the bad guys 2022 movie review

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The laughs are easy and breezy at the beginning of “The Bad Guys,” and the animated comedy’s sun-baked vibe radiates Southern California cool.

A wolf named Wolf and a snake named Snake enjoy snappy banter at a retro L.A. diner, having the kind of conversation they’ve probably had countless times over their years of friendship. They push and pull, jostle and tug, all in good-natured fashion. Then they get up, stroll casually across the street, and rob a bank. Pierre Perifel , making his feature directing debut, lays all of this out in one long, single take, instantly drawing us in to these characters and this world. It's an extremely familiar set-up, a subgenre unto itself: hyper-verbal thieves charm us into coming along for the ride and rooting for them to pull off their biggest heist yet. This is a furry, scaly version of Quentin Tarantino or Elmore Leonard —or at least, that’s what it aspires to be. But it’s a clever change to see such a story told in animated form with a star-studded voice cast including Sam Rockwell , Marc Maron , Zazie Beetz , and Awkwafina.

This opening scene of “The Bad Guys” is its strongest, and it offers great promise. But the wise-cracking, fast-talking energy that was once so buoyant grows increasingly strained as the story evolves and reaches its frenzied conclusion.

Based on the kids’ graphic novel series by Aaron Blabey , “The Bad Guys” follows a group of fun-loving criminals who lean into their rap as the villains of the animal kingdom for thrills and profit. Wolf (voiced by a smooth Rockwell) is their charismatic leader, with unmistakable shades of Danny Ocean. (In case the similarities weren’t obvious, he repeatedly gets compared to George Clooney .) Snake (a gravelly, earthy Marc Maron) is the cranky but loyal safecracker. Shark ( Craig Robinson ) is the enthusiastic master of disguise, but the amusing running bit is that it’s always totally obvious he’s a shark. Tarantula (Awkwafina) is the speedy and resourceful hacker, an assignment where it would indeed be useful to have eight arms. And the main skill the quick-tempered Piranha ( Anthony Ramos ) seems to bring is toxic flatulence, which at first seems like a gratuitous gag to make kids in the audience giggle, but it ends up being a surprisingly cohesive through-line in the script from Etan Cohen (“ Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa ”). (It’s still gross, though.)

After they get caught trying to steal a valuable statue from a swanky gala, the notorious Bad Guys agree to clean up their act with the help of the celebrated, philanthropic guinea pig Professor Marmalade (a perky Richard Ayoade ) in order to avoid jail time. The tiny, prissy rodent lives in a gargantuan, cliffside mansion made for a Bond villain, our first clue that perhaps not everything is as simple as it seems. The team gets some cover from the governor, Diane Foxington (Beetz), who wants to see them go straight; she also happens to share a playful flirtation with Wolf. But Wolf’s scheme is for the Bad Guys to pretend they’ve become good guys in order to trick everyone and remain ... bad. Sound good?

The animation is colorful and lively—almost incessant, really—and the physical comedy is at its most inspired when it subtly toys with the natural instincts of these anthropomorphized creatures: the way Snake sheds his skin mid-heist, for example, or how Tarantula walks across a fingerprinting pad when the gang gets booked into jail. For a big chunk of the film, we literally have a wolf in sheep’s clothing, as the group’s leader is forced to dress in a cuddly lamb onesie as part of his rehabilitation. It’s good for a chuckle, at first.

But the midsection feels saggy and the early zip and swagger wear thin. Still, there are some useful notions here about second chances and redemption, as well as upending people’s perceptions to emerge as the best possible version of yourself. Sounds facile, but the script handles these themes with some intelligence. At the very least, “The Bad Guys” encourages kids not to judge a book by its cover—and maybe even read an actual book about these characters afterward.

Now playing in theaters.

Christy Lemire

Christy Lemire is a longtime film critic who has written for RogerEbert.com since 2013. Before that, she was the film critic for The Associated Press for nearly 15 years and co-hosted the public television series "Ebert Presents At the Movies" opposite Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, with Roger Ebert serving as managing editor. Read her answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

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Film credits.

The Bad Guys (2022)

Rated PG for action and rude humor.

100 minutes

Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf (voice)

Marc Maron as Mr. Snake (voice)

Craig Robinson as Mr. Shark (voice)

Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha (voice)

Awkwafina as Ms. Tarantula (voice)

Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade (voice)

Zazie Beetz as Diane Foxington (voice)

Lilly Singh as Tiffany Fluffit (voice)

Alex Borstein as Police Chief Misty Luggins (voice)

Walt Dohrn as Scientist / Gala Guest 3 (voice)

Pierre Perifel

Writer (based on the books by)

Aaron Blabey
Hilary Winston
Yoni Brenner
John Venzon
Daniel Pemberton

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The Bad Guys Reviews

The humor is sometimes quite juvenile, but who doesn’t enjoy well executed fart jokes?

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 5, 2023

A thrilling amount of fun! I laughed, I smiled, & I even got that warm fuzzy feeling the bad guys got! A fantastic message about not judging a book by its cover & even why we should be good!

Full Review | Jul 25, 2023

…the notion of rejecting societal labelling and finding your own way through experience is thoughtfully developed here, and there’s enough humour to keep the kids engaged…

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 3, 2022

It looks really good. It's got a really good visual style... the story is serviceable but uninteresting and incredibly predictable, and the characters are fine... And if it matters to anybody, my 10 year old had basically the same assessment as me.

Full Review | Sep 11, 2022

The brilliant heist storyline makes for a fun action flick, it's easily my favorite animated crime caper I've seen so far. The terrific voice cast and delightful characters make this one a real winner.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 2, 2022

There’s nothing particularly innovative here and it’s not as funny as I had hoped. But there’s a good chemistry between our reluctant heroes that makes them fun to spend time with. And the animation style is inspired and more often than not quite good.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Aug 16, 2022

An adaptation of the children’s novels by Aaron Blabey, The Bad Guys is a return to form for DreamWorks Animation, yet also the promise of a bold new direction for the prolific studio.

