(film review) - Bad Boys for Life

I've dumped on Michael Bay a few times and it isn't that he is a terrible director because I absolutely loved Pain & Gain, but he often drowns the audience in loud brash sights & sounds.  Don't get me wrong, when it's necessary, it works, but for the most part, it doesn't.  It's dated and he really does need to up his game when it comes to the action shots and story because he is a very competent director.  Nobody wants to see a fire hydrant blow up in huge flames when a dog pisses on it.  Pretty much his style of action, because it "looks cool".  And some of his "Comedy" is questionable, not to mention the stereotypes he sometimes portray in some of his movies, i.e The Transformers franchise.  Moving forward, the irony of watching THIS movie which was NOT directed by Michael Bay like the first two, is that Michael Bay could actually learn from these directors Adil and Bilall because I believe they did an excellent job of directit a Michael Bay movie, better than Michael Bay using Michael Bay-isms.  I'll explain.

Bad Boys 4 Life picks up 17 years later and Mike (Will Smith) and Marcus (Martin Lawrence) have continued to be the Bad Boy super crops that they are, but time is ticking on and they are getting old.  For Mike, he wants to be a Bad Boy until the wheels fall off, where Marcus has had enough and wishes to pack it all in.  However, when specific people start dying around Miami and disrupt their flow, these detectives, must investigate, but the past can always come back to bite you and push you to the limit.  Mike and Marcus have to stop this imminent threat that threatens their lives.

I really enjoyed the first movie and the Second movie was really good too.  However, the second movie was a little too long and Michael Bay had his trademark signatures all over it.  Yeah, it made it entertaining, but it was really annoying at times and a departure from the original. However, this movie incorporated some of the Michael Bay-ism, but with more class.  It's weird but when you see it, you will see it.

The action was great, the story was even better, but the comedy was soo much better than I would have expected, especially when you think about how old this franchise is.  At they past it or are we over it? And the chemistry of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, do they still have it.  An action comedy as it is labelled, but the dramatic scenes were very touching.  A benefit this movie also has, is the history behind it.  If you grew up with this movie back in the day, you feel for the characters and what they are going through.  There are some moments where you WILL question, "How old are these guys, STILL doing what they are doing?", but as they also address that in the film, the story moments give you more of an insight into these great characters where this movie is practically 25 years deep and still going strong.  Well it was a little wobbly after the Second one but this one brings the bar back up and if I'm honest, I NEED to see more of these two.

Will Smith's acting is great, but who would have thought any less...but Martin...Martin Lawrence is soo good, he literally carries the film on his back and you completely get his character, Marcus.  The main antagonist was a little one note, but the villain was pretty decent overall and not as mustache twirling like how other villains have been.  A little fleshed out but it would have been nice if we get some more depth with future movies as the film definitely lends itself to a sequel especially as they introduce a handful of new characters.

Overall, just a really good and feel good movie.  It is possible that Bad Boys has finally hit it's stride like the Fast and Furious franchise.  Imagine if they were in the same universe...makes sense, no?

If you are a fan, you should love this!