Bad Boys for Life

An unbelievably pleasant surprise. The directors found a way how to film a high quality nineties action movie with a contemporary feeling and in some places even an innovative camera during the action scenes. I almost have a feeling that this is one of the few comebacks from the nineties which was really great. The story is fine, the action is great and with the performances it got back to time of the first two movies. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are even after 20 years the same cool guys with great lines that the viewer enjoys a lot. One of the biggest surprises that Hollywood had in store for me in the last few years. (24/09/2020)

The best episode. A consistent, funny and very entertaining sequel that makes sense script-wise and doesn't offend with its action. Understandably, it lacks Michael Bay's signature style, so there's a lot less banging and iconic shots. But the unknown director duo have come up with a playful sequel that makes the most of the bare minimum and everything they touch works. Whether Bruckheimer held it together is hard to say, but it doesn't really matter. Bad Boys 4? I’m up. (19/01/2020)

I was hoping it would be good, but I wasn't expecting it to be that great. It's an action comedy without restraint, but unlike the previous films, it has an important admixture of fatality and impressive poignancy, really. The Expendables (2 and 3) could learn from this film how to mix and serve everything properly, how to make a comeback for the old gang (and a farewell party), how to introduce the new young team, and how to effectively have them work with the old without clashing. Mike and Marcus certainly deserved another movie, as did Will Smith and Martin Lawrence (he impressed me in particular with how well the more serious role suited him). The story is surprising but logical at the same time, the action scenes are just right without Michael Bay, and since it was all about flashbacks, I was very pleased to see the return of Mark Mancina's original theme music. (22/01/2020)

A fine, Nineties-style Bruckheimer-esque flick with all of the strengths and weaknesses that we haven’t seen for a long time. Furthermore, it's a sequel that is, within limits, not likably not over the top (except for the scene with the armed sidecar). With its style and scale, the duo of music-video directors definitely come closer to the first movie than to the crazy second one. If there had not been pointless filler and the slow paced middle sequences resulting from it and rather slow action, there wouldn't be much to fault them for apart from trying to copy early Bay (albeit successfully). But the most important thing is that, surprisingly, this is not the worst movie of the trilogy. Taking into account that the main roles are played by two 50-year-old actors (one is fat and the other is past his prime) after almost two decades, that is encouraging as well as surprising. (17/01/2020)

I didn't believe it could be really good. I didn't really hope it would be. So I ended up having a hell of a time at the cinema. Bad Boys for Life is an excellent action comedy with the classic Jerry Bruckheimer signature that not only matches the previous installments, but in many ways surpasses them. True, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are not as imaginative and aggressive in the action scenes as Michael Bay used to be, but they easily fit into the "above average Hollywood craftsmanship" box and have enough ideas to keep the audience entertained during the shootouts and chases. Far more important here, however, is the humour and, above all, the perfectly natural chemistry between Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. The two clearly enjoyed their roles immensely, and they thoroughly enjoy returning after all these years. Their dialogue exchanges, bantering and mocking each other feels natural and genuine, but most of all, it's genuinely fun and funny, and you suddenly realise that they had no idea how much they had missed Mike and Marcus. Bad Boys for Life is the kind of honest action comedy that only the most optimistic could hope for. And despite a few slightly over-the-top twists, I'll admit that I don't really know what Bruckheimer and his crew should have done to make it better. This movie made me terribly happy. (15/01/2020)