To sum up, Bad Boys II is one awful movie.  With that said, Im going tell you why I loved it.  This is certainly one of the most entertaining farces Ive seen in recent years.  Folks, Bad Boys II is not a serious movie like you may think it is.  It is a hardcore, no holds barred spoof of dumb silly action films.  Even in its most serious moments this movie is insanely overblown and ridiculously crazy.  That thought really didnt sink into my head until about halfway through the film when Marcus (Martin Lawrence) and Mike (Will Smith) are driving down the traffic filled Miami streets, chasing a black van that holds several dead bodies (I wont go into why).  Without any true reason, the doors to this van swing open and the bodies begin to fall out onto, not only the street where they are frivolously run over by passing cars, but onto the car Mike and Marcus are in causing Marcus to go into yet another silly rant about how crazy Mike is.  If this were a real film, all credibility has just gone out the door.

            Director Michael Bay (The Rock, Armageddon) has yet again made a bizarre over the top movie, but hear it from me first, this is the mother of all over the top movies.  Its also the first movie that notably winks at the take the first film and multiply it by 2 theory.  The film doubles the action, the comedy and the fun in such a way that you, the moviegoer, know is completely ridiculous.  The film teams up Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett again, this time to fight off a drug lord who is selling large amounts of Ecstasy in Miami.  I wont go any further with the plot however, since I hate reading reviews that simply sum up (and often spoil) what happens in the film. 

            Many critics thus far have hated this film, but it very much reminds me of another spoof released so long ago.  The film is speak of is none other than Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.  Dolls, written by critic Roger Ebert, was an overblown farce on the world of sex and drugs in Hollywood.  That film was, of course, chock full of drugs and gratuitous nudity. 

            Now, more than 30 years later, we have a film thats doing the same thing that Dolls did, but with the silly buddy cop movienow featuring gratuitous violence and harsh language.  Before I go any further though, Id like to point out that with that said, DO NOT take your kids to see this movie.  It is NOT for children and should not be viewed by kids.  Kids will not get the joke and they may be greatly affected by the films goreyes gore.  I was greatly saddened to be sitting right next to a father and mother who had taken their 8 year old son and their 6 year old daughter to the film.  I was mortified that theaters would even allow it actuallyso were the parents.  I guess I partly blame the parents though.  They should have researched the film a little. 

            Besides the gratuitous nature of the violence, the films odd sense of pace is another facet that could only be compared to Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.  No shot lasts more than 3 seconds for more than half the film.  This alone can be played as a hilarious How long will the shot last game.  Very fun.  To add to the fun, Mike and Marcuss comic bits are laugh out loud hilarious and worth the price of admission alone.  This is easily one of the funniest movies Ive seen in recent months.

            So, you may be wondering, why is the film bad?  Well, the film doesnt offer us anything we havent seen before and it actually stems into the world of the complete and utterly illogical more than once.  The film also has about three ending and the final ending is, well, lets just say that without the Bush administration the final ending wouldnt even be legal and I dont even know whether or not its legal WITH the Bush administration.  But thats what makes this movie great.  It doesnt seem to care about logic parameters; it simply wants to be stupid.  Thats exactly what made Beyond the Valley of the Dolls so clever.  Dolls never tried to be smart and because of that, it was often completely illogical. 

            Another big compliant is that it has completely forgotten the first movie.  With many sequels these days, the characters dont feel the same.  That same trait follows suit here.  Marcus is much goofier and Mike is a narcissistic demon sent here to destroy anything that holds a gun.  He even refers to himself as the devil in one given scene!  I dont remember these guys being that way before, even though Marcuss goofiness does allow for several dozen of the best jokes in the film.  Mike is simply crazy.  He acts crazy, he talks crazy and he looks crazy, but I guess that all adds to the spoof nature of the film.

            This film is not moral, nor will it ever be in any time on any planet.  It is not for those who are offended easily because Im sure it will offend a great deal of people.  Bays use of religious symbolism is confusing, a tad offensive and my least favorite part of the film.  I get the feeling that the point of his religious symbolism was left on the cutting room floor along with a great deal of the plot.  This is a loss that is very saddening, even for a movie this funny.

            All in all this is the perfect summer movie for people who hate overblown films that try to pass themselves off as serious movies.  I can only hope that Columbia Pictures, the films distributors can team up Paramount pictures and bring Eddie Murphys Axel Foley from Beverly Hills Cop and the gang from Bad Boys together for one picture.  Now that would be the ultimate summer experience.  Hands down.  Until now, Im fine with Marcus and Mike and their crazy world where rules are out the door.

            Quality of the film: D+.  The movie doesnt offer much in terms of real story or character development or logic for that matter.  The editing is frantic and the villain and sub-characters are boring.  Overall, the film doesnt offer much for the scholars and it can be quite offensive to many people.  Dont take kids to this movie!  It is far too gory.

            Fun/Popcorn Factor: B. Even though the film is fun and crazy, the offensive nature, and the gore factor can still get under your skin.  The spoof nature of the film allows for several unintentional laughs.  The intentional laughs which are also very high quality gut busters.  The running time (2 hours 30 minutes) hurts the fun factor of the film as well.