Amazon.com reviews for
Bad Boys (1995) More at IMDbPro »

Bad Boys (dvd):

Amazon.com video review: Slick to a fault, this glossy action flick takes place in sunny Florida, where Martin Lawrence and Will Smith play two cops--one married with kids, the other a swinging bachelor. The two are forced to trade places to foil criminal mastermind Fouchet (Tchéky Karyo) who has stolen $100 million worth of heroin from a police lockup. Violent, illogical, and filled with wall-to-wall profanity, Bad Boys was the last film produced by the hit-making team of Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer before Simpson's untimely death, and marked the directorial debut of Michael Bay who followed up with The Rock. Bad Boys will be of interest to action buffs and fans of Téa Leoni, who makes one of her early screen appearances in the central supporting role. --Jeff Shannon

Bad Boys (1995) (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: Blockbuster star Will Smith and comedian Martin Lawrence shoot rapid-fire lines and bullets in this cop caper directed by action director Michael Bay. Mike Lowry (Smith) is a smooth-talking ladies man and Marcus Burnett (Lawrence) is happily married to his job as well as his wife. As partners in the narcotics division of the Miami police department, they have a reputation as two cops who don't play by the rules. When two pallets full of seized heroin are stolen from the police station, Mike and Marcus are put on the case. A girlfriend of Mike's gets caught in the crossfire and her roommate, Julie (Téa Leoni), becomes a material witness. She calls the police pleading only to talk to Mike. Mike isn't around so to convince her to cooperate, Marcus assumes Mike's identity, complicating matters as the trio take down the bad guys.

There's plenty of pyrotechnics for the special-effects fans, complicated gun battle choreography, and a large-scale dance-club scene complete with exotic dancers--a device that's becoming some what of a recurring charter in films directed by Bay. Lawrence and Smith (who had yet been elevated to multimillion dollar box-office status) deliver with comedic, foul-mouthed finesse. Téa Leoni gives a strong performance as Julie, and Bad Boys also has good supporting roles from Theresa Randle (Spawn, The Big Hit) as Marcus's neglected wife and Tchéky Karyo (Addicted to Love) as the mastermind behind the heist. --Shannon Gee

Bad Boys (1995) (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: A cheerfully over-the-top action film, Bad Boys is notable chiefly for the rapport between its two stars, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, as two Miami cops on the trail of a drug kingpin as they try to protect a witness (Tea Leoni). Smith is the swinging bachelor and Lawrence the family man, and both must juggle their personal lives as they baby-sit the one chance they have to recover a stolen drug shipment, save their jobs, and take down the drug dealer. While the film is almost always implausible and its story is something seen many times before, director Michael Bay (The Rock) keeps things moving stylishly and at a feverish pace, as Smith and Lawrence prove themselves a terrific comic pairing. Their odd couple banter flies at a faster clip than the bullets and explosions, and becomes the best reason to see this hyperbolic but entertaining action flick. --Robert Lane