Michael Bay's directorial debut, 'Bad Boys', is so beautiful to look at you could switch off the sound and just luxuriate in the stunning visuals. Bay's camera is rarely still, swooping energetically all over the place. If you are looking for mindless action with plenty of laughs thrown in then you have definitely come to the right place.
Martin Lawrence and Will Smith star as two Miami cops who go after a bunch of bad guys who have stolen a huge amount of heroin from the two cops' police station. In the process they must provide witness protection to Julie Mott (Tea Leoni), a young woman who can ID the villains.
The bad guy of the piece is Fouchet (Tcheky Karyo), and he is wonderfully sinister in a role quite similar to the one he would later play in the Jet Li martial arts actioner 'Kiss of the Dragon'. But the real treat of 'Bad Boys' is Joe Pantoliano as Captain Howard. Character actor Pantoliano is always likable, except perhaps as Cypher in 'The Matrix'. He takes his role which is pretty thankless - the screaming police chief - and really invests it with wit and charisma.
The action scenes are dazzling and competently handled, climaxing with an explosive showdown at an aircraft hangar. On the whole, 'Bad Boys' is pretty forgettable. But it is very entertaining, and will definitely satisfy action fans.
Martin Lawrence and Will Smith star as two Miami cops who go after a bunch of bad guys who have stolen a huge amount of heroin from the two cops' police station. In the process they must provide witness protection to Julie Mott (Tea Leoni), a young woman who can ID the villains.
The bad guy of the piece is Fouchet (Tcheky Karyo), and he is wonderfully sinister in a role quite similar to the one he would later play in the Jet Li martial arts actioner 'Kiss of the Dragon'. But the real treat of 'Bad Boys' is Joe Pantoliano as Captain Howard. Character actor Pantoliano is always likable, except perhaps as Cypher in 'The Matrix'. He takes his role which is pretty thankless - the screaming police chief - and really invests it with wit and charisma.
The action scenes are dazzling and competently handled, climaxing with an explosive showdown at an aircraft hangar. On the whole, 'Bad Boys' is pretty forgettable. But it is very entertaining, and will definitely satisfy action fans.