DEEP COVER
A review in the public domain
by The Phantom
(sbb@panix.com)
(With this review, the Phantom is continuing his effort to review other than just horror films. Though the stupefying BASIC INSTINCT nearly caused him to give up in despair, he soon realized that it was less than likely that all new exploitation films could be as bad as Verhoeven's big-budget bomb; thus, he has persevered and with this review turned his attention to the action genre. Sorry, no bleached blonde bisexual ice-pick killers this time, phans.)
BASIC INSTINCT notwithstanding, there is no inherent reason why exploitation films have to be bad -- it's just that they so frequently are. Yet some of the most enjoyable films ever made are exploitation films, and given the increasing acceptance of bloodshed, four-letter words, and nudity in mainstream Hollywood films, there is sometimes little or no difference between a big-budget, respectable studio release and a low-budget crowd-pleaser -- except the budget.
DEEP COVER, the subject of this review, is such a film, for while it has all the hallmarks of an exploitation film -- from its low budget, to the marketing it has received, to its target audience -- it's also a literate, thought-provoking, and entertaining film that undeservedly may be overlooked because of its subject matter, its budget, or its limited release.
As the lights dimmed at the UA Criterion 7 (formerly the UA Criterion 6 before management decided to pay for much-needed renovations by splitting one adequate-sized theater into two cinematic bowling alleys) in the heart of Times Square, the Phantom expected little more from DEEP COVER than its slightly sleazy trailers and print ads promised: Larry Fishburne as an undercover cop who gets involved with various bad guys and kills them. As an added bonus -- and for a bit of not-so-new-anymore role reversal -- the film throws in Jeff Goldblum as a white drug dealer who becomes partners with Fishburne LETHAL WEAPON-like before he's either shown the error of his ways or the inside of an ambulance (frequently one in the same thing in standard-issue exploitation films). Add to the mix a pumping soundtrack, some large-caliber weapons, a generous supply of talcum powder masquerading as cocaine, and as many car chases as the filmmakers can squeeze out of a severely limited budget, and you have yourself one fairly decent, low-rent NEW JACK CITY clone.
Or do you? For surprise of surprises, DEEP COVER has a little more to offer its audience than just the standard mix of glamorous cops and glamorous drug dealers getting into glamorous shootouts, only pausing long enough to tell the children in the audience that they shouldn't try any of this at home, and that even though everyone in the film seems to be enjoying himself, everything they're doing and saying is wrong, bad, and evil. Remember, winners don't do drugs and kill people; they just pay $7.50 to see other people do drugs and kill people.
But DEEP COVER goes a little deeper than this, and that makes all the difference. To start, it has a quite literate script (by Michael Tolkin and Henry Bean, who wrote the excellent new film THE PLAYER and INTERNAL AFFAIRS respectively). Too, it has a director who apparently learned how to direct by doing something other than watching MTV. Bill Duke, who's previous feature A RAGE IN HARLEM was not entirely successful, but was at least an honest effort, brings a steady hand to the proceedings, and he nimbly avoids most of the cliches of the action film genre while still giving DEEP COVER a unique and attractive look. Most important (for an exploitation film), he keeps the film moving even when the screen isn't filled with car chases or shootouts.
Further helping to lift DEEP COVER from the mire of a standard action flick are Fishburne and Goldblum's performances, which are for the most part restrained, in character, and effective. True, seeing Jeff Goldblum on cocaine is a lot like seeing Jeff Goldblum not on cocaine, but his hyperactive performance is perfect for the fast-talking lawyer/drug dealer he plays in the film. And Fishburne -- obviously slumming here after his outstanding performances in Spike Lee's SCHOOL DAZE and John Singleton's BOYZ IN THE HOOD -- succeeds in giving his character the thoughtful, introspective demeanor upon which the story hinges.
DEEP COVER sets out to explore what happens to Russell Stevens, a troubled but dedicated cop who badly wants to make a difference and is offered the opportunity to go undercover as part of an operation to nab high-level drug dealers. As part of his cover, Stevens (renamed John Hull for the role) must himself pose as a drug dealer -- exactly the kind of person he joined the force to fight -- and work his way closer to the heart of one of the major illicit drug operations on the West Coast. Will he become corrupted by the easy money? Seduced by his great-looking new suits? If you can't guess, you haven't seen enough of these kinds of films. Yet it is, still, a fascinating and dark journey that we take with Fishburne's character, and the screenplay rarely comes up for air once Hull takes to the streets.
Unfortunately, there are a few not-so-fascinating things about the film; among them the rather convoluted plot, a hodgepodge of stereotypical characters and scenes, insightful and well-written moments of introspection, and preposterous conspiracy theories. The incessant narration also does the film more harm than good; though it is occasionally helpful to hear exactly what Hull is thinking at any given moment, it would be better if we could ourselves realize what's going through his mind by actually watching the film -- more or less what we all came to Times Square that evening to do -- rather than by being told straight out by the writers of an occasionally lazy screenplay. The Phantom's belief that narration is often more like having a loud-mouth three rows behind you constantly telling you exactly what's plainly going on before your eyes than it is a legitimate cinematic technique has not changed due to the generally unnecessary and overbearing narration in DEEP COVER.
But putting this aside -- something that is easy enough to do, given the low expectations that most of us have for an exploitation film -- DEEP COVER turns out to be more entertaining, thought-provoking and fun than it has any right to be. Its limited budget shows -- and shows frequently -- but the film is generally not hampered by an inability to open things up a little, be it having more than 12 people on the street at any one time, to running car chases through other than completely deserted streets and tunnels. Its weak and predictable ending is more than compensated for by a very strong opening, and although the screenplay calls for three or four more characters than the film itself can really sustain (including Clarence Williams III as an honest cop who tries to save Hull from his life of crime), it also works well enough, often enough, and in enough other ways, that we really don't mind.
DEEP COVER is in fact more like SERPICO than it is like NEW JACK CITY (though it's not nearly as good as SERPICO); although it glamorizes what it should probably be demonizing, it's more than just a all-surface effort. DEEP COVER is the kind of film that gives the term "B movie" a good name, and the Phantom suggests that phans awaiting the imminent release of LETHAL 3 give DEEP COVER a try and see for themselves why entertainment and intelligence don't necessarily have to be mutually exclusive.
: The Phantom : sbb@panix.com : cmcl2!panix!sbb
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