Full Review | Original Score: 7.5/10 | Jul 26, 2022

Like a kiddie 'Ocean's Eleven' (the villains are the protagonists) it's frantic but for the most part it's also unfunny so it winds up being a starter heist movie for grade schoolers.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Jul 21, 2022

...a breezy if overblown adaptation of the Aaron Blabey children’s book series.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jul 7, 2022

As a whole, this is medium-functioning family entertainment that’s content to amuse without exerting too much creative ambition. It’s not always memorable, but it works for the most part.

Full Review | Jul 1, 2022

I’m in; the cleverness of the script keeps the audience entertained.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jun 30, 2022

It’ll get the kids thinking about why we don’t always give people who have gotten in trouble with the law the benefit of the doubt to change, which is a nice little filter to grow them up on. After that, it’s just a fun heist riff, a furry Ocean’s 11.

Full Review | Jun 28, 2022

Pierre Perifel's feature directorial debut, "The Bad Guys," manages to take all the things you love about Steven Soderbergh, Guy Ritchie, and Quentin Tarantino's crime movies and puts them in animated form.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Jun 27, 2022

With unique animation and a punchy story, this is a fun family adventure.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jun 24, 2022

It develops a fun story in a stylised and accelerated way, introducing us to a charismatic group of characters, and conveying messages related to friendship and redemption. Full review in Spanish.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Jun 11, 2022

The Bad Guys is a good time for its slick style, solid characters, and stealing from the best heist films. The strong ingredients make for a pleasing if not light animated affair.

Full Review | Jun 11, 2022

Fun for the whole family, The Bad Guys easily wins you over with its heart and humour.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jun 10, 2022

Younger viewers will likely be hooked on the sizzle of the film...

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jun 5, 2022

Among the voice actors, the revelation is Maron, who’s note-perfect as Snake, the most cynical member of the gang — a gruff, cantankerous voice that keeps “The Bad Guys” from slipping into phony melodramatics.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | May 29, 2022

The strength of the film... is how it uses negative stereotypes to build a positive story, showing that change is possible and that we don’t have to accept the cards we are dealt in life.

Full Review | May 26, 2022

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The bad guys, common sense media reviewers.

Book-based animated heist is so fun, it's criminal.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Learning to share is a subplot.

Doing good makes you feel good, and you may receiv

Most of the primary characters are "bad guys" of s

While main characters are all animals, they're voi

Cartoon violence with no permanent outcome include

Two characters seem to have a low-level attraction

Vulgar language includes "butt," "fart," and "what

Main characters are thieves who steal jewelry and

Champagne and martini glasses are seen at parties;

Educational Value

Positive messages.

Doing good makes you feel good, and you may receive positive attention for positive actions. Also makes point that stereotypes are harmful, and that if someone is labeled "bad," they may choose to lean into the label rather than fight it. Even those who have appearance of being "good" may need extra scrutiny before receiving our trust.

Positive Role Models

Most of the primary characters are "bad guys" of some sort, but by the end they've made a conscious choice to change their ways. They work as a team.

Diverse Representations

While main characters are all animals, they're voiced by a diverse cast, and viewers are intended to take away the idea that we need to be conscious of the impact of implicit bias and the way that attributes like race, religion, and more can be depicted as villainous by and in the media. Female characters are in traditionally male-dominated careers, such as a police chief, governor, and tech hacker.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

Cartoon violence with no permanent outcome includes characters being hit by a car, eating other animals, tussling, performing martial arts in self-defense, explosions, and a car crash. Some peril is played with a comical tone; one moment of worry is quickly alleviated.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Two characters seem to have a low-level attraction that involves dancing and the very lightest of flirting.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Vulgar language includes "butt," "fart," and "what the hell."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Main characters are thieves who steal jewelry and gold objects, even though they appear to have plenty.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Champagne and martini glasses are seen at parties; one character accepts what appears to be a martini. However, a character at a party later orders "a tonic water in a fancy glass," and it looks like the same drink.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that The Bad Guys is a fun animated comedy heist based on a popular graphic novel series . Delivering a memorable message about the harmful impact of stereotypes, it follows a wolf (voiced by Sam Rockwell ), shark ( Craig Robinson ), piranha ( Anthony Ramos ), snake ( Marc Maron ), and tarantula ( Awkwafina ) who've formed an infamous crime ring. There's cartoon violence -- characters being hit by a car, fighting in self-defense, explosions, etc. -- and momentary peril, but it's largely delivered with a light tone. Characters drink from glasses that look like they might have cocktails in them, and friends exchange insults and use potty words ("butt," "fart," etc.). Over the course of the story, the characters learn that being good means putting others' needs before your own and that positive recognition may follow good deeds; a subplot about sharing is as clear and shiny as a diamond. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Community Reviews

Parents say (37)
Kids say (48)

Based on 37 parent reviews

A pleasant surprise

Really good family movie, even dad laughed, what's the story.

Notorious crime squad THE BAD GUYS have avoided capture for years, becoming the world's most wanted villains in the process. When they're finally caught, Mr. Wolf (voiced by Sam Rockwell ) brokers a deal: the Bad Guys will go good in exchange for their freedom. But the crew will have to convince everyone (and themselves) that they really are "good guys," just as a new villain comes to town.

Is It Any Good?

This animated adaptation of Aaron Blabey 's beloved Scholastic books revels in bringing a charming, modern take to a very specific idiom: "A wolf in sheep's clothing." Taking an empathetic approach to a crew of thieves who only pretend to "go good," this lighthearted and amusing heist comedy shows that when someone is labeled as "bad," they're likely at some point to start believing it. It's perfect fodder to help explain implicit bias, as well as why labels and stereotypes are problematic. And writer-producer Etan Cohen goes beyond the source material to show that even those who have the appearance of being "good" may need extra scrutiny before receiving our trust -- an equally valuable lesson.

