Customer Reviews

Bad Boys

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The film is great, but those of you who already own the original Anchor Bay dvd which as been available for years dvd should be weary, since this is just a repackaging. As many of you know, Starz bought out Anchor Bay awhile back, so the re-release and new packaging reflects that. No new features or upgraded transfer--just the commentary and original trailer like on the AB disc.

One of my all-time favorites; saw it many times on HBO in the early 80's. However, the DVD that I recently purchased from a big retail store was strangely edited. I can recall at least 3 scenes that were completely omitted, for no apparent reason: 1) when Mick's girlfriend is picking out Paco Moreno from the police line-up; 2) when Tweety is released and picked-up by a vanload of his thug friends; and 3) when Mick gets to assign "sh-thouse" duties to Paco and Paco subsequently spits soda on the floor in front of him. There could be more scenes missing that I can't recall; it's been 15 years since I've seen it. However, all of those scenes add to the greatness of this film and I can't think of ANY reason for them to be cut. One of the great features of DVD is that you usually get MORE movie, not LESS. This DVD has absolutely NO extra features. But, I guess you get what you pay for...still a fantastic movie, with great performances by Sean Penn, Esai Morales, Clancy Brown, Reni Santoni and several others. Although the edits are disappointing, this is still well worth watching.

This review is for the new uncut dvd of the 1983 movie called Bad Boys. Forget the one with Martin Lawrence and the plageurized title - this one's about REAL Bad Boys.

Whenever I see a TV schedule and notice Bad Boys in the lineup, it is almost always the 1995 Martin Lawrence movie - which I have never seen nor do I care to see. Now I have my own original Bad Boys dvd and I no longer have to worry about cable channels repeating the 1995 movie over and over while hardly acknowledging the better one. I refer to the 1983 movie for the rest of this review to avoid confusion - which happens when a few movie producing idiots decide to use the same name for a different movie.

There were only 2 left on the shelf, so I quickly grabbed this dvd at Best Buy the other day for $7.99. I heard about the first release of this film to dvd that came out a few years ago where some were saying that there were scenes cut. This dvd that I am reviewing has the yellow strip across the top that says "uncut and uncensored" and it did not disappoint.

Scenes that had been previously missing from the previous vhs and dvd release have been restored. O'Brien's mom tells him to turn down the radio - and he turns it up (the song is Everybody Wants You by Billy Squire), Paco's friends stare at Allie Sheedy as she was on the L train, and Sheedy identifies Paco in a police lineup. But the the most significant restoration is where Tweety is shown driving off in a red van with his friends after he is let out (and he gives a middle fingered salute to the boys in the pen). This is key in explaining one of the film's supporting characters.

I recommend this dvd to everyone who enjoyed it back in the day. For those who haven't seen it yet - it's a cool and interesting jailhouse film that still holds up. Sean Penn plays the 17-year old anti-hero, but when he is faced with survival in a boy's prison you can't help but root for him. I give it a 4 out of 5 stars.

It is a shame that nowadays when you ask someone if they have seen Bad Boys they automaticaly think of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence because the 1983 Bad Boys is far superior to the later Bad Boys movie.
Set almost entirly inside the claustophobic boy's prison, this movie is one of Penn's best performances, and that is saying alot.
Penn quickly rises throgh the ranks in the prison and overcomes alot of adversity to become the top dog, and soon learns that earned respect is a sweet thing.

Much has been said about the overall merits of this most entertaining and provocative Sean Penn starrer. However, not enough can be said about Penn's stellar performance as the brooding Mick O'Brien. His best performance, Penn does wonders with little dialogue. Through his expressions and body language, Penn tells us more about his character's frustration, rage, and sorrow than any verbal barrage ever could. And it's a helluva lot more convincing.

