Rent Deep Cover (1992)

90s neo-noir that tackles issues of race - Deep Cover review by KW

'Deep Cover' is a neo-noir crime thriller in which Laurence Fishburne (at this point still Larry) plays a cop who moves from being in uniform to going undercover as a drugs dealer to try to take down the hierarchy of fellow dealers from within.

Plotwise this has more holes than an English packet of polos or American lifesavers (I'm not going to win noir fiction prizes with lines like that). Why does the cop take the assignment when it makes absolutely no sense for him to do so? Really the only plausible answer is that it is the predestination of a noir set-up that makes it so. Why can a city's entire police force not manage to stop a limousine fleeing the scene of a crime and why is it okay to stay in that limousine for a chat when the chase is over? How come 1990s policing is so devoid of ethics that drug-dealing and murder by officers barely raises an eyebrow?

In a sense to raise such questions is to miss the point, as this is one of those noir films that to me seems to exist in a parallel kind of reality, where neon lights reflect brightly on a rainswept street in a city that doesn't sleep but whose dark corners emit moody voiceovers that provide plot exposition to paper over underwritten cracks (I'm still not getting that noir writing gig).

Taken as a straightforward thriller then, 'Deep Cover' has some unresolved issues, but this is not a straightforward thriller and unresolved issues are the bread and butter of its characters. Casual racism and both conscious and unconscious bias underscore the interactions of many of the central characters in a way that may be more shocking to a contemporary audience than it was in 1992. The film doesn't get preachy but we are left in no doubt where it is coming from.

Laurence Fishburne is good and is ably supported by Jeff Goldblum, whose hair gets more slicked back as he gets more greedy and evil. That tends to happen in films of this era. It's like the villains blow all the money they spend on Brylcreem and then apply it to their heads all in one go.

In fact, Jeff Goldblum is, at the start of the film anyway, fairly low in the pecking order of villainous villains. His immediate superior is a very nasty and murderous piece of work, though I found his resemblance to Groucho Marx a little off-putting.

I rented the Masters of Cinema blu-ray edition of this film and I found the transfer to have really vibrant, clear colours and the sound was great. It seems to have been remixed to surround sound, which really allows the impressive soundtrack of the film to do its work, perhaps as never before.

An exciting, significant and slightly unusual film, that is well worth checking out.

Stylish Cop Thriller - Deep Cover review by GI

A cop thriller filmed in a noir style and with a subversive undertone. The story though seems a bit clichéd when seen today and there have been better films that deal with the pressures and conflicts of police undercover work. Laurence Fishburne plays uniformed cop Russell who is recruited by DEA agent Carver (Charles Martin Smith) to infiltrate and work his way up in a major drug trafficking ring run by a South American cartel. The aim to nail the foreign politician who runs things. The film follows Russell as he struggles with the boundaries of his role especially as he has a past that causes him particular angst. When his loyalties get tested and political priorities interfere Russell begins to disobey his boss. There's romance, violence and some of the characters are a little stereotypical although the film has it's entertainment value but it seems a little dated today.