The script has a few issues that may nag at parents, but overall, The Bad Guys is an enjoyable romp that's like Ocean's Eleven for children, and kids won't be hung up on the tiny details. That said, while the ending is responsible and shows that crime doesn't pay, it sure makes crime look cool along the way. This band of thieves doesn't steal out of need but because they're good at it, and it all looks legitimately fun (gentleman thief Mr. Wolf is super cool, so don't be surprised if your kiddo tries to lift something from your purse or pocket to be funny). Let's just hope the message about fighting bias is the movie's lasting influence.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about why it's harmful to label people. What is a stereotype ? Which ones do you think The Bad Guys is trying to show are problematic?

Describe what the terms "bad guy" and "good guy" mean to you. Why did you use those attributes? How do entertainment and media inform the way we think of others?

How do you feel when you help someone or put their needs before your own? Why do you think it feels good to do good?

How do the characters in the movie work as a team ?

What is a wolf in sheep's clothing? How is that idea explored in The Bad Guys ?

Movie Details

In theaters : April 22, 2022
On DVD or streaming : June 21, 2022
Cast : Sam Rockwell , Awkwafina , Anthony Ramos , Marc Maron , Craig Robinson , Zazie Beetz
Director : Pierre Perifel
Inclusion Information : Female actors, Asian actors, Latino actors, Black actors
Studios : DreamWorks Animation , Universal Pictures
Genre : Family and Kids
Topics : Adventures , Book Characters , Friendship , Wild Animals
Character Strengths : Teamwork
Run time : 100 minutes
MPAA rating : PG
MPAA explanation : action and rude humor
Award : Common Sense Selection
Last updated : May 8, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

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Mr. Shark steals the Mona Lisa in The Bad Guys

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The animated heist movie The Bad Guys steals from all the right places

It’s derivative and goofy, but it stays lively by mashing up Zootopia, Wreck-It Ralph, and decades of crime movies

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Two major signatures of DreamWorks Animation productions are frenetic action sequences and “adult” pop-culture references. Not all their movies heavily feature both, though many do — this is a studio that turned The Boss Baby , a fanciful children’s picture book about sibling rivalry , into a yammering, scattered comedy with Glengarry Glen Ross references and, in its recent sequel, an explosives-laden, highly destructive vehicle chase.

The new DreamWorks cartoon The Bad Guys is also based on a series of children’s books, and it seems to follow a similarly noisy pattern: It has an opening scene derived from Pulp Fiction or something out of Steven Soderbergh, leading straight into, yes, a raucous car chase. And of course, Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell) gets the audience up to speed by addressing them directly: What would DreamWorks movies be without narrated exposition in the first 10 minutes?

And yet since this is a heist movie, director Pierre Perifel knows it’s the details that matter. That opening scene, where Mr. Wolf and his best friend Mr. Snake (Marc Maron) chat in a diner about Mr. Snake’s hatred of birthdays and why guinea pigs taste so good, doesn’t reference Pulp Fiction by whipping out “Misirlou” on the soundtrack or mentioning the Royale with Cheese. Instead, the scene takes its time, letting the characters banter before revealing, in a single animated “take,” that the diner staff’s and patrons have all been cowering off-screen as the fearsome bad guys finish eating. The virtual camera then follows Mr. Wolf and Mr. Snake across the street, where they knock over a bank.

Mr. Shark, Mr. Wolf, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Snake (Marc Maron) in costume and surrounded by cops in The Bad Guys

The freneticism of the ensuing car chase is leavened by the intentionally choppy, mix-and-match animation style . The characters’ designs look vaguely three-dimensional, but with simpler, flatter eyes; a more paint-like texture for skin and fur; and comic book-esque graphic accents on their more extreme motions. They look drawn, rather than expensively rendered.

As with the more grown-up heist movies that precede it, the style goes a long way toward enlivening a story that may seem familiar to cartoon fans young and old. Mr. Wolf and Mr. Snake are part of a notorious criminal gang — also including Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos), and Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson) — that eventually attempts to go straight. In other words, these are bad guys who are unexpectedly given the opportunity to improve themselves (like in Despicable Me ) and break out of the villainous role that society assigned them (like in Wreck-It Ralph ) based on the harmful stereotypes of their animal characteristics (like in Zootopia ). This isn’t even the first time DreamWorks has gone to this well; its movie Megamind features a supervillain discovering his inner goodness.

Simply removing The Bad Guys from a superhero/supervillain context, however, helps distinguish it from its many predecessors. Perifel really does seem interested in making a kid-friendly heist/caper picture, with all the cons and twists that entails. Mr. Wolf experiences doubt over whether he should continue to pursue a life of crime, but when he initially convinces Governor Foxington (Zazie Beetz) to release his captured gang into the custody of known philanthropist Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) to be reformed, he has future heisting possibilities in mind. Other characters have secret agendas of their own.

These reversals and double-crosses are all set in a bizarre hybrid environment where humans and some animals interact on equal social footing. (There are still smaller animals, like guinea pigs and kittens, who don’t speak or walk upright.) This not fully realized world, where side characters scarcely seem to exist outside the background of various capers, lends The Bad Guys an unpredictable whimsicality as it adapts heist roles for cartoon animals. Some of the innovations are clever (Mr. Snake sheds his skin to switch outfits), and some are amusingly absurd (Mr. Shark, the largest and least discreet of the group, is the designated master of disguise).

Mr. Shark and Mr. Wolf escape a massive explosion in The Bad Guys

The Bad Guys ’ imitation of grown-up movies isn’t always pitch-perfect. The attempts at sly banter between Mr. Wolf and Governor Foxington are just OK — more theoretically cute than conversationally sharp. It goes down easy, though, with the playful insinuation of Rockwell’s distinctive vocal tones. (His dexterous real-life dance moves survive the transition to animation, too.) Maron also does fine work as the gruff, misanthropic Mr. Snake.

