Bad Boys for Life
Columbia Pictures | Release Date: January 17, 2020 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
59
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 46 Critic Reviews
Positive:
23
Mixed:
22
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
EmpireChris Hewitt (1)Jan 16, 2020
Not so much bad Bad Boys, more good Bad Boys. And not so-bad-it’s-good Bad Boys either. Instead, this is comfortably the best entry in the series to date. Which isn’t bad. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterTodd McCarthyJan 15, 2020
It’s impressive and enjoyable to behold how easily Smith and Lawrence slide back into these characters and actually make them more accessible and fun to be around than before. Read full review
76
PolygonMatt PatchesJan 15, 2020
In an exhausted, introspective, dad-jokey way, Bad Boys for Life gives these boys a definitive ending. It isn’t one fans ever expected, but it’s highly watchable. Read full review
75
ObserverOliver JonesJan 17, 2020
This is a movie where the charming guys fire holes into the un-charming guys while blowing stuff up and telling mildly funny jokes. Its story is absurd, most of the dialogue not spoken by one of the two leads is laughable, and save for a draggy middle section when the plot mechanics keep the bad boys separated, it’s a lot of fun. Read full review
75
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiJan 15, 2020
The plot isn’t really, but who cares? Think of Bad Boys for Life as a Pennsylvania highway store: full of explosives and fun. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleJan 15, 2020
A funny, satisfying action comedy that never disappoints. Read full review
75
ConsequenceMike VanderbiltJan 15, 2020
Bad Boys for Life thrives from stellar action filmmaking and could be an affecting closer to an action film trilogy, even if there are moments that feel like an attempt to build a cinematic universe of sorts (including a misguided post-credits tag). Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperJan 15, 2020
Almost nothing that takes place in the last 20 minutes of this movie could ever transpire in anything resembling the known universe. By then, you’ll have long since either checked out or decided to strap on the popcorn bag, put reality on hold and just go with it. Read full review
75
USA TodayBrian TruittJan 15, 2020
While it focuses more on character moments than absolute Bayhem, Bad Boys for Life does feel a bit long and there is a late out-of-nowhere plot twist that feels a little far-fetched even for these movies. Thankfully, neither detracts from the delightful spectacle that comes with Smith and Lawrence fist-bumping and insult-slinging just like it was 1995 again. Read full review
75
IndieWireDavid EhrlichJan 15, 2020
The result is a fun, explosive, and surprisingly thoughtful action movie that manages to thread the needle between the pyrotechnics of vintage Jerry Bruckheimer and the softer, more forward-thinking demands of contemporary multiplex fare. It may not be as raw as “Bad Boys,” but it’s more human. It may not be as operatic as “Bad Boys II,” but, well, neither was “The Ring Cycle.” Read full review
70
Film ThreatAnthony Ray BenchJan 18, 2020
Bad Boys for Life is a fun and competent action comedy with most of all the things people loved about the previous two films. It succeeds in that regard, but it does not successfully succeed in pushing the franchise forward and passing the torch to newer and fresher talent. Read full review
70
Arizona RepublicWeldon B. JohnsonJan 16, 2020
If you enjoyed the first two “Bad Boys” movies, you’ll want to see how the characters have developed. If you aren’t a fan of the series, there is a strong enough story to make the film worthwhile. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternJan 16, 2020
The production is no masterpiece. Much of the physical action is ludicrous, or gratuitous; some of the heroes’ emotional baggage is excess. But an unexpected something sneaks up on us as the story unfolds. In between the volcanic eruptions of violence and mayhem, the film takes its buddies seriously — with such outsize sincerity that we can take them to our hearts. Read full review
70
IGNRosie KnightJan 15, 2020
Bad Boys for Life doesn't reinvent the wheel but if you like the franchise you'll likely love this outrageous sequel. Read full review
70
ScreenCrushMatt SingerJan 15, 2020
The themes introduced in the early scenes are explored in the second act, further expressed through the chases and fights, and resolved in the conclusion. This might sound like rudimentary stuff. But it’s sometimes shocking how few blockbusters successfully pull off the rudimentary stuff. Read full review
70
UproxxMike RyanJan 15, 2020
For the first time ever, I cared about Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett. And for the first time, yes, I hope some more Bad Boys come for me. Whatcha gonna do? Well, I’d watch them! Happily, for once. Read full review
70
VarietyOwen GleibermanJan 15, 2020
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence bring their A game; they never let us feel as if they’re going through the motions. The marks may be standard issue, but they hit them with fury and flair. Read full review
67
Original-CinThom ErnstJan 19, 2020
There are scenes of explosions, gangland killings, car chases, and more explosions. Still, the film strives to be more than just a mesh of Bay-inspired blow-ups and easy to reach jokes. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattJan 15, 2020
Banter and bullets is the action-movie MO, and the duo at the center of it hardly seem to have to stretch to spread their bickering charm on thick. By the shock-and-awe climax, though — when everything but the goatee pretty much goes up in flames — other things have worn thin. Read full review
65
The VergeJoshua RiveraFeb 25, 2020
Bad Boys for Life is admirable in its lack of ambition. It’s here to serve action and comedy in roughly proportionate amounts, with big set pieces that are just thrilling enough to hook you and jokes that are just funny enough for you to hope no one dies. Read full review
65
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaJan 15, 2020
It’s the unexpected amount of heart that ends up making Bad Boys for Life a pleasant surprise. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comOdie HendersonJan 16, 2020
Surprisingly, Bad Boys For Life is nowhere near as bad as its opening day schedule would indicate. It is the best of the three films, offering in some odd ways a corrective to the prior installments. Unlike the original, this one finds some depth in its female characters. Read full review
63
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanJan 15, 2020
