Review: Bad Boys For Life

Release date: January 17, 2020
Running time: 123 minutes
Starring: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Alexander Ludwig, Vanessa Hudgens

They're finally back!  After a 17 year hiatus, Mike (Smith) and Marcus (Lawrence) return to play their iconic roles for one last ride.  However both Mike and Marcus are much older than their earlier, shoot first ask questions later selves, and must deal with the realities of their age, moving on from their past, but also confronting issues from it.  

The best thing about Bad Boys For Life is the chemistry between Will Smith and Martin Lawrence.  This was a draw of the original movies; the two personalities complemented each other and made for a fun dynamic duo.  And although we haven't seen them together in a very long time, and they are still natural as partners.  The two play off each other perfectly, Mike with his invincible, hot-headed demeanor and Marcus with his more cautious, humorous personality.  As with the original two movies, this levity helps break up tense scenes; Marcus has a knack for cracking a joke even when the gunfire erupts.  However, this time it is not just Marcus and Mike taking on the world.  They have the help of a new team at Miami PD who use the latest advances in technology to solve cases, rather than old school, brute force detective work.  It is a fun dynamic to see; Marcus and Mike are already dealing with growing older and having this young, crack team thrown in just amplifies this.  

And like the original films, Bad Boys For Life has plenty of humor.  The movie is genuinely funny.  Lawrence is the central focus of this, but other characters definitely add to the humor.  There are several legitimate laugh out loud moments that really help to break up some of the action scenes.  But those action scenes are quite good.  From the gun play to the intense chase scenes, this movie has enough action to keep you entertained.  And as you would expect from a sequel, the Bad Boys For LIfe is full of nostalgia.  From characters from the original films making appearances, to old songs and nostalgic shots, the film has plenty of throw backs to the original Bad Boys movies.  But, the best part of Bad Boys For Life is that the film also stands on its own.  It uses the nostalgia and plays off of it, but the movie itself is a wildly entertaining ride.  It is Bad Boys x Gemini Man x NCIS x Fast and Furious.  If that sounds appealing to you, you should definitely watch this new adventure.

Bad Boys For Life brings the iconic duo back for another ride with enough nostalgia to please fans of the first films and enough humor, action, and new characters to start a new franchise.  

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