It’s all pretty lightweight stuff, and after recent mainstream triumphs like Turning Red and Encanto from two different arms of Disney, The Bad Guys may well shore up DreamWorks’ status as the B-squad of contemporary American animation, where spectacle is the default and emotional growth is a little pat. But the better DreamWorks cartoons come alive when they’re liberated from Disney formulas, rather than chasing after or self-consciously spoofing them. Even when The Bad Guys resembles other movies, it’s stealing from them gracefully, with its own sensibility and energy.

The Bad Guys is available for rental at Amazon , Vudu , and other digital platforms.

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‘The Bad Guys’ Review: Smirking All the Way to the Bank

In a heist film-inspired DreamWorks comedy, the Big Bad Wolf goes good, begrudgingly.

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By Calum Marsh

There’s an old joke among animation lovers that the difference between Pixar and DreamWorks is a matter of conceptual vision: While Pixar movies tend to be wildly original feats of creativity and imagination, DreamWorks movies are usually about anthropomorphic animals doing fairly standard human stuff while smirking. There’s even a popular term for the wry, self-satisfied expression their characters invariably wear: DreamWorks Face .

This punchline has been circulating for years, and while it isn’t entirely fair to DreamWorks (which has made some interesting movies), it’s hard not to think of it when confronted with “The Bad Guys” (which is not one of them). This inane, juvenile animated comedy, directed by Pierre Perifel, is about a thieving clan of talking animals forced to reform after an elaborate heist goes wrong. They steal, they banter, they have car chases, as animals do not. There’s barely a frame in which they don’t smirk.

Of course, the animals are voiced by celebrities, including Marc Maron, Richard Ayoade and Awkwafina. Sam Rockwell voices the leader of the pack, Mr. Wolf, as a thinly veiled parody of George Clooney in the “Ocean’s Eleven” movies. The parody is so thinly veiled, in fact, that another character refers to him as going “full Clooney” when he lays on the charm.

The fast-paced, action-oriented heist sequences, however, have more in common with the later “Fast and Furious” films than with classic heist pictures like “Ocean’s,” and there are several overly long, gravity-defying car chases throughout, as if to drive the comparison home. As for comedy, “The Bad Guys” offers dregs: fart jokes, underwear gags, bad animal-related puns. It’s rote material, symptomatic of the underlying problem — a lack of imagination.

The Bad Guys Rated PG for mild cartoon violence. Running time: 1 hour 40 minutes. In theaters.

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It’s been a while since DreamWorks Animation made a truly enjoyable, memorable film. Directed by Pierre Perifel from a screenplay by Etan Cohen and based off the book by Aaron Blabey, The Bad Guys is dynamic, exciting, and enjoyable all the way through, standing out as one of DreamWorks’ best animations in a long time. With a great voice cast, beautiful animation, a well-crafted story and heartfelt themes, The Bad Guys is a highly entertaining and thrilling watch.

The Bad Guys — Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Snake (Marc Maron), Piranha (Anthony Ramos), Tarantula (Awkwafina), and Shark (Craig Robinson) — are renowned thieves. They can’t enter a room without freaking everyone else out as they cower in fear. Their reputation precedes them and their heists, as well as their seamless getaways, frustrate and unnerve the city and, most especially, chief of police Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein) . After being called out by the governor, Diane Foxington (Zazie Beetz), The Bad Guys hatch a plan to steal the golden dolphin, a prestigious award given to the city’s good samaritan, so they can be considered the world’s greatest criminals. Things get complicated, however, when things go awry and they are handed over to Professor Rupert Marmalade (Richard Ayoade), who is convinced he can make The Bad Guys good.

Related: Marc Maron, Craig Robinson & Anthony Ramos Interview: The Bad Guys

On its surface, The Bad Guys seems like exactly the kind of movie one might expect. A group of thieves trying to execute a heist. But the film veers left when one thinks it will veer right, subverting expectations and uplifting the material from a one-dimensional story to a multi-layered, heartfelt one. The film’s themes are not only deep and interesting, but the animation is engaging, full of joy, and incredibly fun. The Bad Guys soars in its handling of Wolf’s character, whose morals seem muddy at best at the start. However, the film has him contending with what it means to help others and do good in a way that puts him at odds with his friends, who have grown accustomed to being perceived as the bad guys without a second glance or a chance to prove anyone wrong. This conflict makes for some good tension as the film drives toward an ending that is fast paced and exhilarating.

The film is a callback to some of Hollywood’s best heist movies like Ocean's Eleven , and includes hints of Zootopia’s themes as well, though The Bad Guys takes these similarities and makes it all its own. To that end, the film explores stereotypes and perceptions without ever feeling like it’s hitting the audience over the head with its point. And while the animation does have a lot of heart, it never loses its sense of excitement. There are plenty of action sequences, funny jokes, twists, and physical comedy that will keep the audience watching. The Bad Guys’ animation style is also quite lovely, its aesthetic and character design a blend of soft, paint-like art that is smooth without being entirely two-dimensional. The animation also taking cues from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’s comic book-like art style, foregoing on being completely a 3D project. It makes for a refreshing visual palette that remains grounded in its muted, earthy colors.

The characters are dynamic, each with their own distinct personalities, and their relationships with each other even more so. It’s easy to become invested in what will happen to The Bad Guys because of how much they care for each other and are genuine in their friendship. The voice cast does a tremendous job giving life to these characters, with Zazie Beetz’s take on Diane Foxington being a standout of the group, alongside Marc Maron’s grumpy, hot-headed Mr. Snake. There is plenty of humor, thrilling sequences, layered characters and a plot that is anything but dull. Ultimately, The Bad Guys is a good time at the movies, with a little bit of everything to satisfy moviegoers of all ages.

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The Bad Guys released in theaters on Friday, April 22. The film is 100 minutes long and is rated PG for action and rude humor.

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The Bad Guys review: A clever crime comedy for the whole family

The Bad Guys is, in many ways, a fairly typical animated family movie. It’s got a group of charming and snarky talking animals, a bright animation style, fast-paced and physics-defying action sequences, and more than a few jokes that will only work on audience members between the ages of 2 and 10. But The Bad Guys is also a crime comedy in the same vein as Ocean’s Eleven , a film that definitely doesn’t qualify as “family-friendly,” if only because it “condones” criminal behavior.

