Long in the tooth and lacking bite, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence's BFF franchise odyssey nears the 30-year mark in this fourth instalment. Cue your best impression of a shocked Smith and Lawrence.
Recalling the diminishing buddy returns of the Lethal Weapon and Die Hard series, Bad Boys: Ride or Die sees likeable stars let down by a poor script and so-so set pieces. Smith and Lawrence are double jobbing as producers so there's really no excuse.
Building on the story of the 2020 hit Bad Boys for Life - also directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah - Ride or Die sees cinema's oldest teenagers (combined ages: 124) return as cops Lowrey (Smith) and Burnett (Lawrence).
The OTT Odd Couple are investigating Miami police corruption with posthumous video message help from their much-loved boss Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano) and further input from Lowrey's long-lost and now banged-up-forever son Armando (Jacob Scipio). Other familiar faces also reprise their roles, this time joined by former Grey's Anatomy alumnus Eric Dane as the non-event of a villain and Tiffany Haddish in a cover-your-eyes cameo.
Like other Oscar winners before him (say, Halle Berry in Catwoman, Adrien Brody in Predators, Charlize Theron in Aeon Flux), Smith's quality control has gone awry post-statuette and it's galling to see him settling for substandard. That he and Lawrence have chemistry isn't up for debate - you get the odd laugh in Ride or Die when they're given the right moment to work with - but there's also no arguing that this particular IP's best times are in the rear-view mirror - it's clear long before the close. Also glaringly obvious is the fact that Smith and Lawrence's co-star Scipio has the broody goods for his own starring vehicle in the action genre. Sign him up after making the best of a bad job here.
"I'm not doing this with you in the next phase of our lives," Smith's Lowrey warns Lawrence's Burnett at the start of Ride or Die. The pals would do well to reflect on that once all the box office receipts are in - and then go and find something that's worthy of both of them.
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