Bad Boys: Ride or Die

NOTE: There a no spoilers for this film, but there are a couple significant spoilers from the last one that will be mentioned because it's difficult to sidestep them.

8/10

In the fourth film in the Bad Boys film series (yes, I'm amongst you that don't know why the third one was called Bad Boys for Life and not the fourth one because of obvious word play), detectives Mike Lowry (played by Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) try to clear the name of the late Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano), who's been framed by corrupt law personnel. 

The Bad Boys movies continue to be one of the few series where there hasn't been a weak entry. This is a well balanced combination of action and comedy, plus it is also a solid continuation of the story from BBfL. 

The action-packed finale is a creative hoot and is a breath of energy in a world where there's been so many action movies it can be hard to be original. There is a also a surprising variation in the types of action in this. Returning directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah really have an eye for fight scenes.

Be warned that this is probably the darkest entry in the series. If you just want to enjoy a simple action popcorn flick where the good guys win without too much civilian collateral damage, then you may have issues with this.

The BB movies should be given credit for building up a cast of characters over time and making the world feel lived in. However, I do think RoD suffers from juggling too many characters. Like last time, the writers seem to have fun writing for Lowry and Burnett's backup Kelly (High School Musical/Princess Switch's Vanessa Hudgens) and Dorn (Vikings' Alexander Ludwig), but they're given little enough screen time that you're kinda annoyed that they're getting you to like characters without much follow-up. (In all honesty, I wouldn't mind a spin-off with these guys.) 

Given that they spent the length of the last film setting up the romance between Mike and Rita (Paola Nunez), one may be bothered that they dropped the relationship and married Mike to an entirely new person without any setup. Maybe it's because Rita's the police chief now, and it'd be awkward if her husband were her subordinate, or maybe the filmmakers thought the chemistry wasn't working.

Acting is fun across the board. Though he's dead, they manage to squeeze in a few appearances by Captain Howard through video recordings and visions, and Pantoliano makes the most of what looks like his final work on his franchise by giving his trademark enthused performance along with some surprisingly emotional parts. I honestly think it's a mistake they killed Howard off (and that Pantoliano isn't in more stuff in general.) He's just so fun.

Highly recommended. This makes for a good time.