is set in 1985, there's a shot outside a Florida liquor store that has a "Lotto" sign. The Florida lottery didn't begin operations until 1988. See more »
Quotes
Robert Mazur:
Roberto, I am glad you are here. But there is a part of me that wishes you hadn't taken that risk.
Roberto Alcaino:
Without family or friends what kinda world it is be. There will be no reason to be alive. Hmm? It's a good day.
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Tom Sawyer
Written by Alex Lifeson, Geddy Lee, Neil Peart & Pye Dubois
Performed by Rush
Courtesy of Anthem Records/Ole & Island Def Jam Music Group
Under license from Universal Music Operations Ltd, Anthem Records/Ole & Ole Core Music Publishing
(c) 1981 Ole Core Music Publishing (SESAC/SOCAN)
All rights reserved, used by permission
Administered by Ole See more »
There is some excellent acting here, especially from John Leguizamo and Diane Kruger, but I found myself hoping I could "fast forward". Not only is the pace problematic, the film fails to exact the kinds of suspense that you expect from a film like this. As such, my involvement in what happens to the character s was minimal. It didn't help that the period (the 1980s) is rarely invoked, so we are kept at arms' length from the location as well as the characters. And the plethora of dialogue, and the many characters who come and go, helped seal the film's fate.
There are so many films about the drug problem in the U.S. (e.g., "Traffic", "Scarface", "Sicario", "Clear and Present Danger", "Savages", "Miami Vice", "Bad Boys") that this film doesn't stand out at all. The unique perspective of looking at an undercover operation that focuses on the money laundering situation is indeed refreshing, and the best part of the film. From that POV it is certainly worth watching. Had the direction, music, and photography been at the same quality as the acting, this would have been a truly memorable film.
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There is some excellent acting here, especially from John Leguizamo and Diane Kruger, but I found myself hoping I could "fast forward". Not only is the pace problematic, the film fails to exact the kinds of suspense that you expect from a film like this. As such, my involvement in what happens to the character s was minimal. It didn't help that the period (the 1980s) is rarely invoked, so we are kept at arms' length from the location as well as the characters. And the plethora of dialogue, and the many characters who come and go, helped seal the film's fate.
There are so many films about the drug problem in the U.S. (e.g., "Traffic", "Scarface", "Sicario", "Clear and Present Danger", "Savages", "Miami Vice", "Bad Boys") that this film doesn't stand out at all. The unique perspective of looking at an undercover operation that focuses on the money laundering situation is indeed refreshing, and the best part of the film. From that POV it is certainly worth watching. Had the direction, music, and photography been at the same quality as the acting, this would have been a truly memorable film.