Deep Cover

Going into seeing this movie, I wasn't sure about what I was going to see. I was expecting something kind of good (because of Roger Ebert's review), but not great (because of some other reviews). But I was not expecting such a good film. Laurence Fishburne (Boyz in the Hood, What's Love Got To Do With It) stars as a cop who has avoided drugs and the crime life because of his father's involvement and death in it. Soon he is offered a job going undercover as a drug dealer. He accepts it. After a little while he gets himself deep into it. He forms partnerships with high ranked drug dealers, which includes Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park, Nine Monthes). Soon he becomes less of an undercover cop, but more of a drug dealer. He soon realizes that he is betraying his cause and joining up with them. This presents a problem for him, because he likes the power as a drug dealer and the money, but he also vowed he would never become like his dad. This is a very well done movie, with a great script. Laurence Fishburne is excellent in the lead role. Jeff Goldblum (who I have never seen in such a deep role) is also strong delivering a surprisingly good performance. A good, but violent film.

Hard-hitting and stylish, this film quickly moves beyond the usual notion of 'undercover drug work' into an altogether more practical & unpleasant understanding...

The film is well-paced and, most appropriately for this year, introduces a female art-gallery owner as it develops a relationship subplot. As the story progresses, the film breaks boundaries further & demonstrates an exceptionally sharp sensibility -- but fairly much returns to the standards for the climactic scene.

While not a Scorsese or Tarantino masterpiece, this film is very highly recommended.

This was really a perfect movie for this genre of film. The understated quality acting of Lawrence Fishburne is superb. I really enjoyed seeing the main character's downward spiral. There is excellent character development through the plot which is not the usual cliché. The acting all around is very high caliber, and the tone and pace of the film (directing) is spot on. Highly recommended, highly watchable, one of my top ten favorite films. Films are always better when there is dramatic conflict, and seeing the main character torn apart slowly provides compelling cinema. More films should be made like this! (with less explosions / body counts etc...) As a frame of reference - I am a huge fan of the early James Bond (connery) films, and can't stand the new ones...

Lawrence Fishburne is almost always excellent, but in my opinion one of his finest performances was in the early 90's classic Deep Cover. The film was quite original at the time and was presented in an intelligent manner. Deep Cover was directed by Bill Duke, who you might remember from action classics Predator and Commando. While Deep Cover has its share of action, it is a very gritty and absorbing crime thriller. Lawrence Fishburne and Jeff Goldblum started out playing gutter trash thugs in the Death Wish series. Here they play more fully fleshed out characters in a movie that looks at crime in a different way. Lawrence Fishburne goes so deep undercover, it seems like he can never go back.As a whole, I found Deep Cover to be excellent. If you like cop or mob movies, you should take a look at Deep Cover.

Wonderfully stylish movie with Laurence Fishburne at his very best. Lots of cool visual techniques and great music (featuring Snoop Dogg's debut with Dr Dre - "187 on an undercover cop"). Jeff Goldblum gives one of his better more enigmatic performances. Lots of cool dialogue with some prosaic (if that's the word!) monologues from Fishburne. A must see - own it on video and watch it over and over...