Deep Cover (1992) Reviews

• One of the best films I have ever seen

  Veleka2005-02-05

  Like "The Crossing Guard," this film, "Deep Cover," kept me on the edge of my seat. The scenes between Larry Fishburne and Charles Martin Smith are superb, the writing is virtually flawless, the action is exciting and fresh, and the topic is so relevant it's hard to believe it came out fifteen years ago. It could be released today, it's that topical. I love political action thrillers such as the original "The Manchurian Candidate," but that film, as exciting as it was, left me cold. This film has so much heart and love in it on top of all the thrills that I found myself astonished by the virtuosity of the artists that composed this gem. I'm already a huge fan of the actors. I will now be searching IMDb for the subsequent work of the writers, directors, and producers of this masterpiece. Bravo, "Deep Cover"! I'm telling all my friends about you.

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• Bill Duke's masterpiece

  lee39932007-01-08

  In what is probably his best role to date, with apologies to his turns as Ike Turner in the classic "What's Love Got to Do With It", and Morpheus in the "Matrix" series, Laurence Fishburne plays undercover cop Russell Stevens, who poses as drug dealer John Hull to apprehend a notorious drug kingpin. This role is played in a way that only he could, with the zeal that makes him one of Hollywood's most sought after actors. From the moment that he tells the D.E.A. agent that "the n****** the one that would even answer that question" you know that this role was made for him. Also Jeff Goldblum is at his best as a not-so-honest defense attorney. And let's not forget Gregory Sierra as a sadistic crime lord and one of the best character actors of our time, Clarence Williams III as an honest cop. Add the soundtrack and "Deep Cover" is a bona fide 10 in the urban drama genre, a true masterpiece.

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• A lot better than I was expecting, very good.

  Brad K.1998-10-30

  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.

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• A smart, dark, socially conscious thriller

  ALauff2005-02-15

  Artfully presented and blunt in its social critique, there is something deliciously honest about the undercover cop film, this being an ideal example of no-bullshit brio, starring "Larry" Fishburne as a dour L.A. agent who goes undercover to take down a Colombian drug syndicate. When he was a boy, Fishburne witnessed his father gunned down in a bungled liquor store bust; as an adult, he abstains from alcohol and drugs, and wears an impassive mien to keep the world at a safe distance. He's rigid, uncompromising, resentful of authority—he's the perfect mole, as his boss says (a squirrelly, race-baiting Charles Martin Smith), "because he fits the profile of a criminal." Once under, the plot provocatively centers on the agonizing moral compromises Fishburne must make and his realization that right and wrong is relative to the power of the almighty dollar. Deeply cynical about the government's purported "War on Drugs"—at one point even implicating the president by name—the film sees it as just another white power structure profiting from, and fueling, a largely minority industry; honest cops and citizens pay the price for this malfeasance, an imbalance Fishburne eventually exploits with aplomb. But as much as it takes authoritarian corruption for granted, Deep Cover's attitude toward interracial sexual relations is at once fresh and unpretentious: As Jeff Goldblum's sleazy lawyer emerges from a black mistress's apartment quipping to Fishburne about the allure of exotic flesh, the film both confirms and renders ridiculous the sexual legend that, furtively, white men desire black women (and vice-versa). Instead of giggling around the issue, the film promotes this coupling as a reality, thereby reveling in the adolescent quest for exoticism and proving it a ridiculous affectation; in other words, "Get off your ass, white boy. It's no big deal." Deep Cover is also a showcase for Fishburne to prove his mettle as a leading man. He's consistently captivating, evincing the inner torment, sensitivity, and moral indecision so rare for protagonists in this sub-genre—this should have been the role that made him one of America's leading men. Only toward the end does this hot-wire ride start to become cluttered with self-conscious gravity—Fishburne's voice-over starts to ring false when he drops stilted religious analogies—but this is for the most part a smart, dark, socially conscious thriller with the persuasive feel of noir.

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• Good thriller with a jaded, subversive edge

  bob the moo2002-04-14

  Having witnessed his junkie father killed Russell Stevens grows up to become a policeman and make a difference. When he is offered an undercover job by Gerald Carver he accepts and begins to build a relationship with David Jason in order to get to the main dealers. However as he is forced to deal drugs and kill to keep his cover he finds the lines between cop and criminal being lost – is he a cop pretending to be a dealer or a dealer pretending to be a cop? Larry (as he was then) Fishburne's first lead role was a typically dark vehicle. The story is the usual one of cop losing himself when undercover, however it manages to be more than that for most of the time. Co-written by Tolkin, who wrote The Player, this naturally has a nice cynical edge to it when it looks at the US's hypocritical approach to drug control and the political links between the street hustlers and the political high rollers who court respectability. The story does eventually settle into a traditional setting but even then it works well as a thriller. The multi-talented Bill Duke directs well with a gritty feel and a few nice touches. However several things are a bit iffy. For most of the film Fishburne's narration/voice over is a bit like a cross between Apocalypse Now and Blade Runner – it comes across as a little too dark and heavy and also explains things like we can't figure it out ourselves. However once you get into the film it's not as big a deal. My main problem lies with the characters. Fishburne is excellent, a real model of underlying anger and violence, Goldblum is good but perhaps a little OTT on the yuppie/violence thing, but there's good support from Smith and Spin City's beautiful (and often underused – but not here) Victoria Dillard. However the two main white characters (Goldblum and Smith) are both smeared with racist insinuations – Smith appears to insult his black officers and doesn't care about the junkies, while Goldblum is fascinated about all things black and talks about them as wild beautiful beasts and loves having sex with "black'. These things aren't a major problem, but with basically only two white characters in it, it's a little worrying that both are given that edge. However these are minor complaints that get lost with a good thriller. Fishburne excels and Duke delivers a story that is a good thriller but also has a jaded, subversive edge.

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