The Bad Boys franchise has been going strong for nearly three decades now. The original movie that launched director Michael Bay’s career in 1995 flaunted an infectious chemistry between its leads, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. Its 2003 sequel, Bad Boys II, upped the ante with its hyper-stylized action that defined the “Bayhem” aesthetic. A third movie languished in development hell, eventually losing Bay as director. When filmmaking duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Rebel, Ms. Marvel), known colloquially as “Adil & Bilall,” stepped in to take over, expectations weren’t high. The naysayers were proven wrong when Bad Boys For Life became one of the (only) blockbuster success stories of 2020. Critics raved about the film’s energetic direction and shockingly engaged performances from Smith and Lawrence. Their sequel, Bad Boys: Ride or Die, not only improves upon the previous film but also elevates the franchise to new heights.
After all the craziness that occurred in Bad Boys For Life, the lives of detective lieutenants Mike Lowery (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) have calmed down significantly. In fact, Mike’s turning over a new leaf, getting married to physical therapist Christine (Melanie Leburd). Things go sour quickly when Mike and Marcus’ late boss, Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano), is publicly exposed for corruption. The titular “bad boys” sense that something’s wrong, and discover that their beloved captain was actually investigating a conspiracy in the Miami Police Department, which led to his death. Wanting to clear Howard’s name not only for their friend but also for his U.S. Marshall daughter (Rhea Seehorn), the two will have to search for help from the last place they expected: Mike’s incarcerated son Armando (Jacob Scipio).
Although some of their recent work outside of the franchise may not be up to par, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence always bring their A-game to Bad Boys. Moreover, they are always given something fresh to do with their characters. Lawrence gets the lion’s share of the laughs here. A big part of the plot has Marcus have a near-death experience, where he comes out on the other side having a sage-like wisdom that annoys the hell out of Mike to the audience’s enjoyment. He gets to play around a lot with the physical comedy as well, as Marcus has a lust for candy and salty snacks that he struggles to keep at bay. Mike develops further, too, as he starts to suffer from the guilt of getting his loved ones killed. Who knew that the fourth Bad Boys film would feature an incredibly realistic depiction of a panic attack?
Courtesy of Sony/Frank Masi
When push comes to shove, people are coming into Bad Boys 4 for the banter, not the story, and Martin Lawrence and Will Smith can riff like no other. The supporting cast deserves their flowers, too. Vanessa Hudgens and Alexander Ludwig reprise their respective roles from Bad Boys For Life as Kelly and Dorn, the lovable Miami Police Unit AMMO sidekicks. Paola Núñez returns as Captain Rita Secada, the steely head of AMMO and former flame of Mike, as well. There’s a super fun cameo from comedian Tiffany Haddish, and a less fun one from DJ Khaled. Eric Dane (Euphoria, Grey’s Anatomy) gives an admirable turnout as a menacing villain, while 2005’s Mr. Fantastic himself, Ioan Gruffud, slots into the respectable bureaucrat role quite nicely. Finally, Rhea Seehorn is a nice new addition to the cast, although the Better Call Saul star could have definitely been utilized more.
Most surprising of all is an expanded role for Marcus’ Marine son-in-law Reggie McDonald (Dennis Greene), whose calm demeanor hiding exceptional skills gives this sequel its best moment mid-way through. Less impressive is a returning Jacob Scipio as Armando, who has the physicality for the role without the definition to sell him and Mike’s relationship. That could, however, be more of a failing of the script. Written by Will Beall (Gangster Squad, Aquaman) and Chris Bremner (The Man from Toronto), the conspiracy elements in Bad Boys: Ride or Die are pretty easy to parse. The viewer can guess who the real villain is as soon as they walk on screen and the emotional undercurrent is surface level. The jokes almost always work, at least. Smart money says that’s mostly on Will Smith and Martin Lawrence making them work. It’s a good example of a screenpla7 that’s very execution dependent.
And boy, oh boy, do directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah execute. They turn what would’ve been a run-of-the-mill action movie into an endless supply of kinetic energy. There are too many great action set-pieces in Bad Boys: Ride or Die to count. An early sequence in a neon-lit nightclub has all the requisite great gunplay with an added twist: drone cinematography. Someone on the team must have seen Michael Bay’s Ambulance because the way the camera bobs and weaves across multiple stories creates cinematic chaos that very much calls back to that film. Like Adil and Bilall, returning cinematographer Robrecht Heyvaert really ups his game this time around.
Courtesy of Sony/Frank Masi
Even simple moments, like a character fighting another in an elevator, twitch with manic energy. The pièce de résistance in Bad Boys: Ride or Die’s feast of action is a third-act set piece in an abandoned alligator-themed amusement park. Robrecht Heyvaert mounts cameras on guns to accomplish a POV effect that looks like something out of a first-person shooter video game. The requisite on-screen fireworks are to be expected from any Bad Boys movie, yet the way these scenes are framed in this latest installment makes it feel as if the viewer is watching an action film for the first time ever. When Bad Boys: Ride or Die goes as hard as it does, one can only tragically wonder how electrifying Adil and Bilall’s scrapped, or rather deleted, Batgirl movie for DC/Warner Bros. could have been like.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die feels like a relic of action cinema past. Take a somewhat predictable storyline, throw in two lovable leads, and then pump all the juice into the action. It plays unbelievably well. Bad Boys: Ride or Die knows what it is, aspiring to the best version of itself possible. These films aren’t sophisticated subversions of the genre, they are the genre. Bringing the heat in the directorial department and featuring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence at unusually committed levels, Bad Boys: Ride or Die is the kind of hilarious, knock-out action picture that the current summer movie season desperately needs right now.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die hits theaters on June 7, 2024.
Directed by Adil & Bilall.
Written by Chris Bremner & Will Beall.
Based on characters by George Gallo.
Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, Will Smith, Chad Oman, Doug Belgrad, & Martin Lawrence.
Main Cast: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffudd, Jacob Scipio, Melanie Liburd, Tasha Smith, Tiffany Haddish, Joe Pantoliano, John Salley, DJ Khaled, Rhea Seehorn, Dennis Greene, Joyner Lucas, Quinn Hemphill, & Lionel Messi.
Cinematographer: Robrecht Heyvaert.
Composer: Lorne Balfe.
Production Companies: Columbia Pictures, Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Westbrook Studios, & 2.0 Entertainment.
Distributor: Sony Pictures Releasing.
Runtime: 115 minutes.
Rated R.
