10 Movie References In Grand Theft Auto Vice City Only True Fans Noticed

Rockstar Games has always taken heavy inspiration from movies when crafting their stories. Max Payne 3, for example, takes many cues from Tony Scott’s Man on Fire. To this effect, the Grand Theft Auto series is chock full of movie references. The following list will focus on the references made in the second entry of the PlayStation 2 trilogy, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

The homage to the ’80s pays tribute to countless bits of the decade’s culture. Some of these are more subtle than others, but they all come together to create Vice City’s vibrant and addictive world. Despite the aged graphics and gameplay, the game holds up because of how perfectly the developer captures the era.

10 Ken Rosenberg

Tommy Varcetti’s trusty lawyer bears a striking resemblance to David Kleinfeld from Carlito’s Way. The character from the 1993 Brian De Palma film is a similarly sleazy lawyer played by Sean Penn. Even though Ken Rosenberg defends criminals, this is Grand Theft Auto were the heroes are unrepentant criminals, so Ken is a good friend to have at one’s side in the 2002 title.

9 Casablanca

The last line in Vice City spoken by Tommy Varcetti before the credits roll is “You know, Ken. This could be the beginning of a beautiful business relationship.” This is similar to the iconic last line from Casablanca; “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” The tone of these two stories could not be more different, but leave it up to Rockstar to so blatantly reference a movie more than half a century old.

8 Diaz’s Mansion

The mansion the player eventually take control of about halfway through the game looks a lot like Tony Montana’s estate in Scarface. The inside in particular is almost one for one recreation. This is far from the only shoutout to the classic 1982 criminal epic in the game as well. Apartment 3c also features a reference to the film in the form of a chainsaw pickup in the middle of a bloody bathroom, similar to a scene from the movie.

7 The Angel Motorcycle

One of the notable aspects of the series is its plethora of vehicles the player can steal from helpless virtual citizens of the fictional cities. Vice City was the first game in the series to feature motorcycles. One of these choppers is The Angel, whose design echoes the iconic bike from Easy Rider, an iconic counterculture film from the ’60s starring Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda.

6 Keep Your Friends Close…

The final mission in the game is appropriately called “Keep Your Friends Close…,” referring to a certain betrayal. The words also mirror a famous quote from The Godfather Part II, “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.”

Maybe such advice does not work in all situations, but for leaders of organized crime syndicates it seems pretty sound. Most readers probably are not dealing with illegal business endeavors, however.

5 Red Dawn

One radio commercial for Ammu-Nation talks about a screening for the documentary Red Dawn. This is a John Milius war drama film from the 1980s detailing a fictional invasion of the United States by the Soviet Union. As ridiculous of a scenario as this appears, it makes more sense for those who know the filmmaker’s personality and remember the political climate of the ’80s. This atmosphere of exaggerated communist feat is exemplified perfectly by the advertisement referring to the movie as a documentary.

4 Yuppie And The Alien

This television show advertised on the radio is an amalgam of references. The idea of an alien partnering with a cop bears some similarity to the film Alien Nation.

The goofy concept could also be seen as a parody of the string of outlandish TV shows of the time, including Manimal and Automan. To be fair to the decade, bizarre show ideas still make to air all the time these days.

3 “The Job”

While heists became a big part of Grand Theft Auto V, Vice City featured a series of missions where the player sets up and executes a band robbery. The suits used by the crew in “The Job” resemble the outfit worn by Jason Vorhees in Friday The 13th Part III. The mask is the dead giveaway, but even the clothing specifically calls back to the third film in the series.

2 Exploder: Evacuator Part II

The concept of this movie is a general parody of the decade’s over the top action movies. The name is also a joke on the second Rambo film, Rambo: First Blood Part II. Jack Howitzer’s voice also sounds like Sylvester Stallone. In all fairness to the Rambo franchise, the first film is a grounded movie which has serious drama in addition to the action spectacle. Stallone likely has more impressive acting chops than Howitzer as well.

1 Philip Michael Thomas

Lance Vance is voiced by Philip Michael Thomas, who fans of eighties television will recognize as the co-star of Miami Vice. The show’s unique look and perspective on crime in Miami was a huge influence on Vice City‘s aesthetic. Casting an actor from the show to voice a supporting character must have been a real treat for the developers. Too bad they did not go an extra step further and cast Don Johnson in a role.