Review of Bad Boys for Life
midlandsmovies • May 7, 2020
Review of Bad Boys for Life
Bad Boys for Life (2020) Dir. Adil El Arbi & Bilall Fallah
17 years later and we’re back for a third outing with buddy-cop detective duo Will Smith as ladies-man Mike Lowrey and his family-orientated partner Martin Lawrence as Marcus Burnett. The two again banter and shoot their way out of a new case involving murder and money in Miami.
The story involves the widow of a kingpin who escapes from a prison and sends her son to the USA to recover hidden cash and take down Mike Lowrey. As Lawrence becomes a grandfather and (again) plans to leave the force, Mike is victim of a shooting. But when he returns to action, he vows revenge on the criminals who attacked him.
This well-worn narrative is simply the playground for shrewdly put together action sequences and the usual entertaining repartee from our leads. Mike reluctantly joins forces with a tactical team and a surprise death ramps up his intentions even more so.
Punch-ups, shoot outs and car-chases are all present and it all seems the stuff we’ve seen a million times before. Well it is. But somehow it mostly works. The two leads are still very likeable and although the comedy is too often the “we’re too old for this sh*t” type, there’s enough good humour, a smattering of solid drama and plenty of explosive action to enjoy.
In fact, there’s something very warm and familiar about popping back to characters we haven’t seen in over a decade. In many ways, the production delays help each film, as we drop in on the duo each decade. That way, there’s more story to tell, we grow with them and without over-egging it, it’s like visiting a distant family member.
All the pieces slot together in ways that are recognizable and obvious, but I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the familiar ride. In the end, Bad Boys for Life delivers the appropriate goods with a great thumping soundtrack.
And that was more enough to satisfy a re-visit to this established world that gets by on its enthusiastic and exciting energy.
★★★★
Michael Sales
On Sunday 26th April Midlands Movies Editor Michael Sales & awards ceremony co-host Ed Stagg (BBC Radio) announced the nominations for the 2026 Midlands Movies Awards live from the Queen of Bradgate Vintage Cinema in Leicester. A big thanks was given to the entire Jury Panel of industry experts who gave up their precious time to watch a huge selection of creative projects and as always, had a difficult time choosing from the excellent number of films from the region. You can read the full list of nominations across all 16 categories below and watch our announcement videos here: Part 1 & Part 2 And please also check out our great awards partner Chrome Video Best Actress in a Leading Role Karendip Phull for Family Kate Bracken for The Lace Rachel Baker for Throwing Fruit Chloe Wade for How Long Sophie Bullock for Ma Prison Best Animated Film Of All the Things by Steff Lee Big Red by James Pyle Statue in the Garden by Qianhui Yu Butterfly by Jacob Christie Best Director Luke Worrall for The Waterline Lily Portman for Quiet Jack Richardson for Daniel’s Room Jonathan Hawes for Sorry We’re Closed Sophia Dall'Aglio for Man from Mars Best Documentary Nothing's Impossible by Jacob Thomas McClean A Birmingham Symphony Jemma Saunders We Bring Light: Leicester's Diwali Legacy by Kieran Vyas The Sunshine Café by Jill Lampert Through the Viewfinder by William North Best Sound (Editing or Mixing) Neil Evans & his team for Artificial Insanity Alasdair Gretton for Dead on Distribution Deepanjali Patel for Earworm David Hamilton-Smith for The Pause Heidi Wilson for Of All The Things Best Actor in a Supporting Role Devon Junior for Lazar Tim Sparrow for Safety Net Shaiek Ahmed Rana for Family Luke Rollason for Quiet Peter Willoughby for A Story of Spring Best Visual & Special Effects Jake Wesley-Worrall for Soul Trader Steve Askey & team for The Correction Unit Nick Willett & Matt Burkey for Black Goat JaqD SFX MUA, Mind Magic Studios and Ben Harker for Beyond the Witching Hour Jacob Christie for Countenance Best Cinematography Gary Rogers for The Pause Laurence Mason-Guetta for Sorry We’re Closed Ian Snape for Soul Trader Ash Connaughton for Daniel’s Room Duane Adamoli for Surfing (nominations continue below...)
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