Jeff Shannon's highly informative review mentioned just about everything EXCEPT that all available home video versions of this fine film (VHS and DVD) are CUT by nearly twenty minutes. The original U.S. theatrical release was 123 minutes, but all video copies (including the earlier releases) are 104 minutes. The out-of-print laserdisc did run the full 123 minutes as did the print HBO ran years ago.

It's still quite a satisfactory film, but the mystery remains as to why nineteen minutes of crucial and interesting character development was cut. The film gets a five-star rating, but sadly I can only give the video and DVD versions a one-star rating.

The ridiculous final line: The DVD offers a THEATRICALLY-FORMATTED (letterboxed) transfer of a film that's been CUT FOR HOME VIDEO.

This is fantastic! Now we can finally see the uncut version of Rick Rosenthal's gritty classic(in my opinion). When I think of Bad Boys, I always think of Sean Penn and Esai Morales. It's too bad that you have to clarify which film your speaking about when you mention it and lots of people have only seen Michael Bay's crappy movie of the same title. I have been waiting a long time for a nice special edition of this film. Now we get the film uncut(it was previously only available uncut on laserdisc) and a commentary! And cheap too! I love Anchor Bay!!!!!

I picked this DVD off the rack as a random selection, mainly because I don't believe that Sean Penn has ever appeared in a bad movie....and this has got to be one of his best (even though he was only in his early 20's when it was produced in 1983).

He portrays a young delinquent purse snatcher and mugger named Mick O'Brien, who is rapidly escalating the violence of his crimes. Ultimately, during an attempted drug robbery his best friend is murdered and he accidentally runs over the young brother of his bitter enemy, Paco Moreno (fairly well portrayed by Esai Morales....he is definitely no Sean Penn).

Because of his youth, Mick is sent to a grim, grimy, violent juvenile detention center presided over by the "usual suspects": inattentive, seemingly deaf guards who allow atrocities to be perpetrated daily and with no consequences....prison trustees (Clancy Brown portrays one) who flaunt the rules, sexually abuse at will, and terrorize the inmates....and a warden who is a weak, fickle joke.

By standing up to the trustees and demonstrating his talents for mayhem and maniacal violence, Mick becomes the dominant inmate....in effect, ruling the place, until two things happen to challenge him: Paco rapes Mick's girlfriend (revenge for the death of his brother) and gets sentenced to the same juvenile detention center as Mick. They now hate each other more than ever, and are trapped within the same hellish institution....you KNOW that something horrific is going to happen.

Sorry, but if you want to see how this incredible set-up plays out, you'll have to rent or buy the DVD....and I assure you, it will be money well spent. The acting is superb (Sean is incredible, even as a teenager, exuding an undercurrent of barely-controlled violence); the plot is suspenseful and bloody but always makes perfect sense; the direction, cinematography, sets, sound, etc. are terrific. This is a genuinely excellent movie....I give it my highest recommendation.

I found this teen crime/punishment drama forceful and convincing. In my opinion Bad Boys displays one of Sean's better roles. He is able to gain your sympathy and frustration almost simultaneously -- promising youth and beauty carelessly tossed aside. While the film is not on the level of Dead Man Walking, it is nonetheless an enjoyable '80s punk story. The music (Little River Band, Ashford and Simpson...) is an R&B, Rock mix which is an appropriate and accurate representation of pop radio during that era.

After reading John's review of Bad Boys, I did a little research. Indeed, the DVD version is 19 minutes shorter than the theatrical release. Thanks John, you saved me some money. Now to the rights holder out there, how about releasing a completed version.

THIS IS SEAN PENN'S GREATEST MOVIE.HIS PRFORMANCE WAS TREMONDOUS SO YOUNG IN HIS CAREER,THIS MOVIE DEFINED WHAT KIND OF ACTOR HE WAS GOING TO BE.THE NEW BAD BOY MOVIES WITH WILL SMITH,MARTIN LAWRENCE IS AN INSULT TO USING THE SAME NAME.

SEAN PENN'S BAD BOYS IS DEFFINETALY HIS BEST WOK EVER