Miami of Old

by TheMovieSmith | created - 10 Nov 2021 | updated - 04 Jan 2022 | Public

Long before it was the playground of the rich and famous Miami, Florida was a sleepy little city on the southeast coast of Florida known mostly for its Latin population, illegal activities and mostly for being a city sized retirement home.

Which of these films set entirely or partially in Miami before the glam and glitz the city is known for now is your favorite?

Note: all films were filmed before 2000.

Discuss your sunny pick here!

Vote here!

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1. Notorious (1946)

Not Rated | 102 min | Drama, Film-Noir, Romance

100 Metascore

The daughter of a convicted German spy is asked by American agents to gather information on a ring of German scientists in South America. How far will she have to go to ingratiate herself with them?

Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Louis Calhern

Votes: 107,313 | Gross: $10.46M

2. The Miami Story (1954)

Approved | 75 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir

Fed up with the rising crime rate in Miami, the police chief and leading members of the city council hire a former gangster who's gone straight to help eliminate the biggest crime syndicate in the city.

Director: Fred F. Sears | Stars: Barry Sullivan, Luther Adler, John Baer, Adele Jergens

Votes: 373

3. A Hole in the Head (1959)

Approved | 120 min | Comedy, Drama

Widower Tony is trying to keep a small Miami hotel afloat while raising a 12-year-old son. He's forced to ask his harried brother Mario for help, but he'll only bail Tony out if he quits his bohemian lifestyle and marries a sensible woman.

Director: Frank Capra | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Edward G. Robinson, Eleanor Parker, Carolyn Jones

Votes: 2,850 | Gross: $11.00M

4. The Bellboy (1960)

Approved | 72 min | Comedy

70 Metascore

Mute bellboy Stanley works at the luxurious Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach. In spite of being a serviceable and friendly employee, the clumsy Stanley gets successively into trouble with his mistakes.

Director: Jerry Lewis | Stars: Jerry Lewis, Alex Gerry, Bob Clayton, Sonnie Sands

Votes: 4,806

5. Goldfinger (1964)

PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller

87 Metascore

While investigating a gold magnate's smuggling, James Bond uncovers a plot to contaminate the Fort Knox gold reserve.

Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Sean Connery, Gert Fröbe, Honor Blackman, Shirley Eaton

Votes: 202,638 | Gross: $51.08M

6. Thunderball (1965)

PG | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller

64 Metascore

James Bond heads to the Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.

Director: Terence Young | Stars: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger, Adolfo Celi, Luciana Paluzzi

Votes: 127,148 | Gross: $63.60M

7. The Happening (1967)

101 min | Comedy

Young drifters kidnap rich businessman Roc Delmonico for kicks and demand $200K for his release. But none of Roc's relatives or Mafia associates want to part with the money. So Roc switches allegiances and plots revenge.

Director: Elliot Silverstein | Stars: Anthony Quinn, George Maharis, Michael Parks, Robert Walker Jr.

Votes: 839

8. Tony Rome (1967)

Not Rated | 110 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

Tough Miami P.I., Tony Rome's hired by a millionaire to find jewelry stolen from his daughter. In the search, he has several encounters with local hoods as well as the Miami's police.

Director: Gordon Douglas | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Jill St. John, Richard Conte, Gena Rowlands

Votes: 3,235

9. Lady in Cement (1968)

R | 93 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama

During an ocean dive, Miami gumshoe Tony Rome (Frank Sinatra) finds a woman's body with her feet encased in a concrete block and sets out to solve the murder case.

Director: Gordon Douglas | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Raquel Welch, Richard Conte, Martin Gabel

Votes: 2,824

10. Black Sunday (1977)

R | 143 min | Adventure, Crime, Drama

57 Metascore

When a Black September terrorist group begins a plot to carry out a massive terrorist attack in the United States, an Israeli commando works with the FBI to identify the target and conspirators, and prevent the plan from succeeding.

Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern, Marthe Keller, Fritz Weaver

Votes: 9,085 | Gross: $15.77M

11. Hot Stuff (1979)

PG | 91 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

Miami police fence stolen goods at a storefront-sting operation equipped with a two-way mirror.