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The flaws in the plan, the not-so-perfect con.

By combining its traditional, kid-friendly elements with a plot that was clearly inspired by several much edgier heist films , The Bad Guys ends up being an unexpected combination of two opposing genres. What’s even more surprising is the fact that The Bad Guys mostly succeeds at creating the same kind of magic found in so many of the crime comedies that its makers obviously admire.

That is to say that, while The Bad Guys is still a film that feels the need to deliver an easily digestible moral lesson, it’s also the kind of movie that’s willing to start with a scene that pays clear homage to the prologue of Pulp Fiction .

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Directed by Pierre Perifel and written by Etan Cohen, The Bad Guys focuses on a group of anthropomorphic animals who have come to accept their place as the go-to villains of most stories. There’s Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), and Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), all of whom bring their unique skills and personalities to their eccentric crime outfit.

The film opens with Mr. Wolf and Mr. Snake sitting in a quiet city diner, and it follows them as they argue for several minutes about their food preferences before making their way across the street to rob a nearby bank. In the car chase that follows, Mr. Wolf breaks the fourth wall to introduce viewers to himself and the rest of his team members. It’s a fun and well-constructed opening sequence, one that combines elements from films like Out of Sight , Pulp Fiction , and Fast & Furious before reaching its inevitable, intentionally ludicrous conclusion.

From there, The Bad Guys follows its central crew as they attempt to steal an award from a gala event that is meant to celebrate a wealthy philanthropist named Rupert Marmalade IV (Richard Ayoade). However, things go wrong when a moment of heroism from Mr. Wolf results in him and his team being forced to undergo a series of character rehabilitation exercises, all of which are overseen by Marmalade.

It’s when the film’s titular crew are under Marmalade’s watchful eye that The Bad Guys comes dangerously close to falling apart. The tests that the characters are put through in the film all come across as uninspired, and Cohen’s script never takes the concept as far as it could. Fortunately, the film doesn’t spend too much of its runtime on The Bad Guys ’ stay with Marmalade, and quickly brings it to an end with an effective, if obvious, twist.

Once The Bad Guys hits the plot beat in question (which won’t be spoiled in this review), it more or less kicks into high gear as it moves into its third act. The film begins to pick up many of the seeds that were planted in its opening section and unfurls a string of stylish and fun action sequences that are punctuated by satisfying and genuinely clever plot twists. Taking a page out of every great heist movie, the film’s closing section is filled with constant shifts in power and tongue-in-cheek cons, all of which help to bring The Bad Guys ’ various plotlines and character arcs to their inevitable conclusions.

For his part, Perifel, who makes his directorial debut with The Bad Guys , fills the film with gorgeous animated visuals and slick, well-edited action sequences. The film visually embraces its absurd premise, opting for a cartoonish and goofy style that makes it look decidedly different from many of the high-budget CG-animated movies that are being released nowadays. Perifel also gives the film a warm color palette that emphasizes its golds, reds, and blacks, which just makes it all the more pleasing to look at.

Predictably, the film’s family-friendly tone prevents its ending from existing within the same kind of moral neutral ground that most great crime movies inhabit. In its concluding moments, The Bad Guys goes out of its way to wrap up its storylines as neatly as possible, which is a decision that not only stretches the film’s internal logic at points but also robs many of its characters of their charming complexity.

But the twists that The Bad Guys uses to bring its characters to their respective endpoints are all fun and clever in their own right, which makes watching the film’s final 10 minutes unfold a satisfying experience despite the forced neatness of its conclusion. In other words, while the movie certainly doesn’t pull off the perfect heist, it does succeed at doing most of what it sets out to do.

The Bad Guys hits theaters in the United States on Friday, April 22.

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‘The Bad Guys’ Review: Criminals Go Straight — In a Roundabout Way — in a Fun, Frenetic Kids’ Caper

Jazzily designed and scored, Pierre Perifel's cartoon romp may be a trifle, but it's still DreamWorks Animation's most appealing offering in several years.

By Guy Lodge

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It’s a problem that has plagued countless kids’ movies — and more than a few grownup ones — over the course of film history: The villain is conceived and performed with such lip-smacking relish that the nominal hero seems a simpering drag to be around by comparison. Conscious of that perennial imbalance, “ The Bad Guys ” takes a simple solution and multiplies it, making a sympathetic protagonist of not just one supposedly dastardly antagonist, but several. Taking five anthropomorphised animals generally portrayed as violent terrors in the cartoon world — led by a big bad wolf, no less — and centering them as a chummy, lovable criminal collective, this bouncy debut feature from French animator Pierre Perifel gets a lot of value out of that neat high concept. As it steers them to the right side of the law, however, it still can’t convince us that good guys have more fun.

If there’s a downside to this strategy, it’s that an ensemble of villains, while fun to hang out with, isn’t all that easy to care about — cheery and diverting as “The Bad Guys” is, it has all the emotional weight of a few crisp, stolen Benjamins. But if it’s no classic in the making, Perifel’s jaunty escapade is still the most likable new offering in some time from the DreamWorks Animation stable, sure to strike gold with families who have exhausted the repeat viewing possibilities of “Sing 2” when it opens Stateside on April 22. (It’s already rolling out internationally.) Franchise potential, meanwhile, is obvious: The film is adapted from a graphic novel series, by Australian author Aaron Blabey, that has already run to 15 issues.

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Though Blabey’s witty, sketchy illustration style has been given a sleeker makeover in its digitally animated transfer to the big screen, “The Bad Guys” nonetheless benefits from a spikier, more overtly cartoonish aesthetic than many of its more smoothly contoured DreamWorks brethren. Lively character design does as much work as the writing in warming us to a core crew of critters who — dashing silver-pelted ringleader Mr. Wolf aside — get somewhat short shrift in a busy, breakneck screenplay by Etan Cohen (returning to animation 14 years after “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”).

