Conference ljsrv1::tv_chatter

127.0. "South Beach" by AIMT::PETERS (Be nice or be dog food) Wed Jun 09 1993 00:42

    South Beach is a modern remake of "It takes a thief" and other burglar
    gets forcibly recruited by government stories. The story opens
    with a young drug runner who is recruited by an FBI Agent to help them 
    catch a big time fence. The guy has a younger sister Kate who is always 
    trying to keep him out of too much trouble she is a burglar who loves
    fish. 
       The younger brother trys to to pull a triple cross he switches the
    diamonds.  His plan is to take the boat back out after everyone is off 
    and leave the fence to explain where the diamonds are. He has already 
    mailed the diamonds  when they go to the drop off. Every thing works fine 
    till at the drop off of the diamonds by the fence to a diamond exchange.
    The diamond exchange decided it was to dangerous to let the boat leave
    the way it came so they will supply land transport after the deal. The
    guy is trapped. He gets captured by the fence when the diamonds are
    found to be fake.
        The FBI agent talks to the wife and pickups the younger sister they
    convince her to try to fake an exchange the diamonds for the brother.
    She agrees. In the meeting a delegation of Russians trying to get back
    the stolen diamonds for the rebuilding of Russia. He puts her up in a 
    hotel run by a ex-FBI recruit. The owner and  Kate hit it off immediately. 
    They try the exchange and the younger brother gets killed. The FBI
    agents didn't cover the brother after the initial exchange he is chased 
    by a thug who wounds him but who he finally eludes. Kate has him in her 
    arms and tries to pull him to safety, fails. Just then the fence shows 
    up and shoots the brother in her arms. The FBI agent gives her 5000 
    dollars to get out of town and says he says you can't help now. Kate
    say "You lost you quota of recruits this month". He say "I glad you
    understand the complexities of the situation."    
       Kate gives the money to he brothers widow to get away till this
    cools down. The widow and Kate are talk about his death when the
    widow mentions her son got a toy truck in the mail. Kate runs out to see 
    the truck just as the little bow rolls it towards the canal. Kate catches
    it just before it hits the water. She finds the diamonds in the back.
    The fence's men watching the house she her with the diamonds. They
    chase her she retreats to the hotel where the owner helps her escape.
    She goes to the FBI headquarters as says if you catch the guys who
    killed my brother I will give you the diamonds the FBI agent tells her
    he doesn't make deals and if she doesn't bring in the diamonds by
    sunset he will arrest her. The widow send the son away and is just going
    to take off herself when the fence's men catch her. Kate gets back to the 
    hotel she learn the fence wants the diamonds for the widow. Kate sets
    up the exchanges. The FBI agent shows up and says it is sunset no
    diamonds you are off to New York for protective custody. On the way to
    airport she asks to see his authority to do this he hands her his 
    ID she throws it out the window. They get to the airport she makes a
    big scene and says he is taking advantage of her and she won't put up
    with it any more I am leaving. Security shows up to investigate the
    problem. The FBI Agent says she is under arrest and it is all lies. She
    says then show them you ID. He reaches for his wallet then remembers she
    threw it out the window. Security escorts them both towards detentions.
    She quickly gets away. She contacts the Russians and have them delay
    the FBI agent till she can make the exchange and she will give them the
    diamonds. They arrange a meeting with the FBI agent out in the middle
    of no where The Russians say he is handling things badly and they are
    taking over the investigation. They take his car and say by the time
    you get back you will have new orders from Washington. They leave the 
    FBI agent walk about 50 feet steps into a van and says "Did I give you
    enough time to place the other tracer?". No problem announces a shadow
    figure in the van. They follow. The Russians go back to the hotel. The
    FBI agent looks in and sees Kate and the two Russians. He breaks in. 
    It isn't Kate. It is the hotel owner. Kate meets with the fence. She
    set up the diamonds in a glass angel over the river. she gets the
    fence's man to drop his gun and let the widow go. The fence pulls a gun
    and orders her to toss him the diamonds. She throws the angel to the
    fence he has to drop his gun to catch the angel. She pull a gun. She
    says this to to show you how it feels to have some precious to you
    taken from your very arms and she shoot the angel. It explodes diamonds
    fall through grating bridge into the river. The fence goes waco. The
    FBI agent and the police show up and take the fence away. The FBI agent
    says you didn't do what I think you just did. No the real diamonds
    where in the fish tank in his office since she made the deal yesterday.
       The FBI agent and Kate have a quick bicker to show they both respect
    each other but that they truly hate each other. She is forced to join
    the the FBI recruit program. 

     All in all an average show. Great characters some good lines but plot
    that would sink a battleship. If they clean up the plot without loosing
    the characters it could be a good show.
                          Jeff Peters

Some decent acting but, as you said, the plot was horrible. It relied a lot on
the maximum theory of stupidity where everyone has to be as stupid as possible
in order for the story to work.

The brother,brother's wife, our heroine, the FBI guy...all had to be as stupid
as possible at different points in order to further the plot.

and how did she manage to get all those diamonds into the tank without anybody
noticing?

I was expecting some decent double crosses and something other than the sraight
forward plot...
 
Metz

    I was amazed that she kept returning to the same hotel.  At one point,
    the "bad guys" were chasing her and she returs to the hotel to pack her
    bags - stupid!!
    
    Hopefully the writers will realize that their audience is a little bit
    smarter than they originally believed.  Or maybe I've read too many of
    John Grisham's books (the Firm, Pelican Brief) which have great/smart
    characters running and making deals for their lives.

  I got about 1/2 hour into this and that's all I could take. 

  One thing that drives me nuts about Hollywood in general is that they have
gone overboard with P.C. thinking lately. In this show the woman thief emitted
tons of unnatural dialogue early on explaining how she and her partner were a
"good guy" crooks.

  It felt as if they were walking a tight rope begging a super sensitive
audience to accept her as a hero even though she broke the law. Heck, why not
just make her sleazy and charming and let the P.C. bleating about family values
fall where it will? 

  All the good guys were cardboard crooks that were squeak clean underneath,
all the villains gave the Hollywood bad guy sneer, and the ones that did act
sleazy were used as cannon fodder. I'm really getting sick of that formula. 

  George

    
    is this the same woman who played on Mann and Machine?
    
    

    re -1 
    Yes.
                   Jeff Peters