![Bad Boys: Ride or Die](/binary/4bc8/DF-25849_r_2000x1333_thumbnail.jpg)
Bad Boys: Ride or Die
2024, R, 110 min. Directed by Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah. Starring Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffud, Rhea Seehorn.
REVIEWED By Matthew Monagle, Fri., June 7, 2024
Four years may seem like a long time between sequels in modern Hollywood, but when you’re talking about the Bad Boys franchise, that kind of turnaround time is practically a rush job. Given the 8- and 17-year gaps between the previous films, Bad Boys: Ride or Die is probably the least we’ll ever see these characters age between films.
Since we last left Miami’s bad boy police officers, Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) are embracing getting older. Mike is now married, and Marcus’ biggest source of heartache is the low-carb diet he’s been put on by his family. But when the late Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano) reaches out to both men from beyond the grave, they soon find themselves embroiled in a statewide conspiracy that will require them to once more join forces with Armando (Jacob Scipio), Mike’s incarcerated son.
At this point, the Bad Boys movies are doing a lot of the same things that the Fast and the Furious franchise has done. They expand the cast of regulars, move characters from villains to heroes, and raise the volume on the action sequences to a thunderous level. But that’s the benefit of starting a franchise at the loudest possible volume. Bad Boys came out of the gate unhinged, spending most of its original runtime on a millionaire cop who shoots people for fun and his oversexed partner who complains about his dead bedroom nonstop. It was bad – really bad – but it ensured that the most ridiculous narrative beats had nowhere to go but down.
If anything, Bad Boys is the Fast and the Furious franchise in reverse. These characters have gotten more grounded with time, and Bad Boys: Ride or Die continues its attempts to humanize Mike by giving him a well-placed panic attack (the tuberculosis of modern action movies: freeze and rally). The series also slyly sidesteps discourse around police movies by putting an on-the-run Mike and Marcus against corrupt law enforcement officers in bed with the cartel. We’ve come a long way from the post-9/11 politics of Bad Boys II; instead of using terrorism to justify any means, Bad Boys: Ride or Die’s plot is constructed around the unchecked systems of power that flourished in the early 2000s.
And much credit also belongs to directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the returning directors of Bad Boys for Life, for successfully rehashing a style of filmmaking we thought past its prime. Adil & Bilal – as they are credited onscreen – may be Michael Bay’s greatest students. Both of their Bad Boy films adopt the maximalist stylization of the original films while staging the action sequences in longer takes. This is Michael Bay for the John Wick generation: bombastic filmmaking at its finest with complex, multi-level action sequences that give the stunts room to breathe. One early near-death sequence in particular spotlights an eye for craft that only starts with car crashes and explosions.
If Bad Boys for Life shocked audiences and critics with its relevance, then Bad Boys: Ride or Die proves that the window for this franchise is, despite all odds, very much still open. As long as the creative team sticks to the script – and Columbia Pictures would be foolish to try and make these movies without Adil & Bilal behind the camera – we may still get one or two more of these movies before the cast has to call it quits. Or at least until they stop dying Will Smith’s goatee on-camera.
AMC Dine-In Tech Ridge 10
12625 N. I-35, 512/640-1533, www.amctheatres.com
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Sat., July 20
Sun., July 21
Mon., July 22
Tue., July 23
Barton Creek Square (AMC)
2901 Capital of Texas Hwy. S., 512/306-1991, www.amctheatres.com
Matinee discounts available before 4pm daily. Bring Your Baby matinees the first Tuesday of every month.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Sat., July 20
Sun., July 21
Mon., July 22
Tue., July 23
Cinemark 20 and XD
N. I-35 & FM 1825, 512/989-8535
Cost for 3-D and XD shows is regular ticket price plus a premium.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Cinemark Cedar Park
1335 E. Whitestone, Cedar Park, 800/326-3264
Call theatre for complete list of movies and showtimes.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Cinemark Hill Country Galleria 14
12812 Hill Country Blvd., 800/326-3264, www.cinemark.com/theater_showtimes.asp?theater_id=377
Wed., July 17
Cinemark Round Rock
4401 N. I-35, Round Rock, 800/326-3264
Cost for 3-D shows is regular ticket price plus a $3.50 premium. Call theatre for complete March 26-28 showtimes.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Sat., July 20
Sun., July 21
Mon., July 22
Tue., July 23
Cinemark Southpark Meadows
9900 S. I-35, 800/326-3264
Cost for 3-D shows is regular ticket price plus a $3.50 premium.
Wed., July 17
Cinemark Stone Hill Town Center
18820 Hilltop Commercial Dr., 512/251-0938, www.cinemark.com
Wed., July 17
City Lights Theatre
420 Wolf Ranch Parkway, Georgetown, 512/868-9922
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Sat., July 20
Sun., July 21
Mon., July 22
Tue., July 23
EVO Entertainment
3200 Kyle Crossing, Kyle, 512/523-9009, www.evo-entertainment.com
Wed., July 17
Flix Brewhouse
2200 S. I-35, Round Rock, 512/244-3549, www.flixbrewhouse.com/round-rock
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Galaxy Highland 10
6700 Middle Fiskville, 512/467-7305, www.galaxytheatres.com
No one under 18 will be allowed in the theatre on Friday or Saturday after 7pm without an adult.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Gateway Theatre
9700 Stonelake, 512/416-5700
Discounts daily before 6pm. Cost for 3-D shows is regular ticket price plus a $3.50 premium.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Wed., July 17
Metropolitan
901 Little Texas, 512/447-0101
Discounts daily before 6pm. Cost for 3-D shows is regular ticket price plus a $3.50 premium.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Fri., July 19
Sat., July 20
Sun., July 21
Mon., July 22
Tue., July 23
The Spot Cinema Eatery & Social Haus
1180 Thorpe Lane #130, San Marcos, 512/210-8600, www.evo-entertainment.com/locations/the-spot/
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
Westgate 11
4477 S. Lamar, 512/899-2717
Discounts daily before 6pm. Cost for 3-D shows is regular ticket price plus a $3.50 premium.
Wed., July 17
Thu., July 18
A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.
Marc Savlov, Jan. 17, 2020
Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah, Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Núñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffud, Rhea Seehorn