The key players are mostly introduced over the course of a frantic introductory car chase, as Wolf (slickly voiced by Sam Rockwell , though repeatedly likened to George Clooney) and his accomplices make a clean getaway from a successful Los Angeles bank heist. Together with cranky safe-cracker Snake (Marc Maron), snarky tech whiz Tarantula (Awkwafina), goofy, disguise-inclined Shark (Craig Robinson) and hot-headed Piranha (Anthony Ramos), Wolf has pulled off enough such robberies to make him the number-one target of canny fox governor Diane (Zazie Beetz) and eternally foiled human police chief Luggins (Alex Borstein).

The thieves’ luck finally runs out, however, during a plot to steal a prize trinket at a swanky charity gala. Caught red-handed, they face jail time until wealthy guinea-pig philanthropist Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) proposes a more experimental course of reform: Under his tutelage, the bad guys must learn to use their sly skills for good. And that’s merely the opening gambit of a happily chaotic, highly involved narrative that proceeds to race through assorted twists both predictable — to anyone familiar with the general implications of posh English accents in children’s adventures, at least — and pleasingly left-field.

Very small fry might not follow each and every one of the story’s various turns and reversals, though it hardly matters. On a scene-to-scene basis, there’s so much going on — further car chases, adorable kitten rescue missions, a zombie apocalypse of fluorescent-eyed Guinea Pigs of the Damned — that it’s easy enough to enjoy the small picture, separate from the big one. Cohen’s writing isn’t quite as nifty or quippy as it could be (“Let’s make like a wolf and get the pack out of here,” a character says, in a limp attempt to engage accompanying adult viewers), but the sight gags are sharper, while a running gag on the debilitating effects of piranha flatulence (who knew?) should slay every time with the little ones.

For anyone attentive to such details, meanwhile, the chief incidental pleasures of “The Bad Guys” are craft-based, from its disciplined, suitably Californian palette of burnt oranges and canine tans, to the brassy exuberance of Daniel Pemberton’s working-overtime score, full of sonic callbacks to ’70s heist-movie funk. There’s even a killer original musical number, performed with full-throated swagger by “In the Heights” star Ramos, in which the bad guys pledge, at least for the moment, that they’re “gonna be good tonight.” For the sake of any future outings with these morally flexible furballs, one hopes such promises are merely temporary.

Reviewed at Hackney Picturehouse, London, March 27, 2022. Running time: 100 MIN.

Production: (Animated) A Universal Pictures presentation of a DreamWorks Animation production. Producers: Rebecca Huntley, Damon Ross. Executive producers: Aaron Blabey, Etan Cohen, Patrick Hughes.
Crew: Director: Pierre Perifel. Screenplay: Etan Cohen, based on the graphic novel series by Aaron Blabey. Editor: John Venzon. Music: Daniel Pemberton.
With: Sam Rockwell, Zazie Beetz, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Richard Ayoade, Alex Borstein, Lilly Singh.

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DVD & Streaming

The Bad Guys

Action/Adventure , Animation , Comedy , Crime , Kids

Content Caution

In Theaters

April 22, 2022
Sam Rockwell as Wolf; Marc Maron as Snake; Awkwafina as Tarantula; Craig Robinson as Shark; Anthony Ramos as Piranha; Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade; Zazie Beetz as Diane Foxington; Alex Borstein as Police Chief Misty Luggins; Lilly Singh as Tiffany Fluffit

Home Release Date

May 12, 2022
Pierre Perifel

Distributor

Universal Pictures

Movie Review

If there’s one thing that Wolf, Snake, Tarantula, Shark and Piranha have in common, it’s that you don’t want to encounter any of them in the wild. But as far as they’re concerned, that’s OK.

“Do I wish people didn’t see us as monsters?” Wolf quips. “Sure, I do. But these are the cards we’ve been dealt, so we might as well play them.”

Society never gave these five a chance, so they decided to take on a life of crime and mischief. And they’ve gotten pretty good at it. They relish news reports labeling them dastardly and diabolical . And those news outlets ain’t seen nothin’ yet: The Bad Guys are about to pull off a heist that no other criminal crew has ever accomplished.

What’s the target? Well, they hope to steal the Golden Dolphin, the award given to the year’s “goodest” citizen. It’s the epitome of good for the best of the best. Looting it from under everyone’s noses is sure to cement them asnot just any bad guys, but the Bad Guys.

But then something unexpected happens: After Wolf accidentally does a good deed for another person, he finds that he actually likes it. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad to try being, dare he say it, the Good Guys ? And though it’s hard enough to convince himself and his crew to try it out, there’s still that societal problem that caused them to go bad to begin with.

“I’m the villain of every story,” Wolf says. “Guilty until proven innocent. Even if by some miracle, we did change, who’s gonna believe us?”

Positive Elements

The Bad Guys , at its core, mixes the nature vs. nurture debate with the problem of societal stereotyping. Most people in the city, the Bad Guys included, subscribe to a generally universal acceptance of the nature side of the debate, leading to the Bad Guys being stereotyped as the villains of the story. Whether it’s as the Big Bad Wolf in the story Three Little Pigs , or movies like Jaws or Piranha , the Bad Guys have been typecast since before they were born. The prejudices of the general public are so extreme that a reporter says, “You should always judge a book by its cover, and all stereotypes have been affirmed.”

But not everyone in the city feels that real character change is impossible. If the last name didn’t give it away, Governor Diane Foxington is a fox—if you’ve seen Zootopia , you know the bad rap foxes get for being sneaky and sly self-seekers. As someone who had to prove herself to society and overcome her own stereotypes, Diane is in the business of helping people realize that they don’t have to play by the script society has assigned them.

This is most prominently explored in how Wolf and Diane discuss a piece of art outside the Good Samaritan Awards. Wolf takes a single glance at the rust-covered statue, calling it “trashy, pointless and pretentious.” But Diane doesn’t see it that way. “I think it’s about perspective,” she says, pointing Wolf toward the shadow of a swan the sculpture is making. “If you look closely enough, even trash can be recycled into something beautiful.” As Wolf begins to embrace making good choices, he realizes exactly what Diane meant.