The good-natured tension and ribbing between the two old “boys” is still there — and still a bit old hat — but there is a new dynamic that juices the entertainment factor. Read full review
60
The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeJan 22, 2020
It is impossible to watch the picture without meditating on the way video games have changed action cinema. Similar thoughts kicked up during the very different 1917, but the loop is more dizzying here. Read full review
60
Paste MagazineDom SinacolaJan 16, 2020
Bad Boys for Life is better than it should be—the audience at my screening clapped when it ended—but not quite up to being what it must: a reminder that, you know what, a thousand years from now, Bad Boys will still fucking be here. Read full review
60
Total FilmJamie GrahamJan 16, 2020
Delivers as a Friday-night actioner, with some smart moves and good banter. Smith and Lawrence are on crackerjack form. Read full review
60
Time OutMichael GingoldJan 16, 2020
The movie’s greatest accomplishment, though, is the way it brings some honest heart to Mike and Marcus’s partnership in the first half, before the traditional mayhem and profane banter take over. Read full review
60
Screen RantSandy SchaeferJan 15, 2020
It's more effective as an action-comedy about Mike and Marcus struggling to figure out what they want in life (now that they're facing north of fifty) that a reflective drama about Mike coming to terms with his traumas and mistakes, if only because the latter plot thread tries to build on a foundation that, frankly, was never really there in the first two Bad Boys movies. Read full review
60
Rolling StonePeter TraversJan 15, 2020
It’s a bumpy ride for sure, but Smith and Lawrence haven’t lost their irresistible mojo and Bad Boys For Life plays like a blast of retro ’90s action. It’s like they never left. Read full review
60
The GuardianJordan HoffmanJan 15, 2020
While Bad Boys for Life has a completely asinine story, generic action, predictable plot beats, moronic dialogue and truly reprehensible politics, I still had a good time. Read full review
58
The Film StageConor O'DonnellJan 15, 2020
The film admirably attempts a level of emotional resonance Bay has proven largely incapable of. Even if it can’t quite wrangle those beats into one cohesive mood, it gives its leads the most they’ve had to work across this trilogy. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Johanna SchnellerJan 17, 2020
This film’s charm – and it does have some – lies in the fun it has with Smith and Lawrence’s aging. Read full review
50
The Associated PressMark KennedyJan 16, 2020
“Bad Boys” only works when the bickering cops are center stage. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangJan 16, 2020
Lawrence doesn’t just steal scenes; he brings things back to earth, sometimes by expressing open contempt for the plot he’s mired in. His comic instincts are exactly what Bad Boys for Life needs as it tilts toward third-act grandiosity. Read full review
50
CNNBrian LowryJan 16, 2020
As is, this update of a brand of buddy action-comedy Hollywood churned out with regularity way back when is a pretty shoot-by-numbers affair, beyond the mild kick of acknowledging that the central duo are getting a bit old for this sort of thing. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreJan 16, 2020
What you come for here, aside from nostalgia, is the excess, and “Gangsta” directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah serve that up in heaping helpings. Characters topple into pools of blood, all manner of vehicle is raced and blown up. And Miami has never looked sexier on the screen. Read full review
50
The New York TimesGlenn KennyJan 16, 2020
Lawrence’s riffs almost always land. They especially need to in the final quarter, when the movie sets the bar high for this year’s Dopiest Movie Plot Twist competition. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliJan 15, 2020
So, for Bad Boys for Life, we avoid a trip into the lowest depths of hell in favor of a dead end. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyJan 15, 2020
Bantering back and forth, Lawrence and Smith manage to recreate some of their screen chemistry — though not enough to make anyone want to go on another bumpy ride. Read full review
50
The PlaylistJason BaileyJan 15, 2020
What the newbies can’t recreate is the coked-up, jet-fueled delirium of Bay’s efforts, particularly the second “Bad Boys,” which may be as pure a peek into a narcissist’s id as has ever been captured in a summer studio picture. It’s a loathsome, ugly movie, but fess up, it’s one you’re still thinking about. Bad Boys For Life is, by most standards, a “better” movie. And you’ll forget it by next week. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsJan 15, 2020
Bad Boys for Life may be a frantic visual blur but it’s razor-sharp thematically. Its mission, should you choose to accept it, is to make a jaded 2020 audience glad to see these guys again. The movie’s not the point. The boys are the point. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriJan 15, 2020
This is, indeed, a somewhat kinder, gentler Bad Boys: less proudly offensive, less extravagant, but still basically the same collection of stylish clichés made palatable by a duo of likable stars with good chemistry. Read full review
48
TheWrapRobert AbeleJan 15, 2020
The stars certainly aren’t acting like their participation is a mercenary endeavor. Lawrence and Smith seem to enjoy their goofy-meets-gung-ho responsibilities, and that counts for something in these types of movies, as is a tone decidedly less mean-spirited than the last one’s, and a central car/motorcycle/helicopter chase that distracts you with thrills rather than wear you down with overkill. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovJan 15, 2020
Bad Boys for Life – while not as combustibly fun as the second installment – is fine, cheesy, Saturday afternoon mayhem, smoothly served with a heaping helping of “We’re all getting older.” Read full review
40
Screen DailyTim GriersonJan 15, 2020
Taking the reins from Michael Bay, directing duo Adil & Bilall supply loads of energised style, but without the panache or shamelessness of their predecessor. As for stars Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, they don’t seem rejuvenated by this reunion, mostly re-creating the forced back-and-forth quipping that wasn’t even fresh back when they were younger men. Read full review
12
Slant MagazineJake ColeJan 15, 2020
The film may leave you wondering what purpose this franchise serves if not to give expression to Michael Bay's nationalist, racist, and misogynistic instincts. Read full review
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