Miami Blues

R

Released Apr 20, 1990

1 hr. 39 min.

Comedy

Mystery & Thriller

List

85%

27 Reviews

Tomatometer

62%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

After Junior (Alec Baldwin) is released from prison, he plans on starting a new life in Miami. But when he kills a man in the airport, he flees the scene and finds Susie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a mild-mannered prostitute searching for stability. The two opposites become romantically involved, and Junior steals a badge and gun from a veteran detective (Fred Ward). Using the officer's identity, Junior embarks on a crime spree and convinces Susie that he is the perfect man.

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Critics Consensus

Laced with hard-boiled thrills and pitch-black comedy, Miami Blues delivers a disarmingly off-kilter crime caper.

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Steve D

The cast makes more of it than it deserves.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/29/24

Full Review

Alec B

Baldwin's unhinged performance is the best thing about this movie. Such crazed energy from a villain is rare in these types of thrillers.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/14/23

Full Review

Jack O

I don't need to say anything about this. I think this is a dark comedy.... I don't need to say it because it's a decent movie it wasn't fantastic but it was all right.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

06/22/23

Full Review

decadepast d

I'm surprised the critics like this movie more than the audience. Probably because it was ahead of it's time. Not many people saw it when it came out and one might say that it's aged poorly. However I can watch this movie and appreciate it for what it is. An excellent crime drama with a little bit of comedy sprinkled in for good measure. It's almost like something Tarantino might have done. Underrated IMO

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/19/23

Full Review

DanTheMan 2

Despite not all the jokes landing, Miami Blues boasts one of Alec Baldwin's most unhinged performances comparable to that of a modern-day Robin Hood in this neo-noir cat-and-mouse chase thriller all perceived through the lens of a disarmingly off-kilter dark comedy. It balances its mean streak with sunlit hard-boiled thrills leaving Miami Blues as this perfect encapsulation of upsetting the norm that hinges primarily on the brilliance of its leading cast, which would otherwise appear weightless.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/13/23

Full Review

matthew d

Alec shoots and robs his way to disaster. Alec Baldwin wears the craziest outfits while playing a deranged con artist and serial killer running around the bright blue and neon purple covered Miami area in the crime thriller Miami Blues (1990). It's got a wild black comedy sense of humor and odd characters, but a lot of charm and edge. It feels uncomfortable when Baldwin takes advantage of Jennifer Jason Leigh's innocent prostitute Susie. Leigh is incredibly sympathetic and interesting as the gullible girlfriend. She's a natural beauty and very sweet with a great Florida accent. Baldwin's accent is closer to a Californian surfer or something. Baldwin takes a full force performance with instant killer instinct that shows he's on edge and hysterical, but conniving as he cleverly robs criminals and cops alike. Miami Blues has a Catch Me If You Can type story with the aesthetic of Scarface to the point that Baldwin even does an impression of Al Pacino's infamous criminal character. Fred Ward is fabulous in a great character actor role. His toothless detective with dentures get his mojo back as he hunts down Baldwin's madman. He's got that lethal and cavalier attitude like a Tommy Lee Jones type, while Baldwin is going more for that Martin Sheen Badlands vibe, especially since Jennifer Jason Leigh is similar to Sissy Spacek's character. It's all Bonnie & Clyde or True Romance. Miami Blues is creative, high energy, dangerous, and smart with a brutal sense of humor as Baldwin runs and guns as he robs and lies.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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George Armitage

Director

Alec Baldwin

Frederick J. Frenger Jr.

Fred Ward

Sgt. Hoke Moseley

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Susie Waggoner

Nora Dunn

Ellita Sanchez

Charles Napier

Sgt. Bill Henderson

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Anton Bitel

Little White Lies

Armitage has crafted a sunlit neo-noir rooted in quirky character and darkly comic encounters, as two very different men try on each other’s personas for size, and the woman caught between them must also decide between a path of virtue or vice.

Feb 6, 2023

Full Review

Budd Wilkins

Slant Magazine

George Armitage’s captivatingly eccentric neo-noir is assisted by three magnetic leads and a healthy dose of black comedy.

Jul 27, 2022

Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

A reminder that Hollywood isn’t really dead...

May 24, 2022

Full Review

Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

If it's missing heart, it's got guts to spare. [Full review in Spanish]

Nov 1, 2022

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

There are many offbeat ideas in a movie that would be weightless without them.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 7, 2022

Full Review

Peter Canavese

Celluloid Dreams

Alec Baldwin's first starring role as a thuggish anti-hero in this terrifically cast eccentric crime comedy/drama. A movie of its time (1990) that holds up today.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jul 21, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

After Junior (Alec Baldwin) is released from prison, he plans on starting a new life in Miami. But when he kills a man in the airport, he flees the scene and finds Susie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a mild-mannered prostitute searching for stability. The two opposites become romantically involved, and Junior steals a badge and gun from a veteran detective (Fred Ward). Using the officer's identity, Junior embarks on a crime spree and convinces Susie that he is the perfect man.

Director: George Armitage
Executive Producer: Edward Saxon, Fred Ward
Screenwriter: Charles Willeford, George Armitage
Distributor: Orion Pictures
Production Co: Tristes Tropiques
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 20, 1990, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $8.8M
Sound Mix: Dolby, Surround
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

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