Throwback Thursday: Bad Boys

Welcome to another edition of THROWBACK THURSDAY, where we take a look at the first feature films of some of our favorite directors.  This week, we will be talking about Michael Bay's first film, Bad Boys.

It's been almost 20 years since Bad Boys was released in theaters, and after watching it again, it has definitely held up through the test of time.  It's a classic story, told in a classic way that can be done in any generation.  Whether it's Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop in the 80's, Bad Boys in the 90's, Rush Hour in the 2000's, or 2 Guns, which came out last year, the buddy-cop action genre doesn't get old.

These types of action films are where we see Michael Bay at his finest.  Films like this, Bad Boys 2, and The Rock are some of my favorite films that he's directed.  These are the types of movies I'd like to see him go back.  Now, don't get me wrong, I am excited for the new Transformers movie, because who doesn't want to see some Dinobots, but what I'd really like to see is a Bad Boys 3 or something along those lines.

Hey Mike, pull my finger...

In the early stages of development, the producers (Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer) had actually in visioned Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz in these roles.  The film was even originally written for them and titled Bulletproof Hearts.  Now that would have been a VERY different movie, and I don't think it would have been as successful.  

Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz?  Why am I watching this?

The script was one of the problems Bay had with the film.  So, to remedy this, he had many of his actors (especially the main stars, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence) improv their lines.  The best one was during the scene where Mike, Marcus, and Julie are in the convenience store and the clerk pulls out a gun and yells "Freeze, Mother Bitches!".  That line plus the lines "No, you freeze, bitch! Now back up, put the gun down, and get me a pack of Tropical Fruit Bubbalicious." and "And some Skittles." we're all improvised.

Sorry, we're all out of Skittles...

This film was made for a modest $19 million, and went on to make over $140 million worldwide, making it a commercial success, no matter if it had mixed reviews.  

This film was important because it introduced my generation to a great genre of film.  After seeing this for the first time, I went out and watched Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop, and I love both those movies.  So, thank you Mr. Bay, for bringing into this world a great film like Bad Boys.  Now, hopefully he'll get back to those roots some day.

~Josh

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