Director: Dom DeLuise | Stars: Dom DeLuise, Suzanne Pleshette, Jerry Reed, Ossie Davis

Votes: 1,376

12. Smokey and the Bandit II (1980)

PG | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

41 Metascore

The Bandit goes on another cross-country run, transporting an elephant from Florida to Texas. And, once again, Sheriff Buford T. Justice is on his tail.

Director: Hal Needham | Stars: Burt Reynolds, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Dom DeLuise

Votes: 17,606 | Gross: $66.13M

13. Super Fuzz (1980)

PG | 97 min | Action, Comedy, Fantasy

Red powder from a nuclear explosion gives a police officer super powers as long as he doesn't see anything red. He is eventually framed for murder and is unsuccessfully executed by many different methods.

Director: Sergio Corbucci | Stars: Terence Hill, Ernest Borgnine, Joanne Dru, Marc Lawrence

Votes: 8,197

14. Absence of Malice (1981)

PG | 116 min | Drama, Romance, Thriller

64 Metascore

When a prosecutor leaks to a Miami reporter that a liquor wholesaler is suspected in the murder of a union head, the man's life begins to unravel.

Director: Sydney Pollack | Stars: Paul Newman, Sally Field, Bob Balaban, Melinda Dillon

Votes: 14,764 | Gross: $40.72M

15. Scarface (1983)

R | 170 min | Crime, Drama

65 Metascore

In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.

Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio

Votes: 917,059 | Gross: $45.60M

16. Invasion U.S.A. (1985)

R | 107 min | Action, Thriller

29 Metascore

A one-man army comes to the rescue when the United States are invaded by communists.

Director: Joseph Zito | Stars: Chuck Norris, Richard Lynch, Melissa Prophet, Alexander Zale

Votes: 11,026 | Gross: $17.54M

17. Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach (1988)

PG | 90 min | Comedy, Crime

18 Metascore

The Police Academy's commandant will be honored at a police convention in Miami Beach. At the airport he picks a wrong bag with stolen diamonds. The "owners" want them back.

Director: Alan Myerson | Stars: Bubba Smith, David Graf, Michael Winslow, Leslie Easterbrook

Votes: 38,394 | Gross: $4.24M

18. Miami Blues (1990)

R | 97 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama

72 Metascore

An ex-con's first act of freedom is moving to Miami where he restarts his old criminal ways with even more potency.

Director: George Armitage | Stars: Fred Ward, Alec Baldwin, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Cecilia Pérez-Cervera

Votes: 10,171 | Gross: $9.89M

19. The Bodyguard (1992)

R | 129 min | Action, Drama, Music

39 Metascore

A former Secret Service agent takes on the job of bodyguard to an R&B singer, whose lifestyle is most unlike a President's.

Director: Mick Jackson | Stars: Kevin Costner, Whitney Houston, Gary Kemp, Bill Cobbs

Votes: 147,744 | Gross: $121.95M

20. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

PG-13 | 86 min | Comedy

37 Metascore

A goofy detective specializing in animals goes in search of the missing mascot of the Miami Dolphins.

Director: Tom Shadyac | Stars: Jim Carrey, Courteney Cox, Sean Young, Tone Loc

Votes: 325,287 | Gross: $72.22M

21. The Specialist (1994)

R | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller

A woman entices a bomb expert she's involved with into destroying the mafia that killed her family.

Director: Luis Llosa | Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone, James Woods, Rod Steiger

Votes: 69,801 | Gross: $57.36M

22. Donnie Brasco (1997)

R | 127 min | Biography, Crime, Drama

77 Metascore

An FBI undercover agent infiltrates the mob and finds himself identifying more with the Mafia life--at the expense of his regular one.

Director: Mike Newell | Stars: Al Pacino, Johnny Depp, Michael Madsen, Bruno Kirby

Votes: 332,434 | Gross: $41.91M

23. There's Something About Mary (1998)

R | 119 min | Comedy, Romance

69 Metascore

A man gets a chance to meet up with his dream girl from high school, even though his date with her back then was a complete disaster.

Directors: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly | Stars: Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller, Lee Evans

Votes: 329,025 | Gross: $176.48M

24. Any Given Sunday (1999)

R | 162 min | Drama, Sport

52 Metascore

A behind-the-scenes look at the life-and-death struggles of modern-day gladiators and those who lead them.

Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Al Pacino, Dennis Quaid, Cameron Diaz, James Woods

Votes: 125,918 | Gross: $75.53M



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