I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

A man gets off a plane in Miami to upset world of normalcy. In simple terms the story is that he seduces an innocent waif and goes on a crime spree around the city, one of those sociopath protagonists who do whatever they please. Baldwin is superb in the role; if Fight Club was adapted a few years earlier he would have been the ideal Tyler Durden.It's actually more elaborate than that. At first it seems he might be doing all this for just money but there's no calculated rhyme to his madness or anything he plans to do with that money. What we have instead is an inscrutable narrator pulling a prank on reality. Posing as a cop, he beats and robs people, then later prevents a robbery. He has come to Miami with a stolen identity, a suitcase full of women's clothes, so we get to understand that all this has been going on for some time across the country. This part makes for some great viewing if you're someone who enjoys caprice. But what I loved more, was seeing him through the eyes of the girl in a way that it provides a center, elevates it above crime fantasy. She's a a naive creature in the big city, innocently trusting in peoples' good intentions; working as a prostitute but she dreams of an idyllic American life where she can own her own burger joint and have a house with a white- picket fence to come back to, a husband and kids. She's a marvel to watch, very serious about love. And us knowing he is playing with her heart, feigning love, without knowing how much he's prepared to prey on her.Abstract sparks fly. His fooling with reality, in and out of guises to no purpose other than he can get away with mischief, versus her deep yearning to be grounded. The most marvelous scene is when he takes her to a large house he has rented for them and seen through her eyes is a dreamy haven come true.You can think of it with Lolita in mind, the portion from Lolita's disappearance on, with Baldwin in the role of Quilty and the cop as the narrator who is continuously flummoxed by his wily nemesis. It captures more of Nabokov's mischievous spirit than Lynne's square adaptation.It shows up sometimes in lists about modern noir but it doesn't belong really. Instead I put it up for inclusion in my short list of cult items from the 80s (released right after but very much a product of the time), next to Breathless, Society, Blue Velvet and Repo Man.Noir Meter: 1/4

Having stolen the badge and wallet of the policeman investigating him, a hyperactive crook impersonates the cop to intervene in criminal activities in this unusual mix of laughs and thrills that has aptly been compared to Jean-Luc Godard's 'Breathless'. As with 'Breathless', the plot of 'Miami Blues' has no clear direction, which results in everything seeming spontaneous and unpredictable in the best possible way. Jennifer Jason Leigh is grating on occasion in the equivalent of Jean Seberg's role in 'Breathless' (she is a little too innocent and naïve) but there is a lot to like in how she offers stability for Baldwin with her housewife aspirations, and yet this comfort and certainty is anything but what Baldwin ultimately wants. Truth be told, Baldwin's motivations are sometimes confusing, but given his boyish energy when 'playing cop', he is probably meant to be taken as a child in a man's body as such; going about his life impulsively without thinking twice about the consequences of his actions. Whatever the case, Fred Ward is perfectly cast as his policeman counterpart. The tension between them simmers as Ward grills Baldwin on his past in subtle ways over dinner, and with his jaded demeanour and world-weariness, Ward is the near antithesis of what Baldwin aspires to be. However one dissects it, this is one truly offbeat motion picture and refreshingly unusual if imperfect.

Dear George Armitage, I was thinking about addressing my review letter to Charles Willeford, the great man who wrote the book on which your movie was based. But then I thought I ought to address it to you, because Miami Blues is a very influential film. Or lets say, it seems to have inspired the style of one of my favorite American filmmakers of the last 20 years - Terry Zwigoff. Zwigoff even referenced Miami Blues in Bad Santa.It is almost as if Zwigoff borrowed all the cynicism of Ghost World, Bad Santa and Art School Confidential from Miami Blues. Though it must be said that all these movies were based on the work of writers who had extremely cynical views about American life and culture.He also seems to have borrowed some of your style. Every scene in your movie is like an event. I mean, each scene could be a standalone video on Youtube. This is also the case with some of Zwigoff's films. I liked how you paid attention while selecting actors who played the smallest roles. They were all very memorable.Alec Baldwin really nailed Freddie Frenger - what a change from the usually portly all American hero persona (like Dave Robicheaux in Heaven's Prisoners) to the nihilistic punk in Miami Blues. But it is the cherubic Jennifer Jason Leigh who steals the show. Her character in the book was a lot darker than in the movie. Anyway, Leigh was adorable in the film as an airhead prostitute with a heart of gold. Fred Ward was decent I guess. But I thought he failed to convey how pathetic the Hoke Moseley character really was. Charles Napier - favorite of Russ Meyer also makes an appearance.There are no good or bad guys in the film. It is a messed up world. Everyone is pathetic or doomed. Nobody or nothing is really worth saving. Like the lyric from a punk rock song - "Everyone's an a*****, everyone's a creep. I look out my window, there is garbage in the streets." It is a shame you didn't make more movies, George Armitage.Best Regards, Pimpin.(8/10)

Everything about this production works. The casting was brilliant, the dialogue is spot on, and the charming menace of Alec Baldwins character is perfectly disturbing. This film balances between amusing, and unnerving. The musical score adds an emphatic punch. Every actor acquits themselves to perfection.I Never get tired of returning to this little masterpiece. George Armitage did a wonderful turn at refocusing the Charles Willeford pulp novel about Hoke Mosely, and redirected the focus on Junior Frenger. This comes off as a love story gone wrong in the wildest way.. Susan Wagners dream lover, and the the AKA of Herman Gottlieb are not the stuff of possibilities, but of unrelenting, and relentless, sociopathic behavior.This is akin to Billy Wilders ability to blend comedy and tragedy. For me, this is 5 Star stuff.