BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE (2024) - Movie Review

Director: Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah
Starring: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Joe Pantoliano, Eric Dane, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Jacob Scipio, John Salley, DJ Khaled, Tasha Smith
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Writer: Chris Bremner, Will Beall
Runtime: 115 min
Rated: R for strong violence, language throughout and some sexual references
Buy This Movie: Blu-ray (Amazon), DVD (Amazon), Amazon Prime Video, 4K Ultra HD (Amazon), Apple TV

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Synopsis:

The world's favorite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your seat action and outrageous comedy but this time with a twist: Miami's finest are now on the run.

Review:

Adil & Bilall are back at the helm of the fourth installment in the "Bad Boys" franchise. After proving their mettle with "Bad Boys for Life", the directing duo are now faced with the difficult task of keeping the ball rolling. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence once again return as Miami PD detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett as they scramble to clear the name of the late Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano), who is framed for working with the drug cartels.

The bad boys end up being framed too, and on the run from both the law and the movie's extremely generic villain played by Eric Dane ("Grey's Anatomy", "The Last Ship"). What bugged me most about this sequel is how utterly bland the bad guy is. His motivations are muddled, his backstory makes no sense, and the actor is given close to nothing to do. I believe this is the worst villain of the entire series. Meanwhile, Jacob Scipio, who played the previous film's villain, gets a redemptive story arc in this one. I don't much care for retcons, but I did like Scipio's performance and character, and it's actually nice to see him back in action.

This fourth time around, the story is as lackluster as ever, but they did have one good idea, and that was changing the relationship dynamics between Mike and Marcus, by turning the latter into a loose cannon after a life-altering event, while his formerly adrenaline-addicted buddy finally grows up and starts behaving more like the old Marcus. It's a fun little twist that helps evolve these characters and also provides some genuinely funny moments. Unfortunately that's pretty much the writers' only fresh idea.

It was nice to see Rhea Seehorn of "Better Call Saul" in the movie as a U.S. Marshal who also happens to be Captain Howard's daughter. A gun-wielding Kim Wexler ? Sign me up ! I just wish she had a bigger role. Paola Nunez, Alexander Ludwig and Vanessa Hudgens from the previous film also return to help Mike and Marcus. Unfortunately, Theresa Randle does not return as Marcus' wife, and she's replaced by Tasha Smith, who, to put it mildly, is an uninspired choice. Also, fans of the Reggie character, played by Dennis Greene, will be happy to discover that he finally gets his chance to shine in the spotlight. I had no idea that Reggie fandom was a thing, but there you go.

I have yet to experience a satisfying story in the "Bad Boys" movies, and there's a very simple explanation for that. Nobody watches these movies for the story. It's all about the action, baby ! And on that front, all four movies deliver. In "Ride or Die" Adil & Bilall raise the bar even higher with dynamic and vibrant cinematography that includes drone camerawork for extra swirly shots of intense action, and even some first-person shooter sequences that gamers will no doubt love. All the action is well choreographed and put together, but once again, some CGI is hit or miss.

Everything about "Bad Boys: Ride or Die" is highly competent, but the franchise is beginning to show signs of wear and tear. It's a good enough action movie, Smith and Lawrence are still great together, and the action is satisfying, but the overabundance of callbacks to previous installments makes it feel like the writers don't quite know where the series should be headed. I have a feeling this won't be the last "Bad Boys", but they really need to come up with some better ideas for the next one.

SCORE: 6.5/10