The Beach Bum (2020) - Movie Review

I’m not the biggest fan of Harmony Korine. In past reviews, I’ve dropped shade about how I don’t like his depictions of the dregs of society (The homeless, the lower-class, the celebrity impersonators, etc.), but that’s more of a surface-level detail for me; something that makes me hesitant to approach his films, even for a re-watch. What makes me reluctant to rough it out once I start is this vibe I keep getting from his films that I don’t have any use for them, as entertainment or as thematic text. I at least respect films like Ken Park (although that’s mostly for its place in one of my favourite moments of Aussie film critic history), but his habit of lackadaisical narratives just doesn’t work for me. I walked away from Spring Breakers feeling like I didn’t get anything out of the experience, and despite Korine’s best efforts, the same is true for his latest.

Bad Boys For Life (2020) - Movie Review

The Bad Boys movies are basically ground zero for what filmmaker Michael Bay is recognised for, and not just because the first film served as his initial break into feature filmmaking. Watching it today, the first Bad Boys contains so many quips and plot threads and, hell, even entire characters that could only work in the 90’s, it surpasses the point of being dated into being its own cultural artefact. A snapshot of a bygone era in action cinema, one made easier to watch because Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s chemistry is that damn tight.

The second film is closer to the Michael Bay we all know and… recognise, to the point where it’s so damn sophomoric that even the energetic action scenes can be tough to watch. That and drilling Shake Ya Tailfeather into the audience’s eardrums, a feat that has only served to deepen my disdain for the bulk of Bay’s oeuvre.

I bring all this up not just as proof that I actually did my homework this time around and watched the predecessors, but also to help set up just how much of a left-hook this latest entry is. The Bad Boys films, whether you like them or not, are classic wish-fulfillment action yarns, the kind where accountability and good taste come second to being as ‘cool’ as possible. This film ain’t like that. In fact, even for postmodern re-examination sequels, this really pushes the boat out.