Wolf feels good when he does selfless actions. Indeed, another character named Professor Marmalade teaches the Bad Guys that being good feels good, and it includes paying attention to other peoples’ needs before your own and paying attention to the needs of others in the first place. And while this is all true, the movie still warns us that just because something feels good doesn’t mean that it is good.

Throughout the movie, the Bad Guys feel tingly when they do good, causing their respective tails, fins or abdomens to wiggle. However, one character exclaims that he gets the s ame tingly feeling whenever he does bad, selfish actions, too.

This scene warns viewers not to base objective moral good on fickle emotions, which can be misleading. And its inclusion could also serve as a great discussion starter for parents and kids regarding what it means to be good, as well as how to discern personal feelings and desires from objective morality.

Spiritual Elements

An annual awards ceremony is called the “Good Samaritan Awards,” referencing the biblical story found in Luke 10.

Sexual Content

Various male characters have their pants pulled down or torn from them for comedic effect, exposing their boxers. Wolf mentions that grappling hooks have a propensity to tear off your pants accidentally. A criminal known as Crimson Paw tells Wolf to wear clean underwear just in case.

Professor Marmalade, the recipient of the Golden Dolphin award, owns a stone statue whose private area is covered by an etched leaf. Many characters say that a meteorite, which is in the shape of a heart, looks like a rear end, and they refer to it as the “butt rock.” An alias on Piranha’s rap sheet calls him the “Butt Biter.” In one scene, Wolf dances with Diane, and the two share a romantic glance. Wolf kisses Diane’s paw when he introduces himself.

During a heist, Shark dresses as a woman, wearing a dress, pearls, lipstick and heels. Shark also throws his drink on the ground to simulate a woman’s water breaking and pretends to start having contractions in order to distract security guards.

Violent Content

The movie’s nonstop, slapstick violence imposes little visible injury on anyone involved. The Bad Guys rob a bank and flee the police, many of whom crash their cars in the pursuit. During a heist, the Bad Guys incapacitate various guards or workers by tying them up or knocking them unconscious. A laser gun destroys a statue.

A meteor crashed into the city a year prior, leaving a massive crater. Snake and Shark fight over a popsicle on a couple occasions, and Shark eats Snake (though Snake is unbothered by this and appears fine in the next scene). Snake eats a massive quantity of guinea pigs, and he is forced to spit them out as Wolf twirls him like a lasso, sending the guinea pigs flying. Police Chief Misty Luggins accidently slams Snake’s tail into a briefcase. Snake gets kicked in the face. His rap sheet explains that he ate all the animals in a man’s pet store.

Piranha accidently knocks Shark out with a grappling hook. Wolf is hit by a semi-truck. A scared cat claws at Wolf’s face. Wolf is electrocuted. In a moment of anger, Wolf yells that he will kill Professor Marmalade. Snake and Wolf fight. The Crimson Paw defeats prison guards with martial arts and causes a large explosion.

A truck runs over a guinea pig (the guinea pig briefly appears as roadkill, but it springs up unaffected). A tsunami that’s comprised of thousands of guinea pigs destroys parts of the city.

Crude or Profane Language

The acronym “OMG” is used once. Wolf uses “pack” to substitute a cruder word: “Let’s make like a wolf and get the pack out of here.” Professor Marmalade calls the Bad Guys “walking garbage.”

Drug and Alcohol Content

Shark takes two alcoholic beverages from a man, and he uses one to splash onto the ground. A gala contains a bar with alcoholic drinks. Wolf sprays cops with champagne to impede their pursuit.

Other Negative Elements

There’s plenty of general toilet humor here, of course. Piranha passes gas throughout the film, and the gas causes people to pass out. Piranha makes a reference to Wolf drinking out of a toilet.

The Bad Guys pickpocket items from the general public. They’re also sent to break into an animal testing lab (which conducts tests on regular, non-anthropomorphic animals). Professor Marmalade mentions evolution as the reason why the Bad Guys are pegged as the bad guys.

Snake swallows items to carry them inside himself, and he vomits them to get them out. Snake says guinea pigs are his favorite meal and that a guinea pig’s cuteness is what makes them taste so good. “You’re eating pure goodness,” Snake says. “It’s not about the pig, it’s about what it symbolizes on a deeper level.” Snake spits on the ground.

Rumors indicated that a sequel to Zootopia would arrive in late 2021. While those rumors didn’t pan out, The Bad Guys could definitely serve as a sister film to the animated hit.

Unlike Zootopia ’s heroic protagonist, Judy Hopps, The Bad Guys follows the less savory members of society: the Wolf, the Tarantula, the Snake, the Piranha and the Shark. They’re the villains of the story and they serve as a warning in fables: They’re not just bad guys, but the Bad Guys.

But the film suggests that their criminal past isn’t entirely their fault. They live in a society that struggles with some prejudices—ones that have declared them to be villains even before they were born; it’s hard to convince people that you’re friendly when all they can think of is the Big Bad Wolf.

So how do Wolf, Tarantula, Snake, Piranha and Shark feel about this typecasting? Well, having society calling them monsters from birth certainly isn’t the nicest thing to hear. But they figure that they can take a lesson from Catch- 22 ’s Doc Daneeka: If everyone describes you as such and treats you as such, then perhaps that’s who you really are. As they’ve accepted that truism, the Bad Guys have unwittingly fulfilled the stereotypes everyone’s lumped them into. In fact, those prejudices are so deeply rooted within themselves that they take insults as compliments—as if they’re being acknowledged for perfecting their predetermined craft.

But just how predetermined is their craft? It’s the culture which has told them to be bad because that’s how animals of their type are. What if Wolf doesn’t want to be the bad guy anymore? What if he was able to change and be a good guy? Even after that, would anyone in the city believe him, or would they just continue assuming that he’s up to no good because that’s simply what wolves do?

