Plot: What’s it about?
A Star is Born…no, wait–Before Will Smith saved the Earth from the Aliens, uh, twice…he was best-known for his music ability. Nowadays, it’s a common occurrence for musicians to make the crossover to acting, though very few are any good at it. Ice Cube comes to mind, as he’s been in a few “critically acclaimed” movies like Boyz in the Hood and Three Kings. If Ice Cube is the “artistic” rapper turned actor, then Will Smith is his polar opposite. Smith is better known for his popcorn movies that usually turn into Summer blockbusters. Movies like Independence Day and Men In Black raked it in at the box office, but are more remembered for their special effects, rather than their screenwriting. This leads us to Martin Lawrence. Lawrence, a comic turned actor (another profession that seems to be blending the line between performance and acting) was best known for his stint on his self-titled TV show, “Martin”. So combine two young, up and coming actors from different parts of the entertainment industry, team them with producers Don Simpson (now deceased) and Jerry Bruckheimer (responsible for Top Gun, Crimson Tide, The Rock, Armageddon…) and give a rookie Director by the name of Michael Bay and you have Bad Boys. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Whatcha gonna do?
As in all three of Michael Bay’s films, the plot of Bad Boys isn’t that hard to decipher. Approximately $100 million in Heroin has been stolen from under the noses of the Los Angeles Police Department. Not believing that this could actually happen, they quickly deduce it’s an inside job (boy, aren’t they bright). We then meet Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence), a married father of three who seems to never have the time to enjoy the ‘finer’ things in life with his significant other. Conversely, we meet Mike Lowrey (Will Smith), a swinging bachelor who has a hefty inheritance from his family and can’t keep up with all of his girlfriends. The drug dealers who stole the heroin have secured a deal to sell it for a healthy profit, though one of the help has sticky hands and can’t help but celebrate. Hence, he calls up an escort agency and along comes a beautiful woman to help him party. By sheer coincidence, a friend of the escort, Julie Mott (Tea Leoni) happens to be out of the room and witness her friend’s murder upon the drug kingpin finding out where his missing heroin is. It’s Julie, who narrowly escapes being shot herself, that the police need to find as she is the only material witness of this crime. Now the whole thing ties together when Julie is taken to Lowrey’s place (Smith) but it’s Burnett (Lawrence) who brings here there. Trying not to confuse her (and us) anymore, they go through most of the movie pretending to be each other. While interesting at first, we quickly put the pieces of the puzzle together and it gets real old real quick.
Of course, we know that it will be Lowrey and Burnett vs. the bad guys, and indeed it is. What Bad Boys lacks in plot, it more than makes up in action. Michael Bay, who helmed other movies like this, is impressive in his directorial debut. I had seen “The Rock” before this, so it parallels this in more ways than one, the way it’s shot, in particular. Still, you can’t help but to like this type of movie, if only to be entertained for a few hours. The movie was popular enough to inspire a sequel, due out next year. With the treatment that Columbia has given this title this time around, if you’re a fan of the movie, it’s worth a look. If not, the picture and sound you’ll get from this movie make it worth at least a rent.
Video: How does it look?
“Bad Boys” comes to Blu-ray in a spiffy new 1.85:1 AVC HD transfer which showcases the beauty of the HD format. “Bad Boys”, hard as it is to imagine, is fifteen years old but you couldn’t tell by the way this looks. Colors are bold and bright with stark contrast showing off some of the action-packed scenes. Flesh tones seem very natural and look nice. Detail has been improved a bit from the standard DVD from a few years back as well. As with most Michael Bay films, there are some slow-motion scenes that look amazing (thanks to the director of photography, no doubt) and this is certainly a welcome addition to the Blu-ray format.
Audio: How does it sound?
Again, as with most Michael Bay films, sound is always present and almost as much a character in the movie as any actor. This DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack sounds very robust and involves the LFE more than one might expect. Dialogue is as we might expect, very natural. Surrounds are very prevelent in the later half of the film as the action cranks up and it’s been a while since I’ve seen the movie, but “Bad Boys” really did impress me in regards to the sound. It’s a good-sounding track and viewers won’t be disappointed.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This is, essentially, a re-issue of the previous “Special Edition” DVD from a few years back except we lose the “Damage Control” featurette. The same audio commentary from director Michael Bay is present as he offers his thoughts on the film, the casting of Smith and Lawrence and the overall production. We get a making of featurette as well as three music videos. A Blu-ray exclusive has been added with Sony’s “MovieIQ” in which we get some facts about the movie as well as connected to IMDB with the latest cast bios. I love this feature on films.
