Bad Boys: Ride or Die

Watched it in Imax in Manchester Vue and it has to be one of the worst written movies i have watched in a few years , sad to see better action flicked movies get bombed like Furiosa ,watched that last week and man what a movie that was after fury road. This movie is worse is many ways compared to For Life.

Hopefully this will bomb bad as Fall guy and all too coz this isn't any better than any of those dumb action flicks. Go watch Furiosa guys and do that after watching Mad Max Fury Road, just a recommendation to you'll, and you'll will love it for sure.

Now all we wait is for Deadpool and Wolverine hopefully that wouldn't disappoint like so many others this year man.

The fourth entry in the revitalised buddy cop, action, comedy franchise. Bad Boys: Ride or Die sees wisecracking Miami cops Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) embark on a dangerous mission to clear the name of their late police captain when he gets linked to drug cartels.

Firstly, they missed a trick not calling this instalment Bad Boys 4 Life, alas we cannot have everything we desire. Anyway, it was inevitable that we were going to get a fourth (and potentially fifth) as 2020's actual Bad Boys For Life made nearly half a billion dollars and due to the pandemic, was in the top 3 highest grossing of that year.

It has been too long since I watched the first film (it is long, long overdue a rewatch), however Bad Boys II I return to every couple of years when I require a dousing of Bayhem. Has it aged well? Nope. Is it obnoxious and overlong? Yes. Does the action rule? Hell yes! The third film I found solid, yet disappointing, it lacked the grit and sleaze of its predecessor and incorporated a bizarre supernatural element that didn't quite click.

This was a real step up from three and balances the slick, modernised lega-sequel of the previous film with the sleaze and chaos of Bay's entries. Admittedly it's a little bit of a rushed and rocky start and narratively the film isn't bringing anything particularly new to the table, yet it's clearly relishing its heightened mid-00's vibes. Once Marcus returns a from death's embrace with a new outlook on life and spirituality and Mike's fears for his family, his own mortality and a reconnection with his fugitive son come to the forefront of his anxieties, the film adds a surprising layer of character work that still manages to incorporate dick jokes and f-bombs aplenty.

Action-wise this boasts some of the franchise's best set pieces. Director's Adil El Arbi & Bilall Fallah certainly lean a bit heavier into the Bayism's here than in BBFL. A slow-motion, sped up and gloriously chaotic digital, neon tinged art exhibition shootout is very Bay. A superb John Wick-esque home invasion shootout (featuring a well deserved triumphant moment for a fan favourite character) and the *entire* finale section of the film is a bar setter for shootouts this year. The incorporation of first person POVs, drones, alligators, explosions aplenty mix together for a riotous bloody blowout.

Performance-wise this was certainly the best way Will Smith could properly return after the Oscars controversy (I know he had Emancipation a few months after the incident, but I don't think anybody apart from me watched it). His more vulnerable and subdued fatherly moments as Mike are well executed... as well as the kick ass swagger that established the character. However, it's Martin Lawrence that steals the show. A motormouth, wide-eyed, born again foul mouthed spiritual guide who claims he can't die. He's having a ball and both he and Smith's chemistry is still unbeatable. Supporting players Jacob Scipio, Ioan Gruffudd, Rhea Seehorn and Reggie himself Dennis Greene are all locked in to the material.

Bad Boys: Ride or Die was a bullet riddled, cackle worthy blast of throwback fun that was a step up from my expectations. Smith & Lawrence are still a great duo, the action is killer and the balance of soap opera sincerity and over-the-top drama balances effectively with the motor-mouthed bickering and gags. Sure, the plot isn't particularly standout and the film is a little choppy in the first act, but when the wheels begin to fully spin, the film charges off the start line.

I looked forward to Bad Boys: Ride or Die as I really enjoyed Bad Boys for Life. It retains a lot of the positive things which have made the past films fun such as impactful action, R rated jokes and family dynamics. That came with a bunch of side characters new and old and an okay plot but there is one thing that lets this movie down and it's Martin Lawrence's character, Marcus Burnett.

Unfortunately, it's becoming all too common in Hollywood for a character to be so over the top for a movie that it just becomes distracting.

After surviving a near death experience at the beginning of the film, Marcus is high on life and he literally acts as if he is high for the rest of the film. This went beyond fun and playful to the point where it was distracting and annoying. It led to many frustrating scenes which felt like they belonged in a cartoon including one scene where the characters chose one of the worst possible moments to sing the Bad Boys theme.

In the End, Bad Boys Ride or Die is a frustrating but okay film which could have been much better with different narrative choices although many people might enjoy the direction that the film went.

I do not understand why some people are still at this "Will Smith" slap stage. Just get over with it. You don't give 1/10 to a movie like this unless you're dumb and got shot in the head. Yes what he did was bad, but it has nothing to do with the movie nor his actions, cuz remember he's an actor. Remember all these people giving 1/10 are still but*hurt about the slap & are trying to boycott Will Smith for his acting career. I don't want to include any spoilers, The movie is funny got great comedy lines, great acting and the jokes are just too funny so don't lurk around giving weird unrealistic rating just because you don't like the actor in real life. & i'd suggest to watch it for fun.

I loved the first two and felt like the third was very, very off tone and out of place for the "trilogy". If like me you disliked the third, you will hate for forth. Where the third introduced this bazaar soap opera styled movie with a witch and a long lost son, this one they introduce.... god? And soul mates..... its funny I completely missed the warlock and demons in the first and second film.

I genuinely hope this movie makes enough money to fund a 5th film just so they can afford Michael bay and some decent writers! Because I love seeing Will and Martin together and the characters (at least the OG version of them were so great). Why have they made Marcus SOOO dumb... it didn't work for Thor love and thunder and it doesn't work here.

The directors need to quit and just work for MTV it's genuinely like they have never seen the first two films and have only HEARD about Bay's style of directing. Just because you can fit a camera in a seemingly impossible position doesn't mean you should do it every 3 minutes. Every shot and scene in this film is just flooding with an attempt to be stylish or cool or bay-esc. The camera is constantly spinning or moving it makes Bay's shaky cam feel like a tripod. Also what's with ALL the colour/neon!? Every close up I swear has either a red, green or purple glow to it; unless it's interior, in which case you are treated to over the top lens flare from curtain less windows. The OG films looked beautiful but also had some grit to them.

Point is I am a fan so wanted to like it but it didn't look good, it wasn't funny and it just felt like the franchise is going the same direction as fast and the furious but some how less entertaining.

The last two films have been a crime to cinema, how they got Will and Martin to sign their contracts I will never know.

How two thirds of this film was ever put on the page, I will never know. It felt like a straight to DVD waste of time.