Bad Boys (1995)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Michael Bay

Writers (WGA):

George Gallo (story)
Michael Barrie (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

7 April 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Whatcha gonna do?

Plot:

Two hip detectives protect a murder witness while investigating a case of stolen heroin.

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Murder | Heroin | Witness | Police

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Lisa Boyle	...	Girl Decoy
Michael Taliferro	...	Carjacker
Emmanuel Xuereb	...	Eddie Dominguez
Tchéky Karyo	...	Fouchet (as Tcheky Karyo)
Marc Macaulay	...	Noah Trafficante
Ralph Gonzalez	...	Kuni
Vic Manni	...	Ferguson
Frank John Hughes	...	Casper
Mike Kirton	...	Andy
Martin Lawrence	...	Marcus Burnett
Will Smith	...	Mike Lowrey
Will Knickerbocker	...	Officer Bill O'Fee
Theresa Randle	...	Theresa Burnett
Tiffany Samuels	...	Megan Burnett
Cory Hodges	...	James Burnett

Also Known As:

Bulletproof Hearts (USA) (original script title)

MPAA:

Rated R for intense violent action and pervasive strong language.

Runtime:

118 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR | SDDS

Certification:

Taiwan:R-18 | Brazil:14 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Japan:R | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Hungary:16 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-16 | Germany:18 | Ireland:18 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (certificate #33591) | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Anastasia Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Company:

Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films

Trivia:

The car driven by Fouchet during the end car chase is an old AC Superblower, basically a Shelby Cobra with a modified V8 engine. It is considered to be one of the fastest muscle cars ever created.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene when Marcus is thrown off the taxi, the taxi crashes into a blue car. While backing up, you see no blue bumper hanging from the taxi's own bumper. In the next shot, it suddenly appears (on the left hand side of the taxi's bumper). One shot later, the blue bumper has disappeared again.

Quotes:

Mike Lowrey: Everybody wants to be like Mike.
Captain Howard: Yeah, and you're gonna be retired like him too.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air: I, Whoops, There It Is (#6.19)" (1996)

Soundtrack:

Boom Boom Boom

Typically stylish cop flick that is better than the average

I don't know about you but there are two words that I associate with disastrously bad films. Two words that fill my soul with dread and my bowels with fear. And those two words are... "sports drama". Two OTHER words that carry similar feelings are "Martin Lawrence" so to find a film with him in that I like is something of a surprise. "Bad Boys" is as traditional an action-cop film as you can imagine, filled with hot action sequences, fast cars and beautiful women. And Martin Lawrence.

Lawrence is Det. Marcus Burnett, straight-laced family man and partner to Det. Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) who is Burnett's polar opposite. He's a fast-living ladies man with a passion for sports car and when $100 million dollars worth of heroin is stolen from the Miami PD, he and Burnett are put on the case. But in order to trace the drugs, they need to protect murder witness Julie Mott (Téa Leoni) from local hoodlums led by suave gangster Fouchet (Tchéky Karyo).

As you'd expect from a Bruckheimer & Simpson production, this follows a strict mantra of "style over substance" which makes "Bad Boys" feel like an update of another Miami-based cop show "Miami Vice". The suits are sharp, the action is loud and the cars look way beyond the economic means of cops. And despite the characters being way too familiar ("Lethal Weapon", anyone?), Smith and Lawrence bring humour and chemistry to their roles and lift the film beyond your expectations. In truth, this is the sort of film where you switch your brain off and just enjoy it and thanks to Smith and Lawrence, you can do just that. They spark off each other really well, seeing them in good stead for the almost inevitable sequel.

"Bad Boys" is not what you'd call a classic but it is an enjoyable movie that you can enjoy if it's on TV or a rental DVD. Sometimes, you just want to relax in front of something undemanding and while that may sound like criticism, it isn't. The male half of the species will enjoy this much more than their girlfriends (well, she didn't mind it...) but this sort of thing isn't likely to expand your mind that much. Get yourself some popcorn, slouch on the couch and watch the epitome of the blockbuster cop movie.