Bad Boys For Life: Grumpier and Older, But Still Kicking

If you are looking for laughs, excitement, action, fast cars, gorgeous women, and handsome men, then look no further. It is a fun two hours.

The Bruckheimer formula. What is this? Is this a formula to solve problematic mathematical equations? A formula that challenges Einstein’s physics equation, E = mc2? No, it is not that significant. Well, movie financial historians may beg to differ because of the box office juggernauts that have been conceived using this formula. Movies like Top Gun, Armageddon, Pirates of the Caribbean, Mission Impossible: Fallout, and Terminator: Dark Fate just to name a few. The cinematic recipe consists of slow-motion sequences with an orchestra playing in the background (heavy on the violins). Then it cuts to the fast-paced, breathtaking action sequences quickly cutting from scene to scene and then to the close-up of the actors or actresses (abundant with generic dialogue). Finally, spanning back so that viewers can capture an operational masterpiece in its entirety. This formula has proven successful for Bruckheimer productions for over 35 years. It seems like audiences never get tired of it or fall victim to it every time. It is its signature stamp, better than the late Michael Jackson’s moonwalk or groin grabbing during his performances. The audience knows it is going to happen and cheers with excitement when it does. And Bad Boys for Life does not disappoint. There is even the “bad boys’ moment” when in slow motion the camera pans from the bottom looking at the two actors (Lawrence and Smith) slowly rising to the sky, circling them as they stand side by side as to say “Now, it’s on.”

Marcus (Martin Lawrence) and Mike (Will Smith) have to confront an assortment of issues including career changes and midlife crises, as they join the newly created elite team AMMO of the Miami police department to take down the ruthless Armando Armas, the vicious leader of the Miami drug cartel. Secrets of the past are revealed making Bad Boys for Life, short lived one.

It has been proven with the last two installments of the franchise that Martin Lawrence and Will Smith’s onscreen chemistry is undeniable. Their movie comedic magic is like that of Sidney Poitier and Bill Cosby or for the younger generation, Kevin Hart and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson; infectious. The key is to have a good straight man to combat the silliness of the comedic actor. And Smith plays his part perfectly. He is the more serious of the two and shows off his acting skills during a serious scene making one eye bulge out as tears begin to form with veins popping out of his neck. It is reminiscent of the bathroom scene in The Pursuit of Happiness where Smith portrayed a struggling father trying to find somewhere for him and his son to sleep. Contrary, there is the scene that makes you laugh out loud; crying for a different reason. That cramping belly laughs that Lawrence is so capable of generating as he has done so many countless times before. The kind where you cannot catch your breath as you beg and plead for the scene to end because you believe that you are getting ready to die with laughter; literally. Let’s just say, a bump on the head offers a lot of amusement.

However, there is a shortcoming when watching the Bruckheimer formula. It likes to tie a nice pretty bow around the movie’s end as if everything is fine and dandy. The happily ever after effect. It is not always the most plausible ending or outcome and Bad Boys for Life suffers from this deficiency. Yes, it is expected, but at times you have to laugh with skepticism and ask the question, “Really Jerry”? As if he was answering you with a wink and a smile reminding you that you are watching a Bruckheimer production.

Bad Boys for Life is a well thought out final chapter of the trilogy. It makes light as the "bad boys" become AARP cardholders and they are not as spry as they used to be. They are the grumpier old men of the 1995 version. Smith and Lawrence do not run as fast. Instead, they jog or limp to a hurried walk. Now, they have difficulty hopping in out of cars, but Mike Lowery still can drive his 2020 Porsche Taycan like Speed Racer on steroids.

If you are looking for laughs, excitement, action, fast cars, gorgeous women, and handsome men, then look no further. Bad Boys for Life has plenty of this. Surprisingly, it also has a message and an appealing storyline with a bunch of surprises. It is indeed a fun two hours. Like that of As Puffy Daddy’s Bad Boys for Life anthem, Smith and Lawrence “ain’t going nowhere”, they are bad boys for life. Or at least for the next chapter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKCj3XuPG8M