The original Bad Boys movie premiered in 1995, the year I graduated from High School. It’s been a while since I’ve flipped on this movie, but if my 42-year-old brain can remember correctly, I’m pretty sure I dug the first one.
Bad Boys 2, which hit the screens in 2003, was flat out horrible, which pretty much convinced me that Michael Bay should be banned from directing.
Fast-forward to the present, and finally, we have part three to a movie, and let’s be honest, that everyone really didn’t care about. Millennials were too young to see the first Bad Boy, and old farts like me, don’t really give a damn. But here we are.
Bad Boys 3 was a better than average movie, but there were a lot of flaws, and I’ll go through most of them. It’s better than the Bad Boys 2, but doesn’t have the charm of Bad Boys One. Is it worth the money? Uhm…only if there’s nothing to see in the theater.
I don’t think it’s safe for the kids. Lots of sexual jokes and bloody violence.
From here on out, there will be spoilers
LET’S TALK ABOUT THE SCRIPT
From looking at the credits, the story for the first Bad Boys was created by George Gallo (remember that name). Gallo didn’t receive any screenwriting credit, so more than likely his script was optioned off and seasoned veterans were brought in to polish it.
Bad Boys One was written by:
Michael Barrie, Jim Mulholland, and Doug Richardson.
Bad Boy Two’s credits look really messed up:
George Gallo – is credited for creating the characters, meaning he had nothing to do with the script, once again.
Marianne Wibberley, Cormac Wibberley, and Ron Shelton – created the story. Three people are credited with the story?
Ron Shelton, Jerry Stahl – were credited screenwriters. Only Ron Shelton was given story credits. But what about Jerry Stahl?
Those credits don’t look right. Again – Three personalities to create the story, and only one, Ron Shelton took part in writing the script. Hmmm… Jerry Stahl wrote the script, but doesn’t get any story credit? That doesn’t make much sense.
Writing credits are very political. I’ve known non-writers, receive writing credits, but this seems really strange to have so many “story by” credits, and very little screenwriters. And one of those screenwriters doesn’t have the power to create a story. What is a screenwriter without the power of story? Nothing….
Can you see why Bad Boys 2 sucked?
Bad Boy 3’s credits are still a bit crazy
George Callo – is credited with creating the characters, but he has nothing to do with the script. Once again. His agent must have negotiated out some type of great backend deal.
Peter Craig and Joe Carnahan – are credited with the story.
Peter Craig and Joe Carnahan – are credited with the screenplay. Both are seasoned writers with a long resume. But then we have Chris Bremner who is also credited with the screenplay, and this is his first credit. Why would there be a need for a rookie screenwriter here? His only previous credit is an “associate producer” for The Wedding Ringer, which is a credit you get for literally bringing donuts to the set. How did he ever negotiate a shared writing credit with two very veteran screenwriters? That doesn’t make any sense.
The script for Bad Boys 3 was a hot mess and it’s because there were just too many freaking chefs in the kitchen, and more than likely, a rookie.
There was too much “on-the-nose” dialogue for my taste. “On-the-nose” dialogue refers to lines that say exactly what a character is thinking. And a lot of “on-the-nose” dialogue lead to characters being talky, as though they can’t shut the hell up, because they have to say EXACTLY what they are feeling, ALL THE TIME.
For example, Marcus (Martin Lawrence’s Character), can’t stop preaching about how much he is against violence. Why can’t he show it, rather than say it? Let the audience figure it out.
Great dialogue carries a heavy subtext that’s rather easy to understand, and memorize. For example, in Jerry McGuire, we all remember the line “Show Me the Money!” Well, it’s more than just about greed. In fact, it’s more about trust and loyalty. During the movie, this simple line challenges characters to ask themselves, what are they loyal to? Money? Family? Fame? Love? Football? And throughout the movie, it’s meaning is interpreted differently on any given scene.
There’s none of that in Bad Boys 3.
Then there’s the “Dad Jokes.” There’s so many flat, stale jokes. Some of the jokes were just plain cheesy. Please hire a joke writer for Bad Boys 4.
