The story of a cop going undercover as a drug dealer is not new, but the execution here is excellent. I love Laurence Fishburne's narration throughout the movie as he grapples with the moral ambiguity of his situation. Jeff Goldblum playing an eccentric drug dealer is also a treat.

The movie is also a time capsule capturing the fashion and music of the period. Jeff Goldblum wearing an oversized black leather duster to make him look more like a baddie is hillarious.

Depressingly all the overt racism of the period is on display including a soliloquey from Laurence Fishburne's handler, a white cop, about "crack babies" (a myth that has been debunked).

This quote from the movie is just as applicable today as it was 31 years ago:

"Politicians like dark faces so they can scare the suburbs into voting Republican."