Anna Daniels
The surprisingly good (maybe even great?) Bad Boys For Life is about to come home. The sequel is due to hit digital at the end of March, almost a full month before its Blu-ray release. This somewhat early digital release is likely meant to coincide with several other big titles that have scored early releases in the wake of the coronavirus. Movie theaters are shut down, people are stuck home, and studios are scrambling to fill the void.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2OL6sW7nc4?feature=oembed&w=740&h=416]
You can score Bad Boys For Life on digital starting March 31, and then on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray & DVD April 21. There’s usually a gap between digital and physical releases, but it’s traditionally not a nearly month-long gap. Sony is likely hoping to get in on the early digital release trend that several other films have been adopting in the wake of the coronavirus, including The Hunt, The Invisible Man, Birds of Prey, The Way Back, and more.
I’ll be honest: I had very low expectations for Bad Boys For Life. But the movie was a pleasant surprise, abandoning a lot of the cruel nihilism of the second film while letting the characters grow a little. As I wrote in my review:
But it’s the unexpected amount of heart that ends up making Bad Boys for Life a pleasant surprise. In the previous two films, one gets the distinct sense that Mike and Marcus really don’t give that much of a shit about each other – or anyone else. Sure, they say they ride together, die together – but it’s hard to buy it in those movies. Smith’s Mike Lowery in particular often comes across as a borderline psychopath in those first two movies – someone who only cares about his own image. Mike starts like that in this film as well, but as the story races on, he softens a bit. He may not want to admit it – we learn he’s started dying his goatee – but he’s getting older now. And some people mellow out when they get older. They slow down, and they realize they’ve been taking certain things for granted. If the Bad Boys franchise of all damn things can have actual emotional growth there might be hope yet for all of us.
And oh yeah, the villain of the film is a witch – I feel like not enough people appreciated that fact. In Bad Boys For Life, “Mike Lowry (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence), are back. After a string of assassinations and an attempt on Mike’s life, he convinces a hesitant Marcus to hold off retirement and partner one last time. Together, they team up with AMMO, the new hotshot division of the Miami PD, to take down the merciless head of the Aretas Cartel.”
Here are the special features included with the home media releases:
4K ULTRA HD, BLU-RAY AND DIGITAL BONUS MATERIALS
- Extended & Alternate Scenes (Including an Alternate Ending)
- Outtakes & Bloopers
- Ride or Die: Making Bad Boys for Life
- Partners in Crime: Behind-the-Scenes
- It’s About Time: Go through 25 years of Bad Boys history with Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the cast and crew
- Easter Eggs: Directors Adil and Billal take us on a tour of a few of the Easter eggs and callbacks to earlier Bad Boys films
- And more
DVD BONUS MATERIALS
- Extended & Alternate Scenes
- Outtakes & Bloopers
- And more
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