As for the structure of the script, it seems as though it was written with 6 or 7 acts. I really didn’t bother counting, but it was more than 3. Usually, movies with too many hard turning points, can make an audience feel as though a film has rushed to the ending. Of course, 6 or 7 Act films are easier to make, because scripts can literally be created as they are being filmed (which is a very common practice), as they don’t require setups and payoffs.
It looks like Peter and Craig were brought in to fix a poorly written script. But even they couldn’t save it.
GRADE: D+
DIRECTION
Bad Boys 3 was directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. They are a team that’s worked together quite often in the past. I haven’t seen their other work, so I honestly don’t know how great they are, all I have to go on in this movie. And from what I can say is that they are probably better at directing than Michael Bay in Bad Boy 2, but not better than Michael Bay in Bad Boy’s One. I’m not sure how much of an influence they had over the script too…
So they are better and worse than Michael Bay. That’s not saying much.
My question is why were these two, relatively unknowns, brought in to direct a big franchise movie with two big stars. Wouldn’t you want to hire a big gun for Bad Boys 3?
Some of the scenes were outright stupid, as though it was pulled from a music video. Such as the scene where motorcycle gangsters decided it was easier to ride a wheelie while shooting an uzi, rather than chasing our heroes on two wheels. Then there’s the scene where Marcus shoots down a helicopter with a shotgun? Really? A shotgun? The chase scene, in the beginning, doesn’t make sense too. All of that, to get to a hospital to see Marcus’ grandson? So were our heroes running away from the cops or getting escorted by the cops? And after Will Smith pulls that parking skid move, the cops just disappear. Talk about a freaking jump cut.
Michael Bay is one of the worst directors to grace the screen. I’m sure if he would have directed this film, it would have been worse. These guys just did a little better. But that’s not saying much.
GRADE: D
CHARACTERS
The Characters in Bad Boys are pretty interesting. Unfortunately, they are flat, undeveloped, and poorly written.
Here’s my list of the more memorable characters from the movie:
Mike (Will Smith’s) is an image-obsessed cop who loves the spotlight. Mike dresses as though he’s a model, rides in a Porche, and is married to his work. His endless work ethic, coolness, and arrogance, unfortunately, isn’t seen as a weakness to the directors, but more of a heroic symbol of success. Of course, if they understood anything about true human behavior, they would realize that this type of selfish behavior doesn’t lead to anywhere good. Mike doesn’t grow at all in this movie, in any meaningful way.
Marcus (Martin Lawrence) is reformed, is non-violent, and can’t stop talking about it. The problem I had with Marcus was that he talked way too much, preached way too much, and didn’t make realistic decisions. For example, when Mike and Marcus were getting shot at by a motorcycle gang, Marcus was refusing to kill. Really? Are you kidding me? Out of all times to stick to his coming to Jesus moment, it’s in the middle of a very dangerous firefight? Come on now.
Dorn (Alexander Ludwig), even though he was a supporting character, he was probably my most favorite, and most interesting character. Dorn was a peaceful muscular giant who spent most of his time fighting crime behind a desk. He had a good reason not to fight, which I won’t disclose here. You just kinda knew he would have the opportunity to kick ass in the end, and when he did flip that switch from nerd to hero, he pretty much looked as though he was Captain America. They could have made this entire movie centered around him, but oh well.
IT’S THE ACTING!
Even the script and directing was subpar, it was the acting and chemistry between Will Smith and Marin Lawrence that made this movie entertaining. It’s not boring in any way, and it’s because of these two personalities. Everyone else did the best with a script that should have been rewritten before principle photography.
GRADE: A
OVERALL IMPRESSION
Well, if you watched the first two, you gotta watch this one. If you didn’t, well, you can pass on it. And if you watch it at home on Netflix, when it hits streaming, you really won’t be missing anything.
This is a good average movie. You won’t leave this movie saying, “I need to buy it!” But you will tell your friends, “It was good enough.”
GRADE: C
Steve Young