The Bad Guys doesn’t break any new ground when contrasted with Zootopia ’s similar look into societal stereotyping and the nature vs. nurture debate. But it does introduce a new perspective into this ongoing conversation via an entertaining, family-friendly experience. While the slapstick violence and toilet humor remind us that the movie is for children, it provides a refreshing breath of air for parents who simply want a new movie with a good message that’s appropriate for their kids.

Who’d have thought that movie would center on five master thieves?

Kennedy Unthank

Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”

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The Bad Guys (2022) Review

GO BAD OR GO HOME!

DreamWorks Animation Studios has had their ups and downs in their releases, finding their cartoon endeavors of a mixed variety from the highest highs to the mediocre lows. The studio has produced some of the finest (and most memorable) animated films such as Shrek , Kung Fu Panda and, How to Train Your Dragon ; finding each one to have their own unique personal visual aesthetics between cinematic storytelling and lovable characters. Even some of their own “stand alone” endeavors such as Shark’s Tale , Over the Hedge , and Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie have had celebration of garnishing praise from critics, moviegoers, and box office results. However, DreamWorks has had its fair share of unfavorable releases, with some of the most forgetful features such as Home , Bee Movie , and Turbo . Perhaps the instability of their releases rest upon the decision of this comes down to its overall studio distribution, with DreamWorks Animation being handled by several studios, including DreamWorks Pictures (from inception to 2005), then Paramount Pictures from 2006-2012, then 20 th Century Fox from 2013-2017, and now (currently) under Universal Pictures. Regardless, it looks like DreamWorks is struggling to find a proper footing with its “hit or miss” releases. Now, after 2021 release of The Boss Baby: Family Business , DreamWorks Animation Studios and director Pierre Perifel prepare to release the latest animated feature film with the movie Bad Guys ; loosely based off the books of the same name by author Aaron Blabey. Does this cartoon motion picture rides high or is it time for the animated studio to call it quits?

Living the good life by being bad, the Bad Guys are a gang of criminals who enjoying their reputations and relish the crime spree around the big city. The team, who includes Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), and Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos), and, while they deal with their differences of opinions and personalities, they’re united in their special skills in thievery. Learning that the coveted Gold Dolphin award is about to be presented to famed Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade), the Bad Guys make a play to take the valuable prize during the ceremony, hoping to humiliate Police Chief Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein) and the newly appointed Governor Foxington (Zazie Beetz) in the process. When the heist goes sour, Marmalade proposes something unique rehabilitation for the gang, offering the thieving ragtag team lessons on how to be good, hoping to reach their hearts and prove that fundamental change is possible…no matter the person. While Wolf is initially dismissive of the situation and playing along with Marmalade gimmick, he learns that the positive ways actually work, putting him at odds with his fellow team, who show less interest in this particular training. So, the question remains…. can a bad guy become good?

THE GOOD / THE BAD

Much like what I said in my opening paragraph, I believe that DreamWorks Animation has been going through a series of ups and downs. When it was first beginning, I believe it to be an animated powerhouse, with the company rivaling Pixar and other Disney movies, especially after the “House of Mouse’s” second renaissance era of the 90s. Movie releases like Shrek , Kung Fu Panda , Shark’s Tale , and How to Train Your Dragon I would deem to be some of the top-tier releases that the studio had to offer from the late 90s to the late 2000s era, with some branching out to deliver solid sequels (i.e. Shrek 2 , Kung Fu Panda 2 and How to Train Your Dragon 2 ). Heck, even some of its non-3D animated cartoon features (more traditional style 2D animation) like The Road to El Dorado and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas proved to be quite effective endeavors that barred fruit and popularity amongst its viewers. That being said, DreamWorks did start to show signs of decline sometime after early 2010s, with several releases that I found either poorly done and / or mediocre endeavors. Films like Bee Movie , Home , and Turbo (the ones I mention above) are just terrible in my opinion and are just pretty “meh”. As stated, it was probably due to the studio’s distribution handling several times over that caused this influx of popular movies releases. And don’t get me started on all the various spin-off TV shows that were done with such “blech” animation. Yet, despite those ups and downs, DreamWorks still has managed (as of late) delivered some good animated features in the late 2010s / early 2020s era, with releases like How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World , Abominable , and Croods: A New Age . To that end, I say that DreamWorks Animation Studios has had a bumpy road through the past two decades, but has endured and produced a good decent number of animated features and doesn’t show to be stopping any time soon.

Naturally, this brings me back to talking about The Bad Guys , a 2022 animated film and the latest offering from DreamWorks Animation Studios. To be honest, I really didn’t give this film any particular hype or anything like that. I think I do remember hearing that a movie was going to be made out of popular children’s series, for I used to work in a bookstore and do remember seeing the title of these books from author Aaron Blabey (though I never picked them up and read them). That was pretty much it. I think I briefly saw the film’s movie trailer and it looked pretty straightforward, with the feature’s main cast of characters (who are bad guys) trying a hand at being good. This particular scenario has been played out many times over, especially in children’s entertainment, so I really didn’t give much credence, or any look over as much as should. Basically, I thought that the movie was going to be a generic “run-of-the-mill” endeavor….and nothing less. So, that’s probably why I didn’t post the film’s movie trailer up on my blog. Thus, I remember when The Bad Guys got released in theaters on April 22 nd , 2022, but I held back from seeing it right away, especially because my work schedule got a little bit as well as my backlog catalogue of doing delayed movie reviews, which (of course) this particular falls into. However, after word of mouth about this movie and seeing a lot of positive reviews about it, I decided to check out The Bad Guys several weeks after its initial release. Unfortunately, with my workload taking a bit more elongated and heavy, my review for The Bad Guys got delayed and I kept on pushing it back for some time. Now, with finally a moment to catch my breath and play “catch up”, I have the time to share my personal thoughts and opinions on this animated film. And what did I think of it? Well, I was surprised how much I liked this movie. Despite a few formulaic and predictable nuances, The Bad Guys is slick and hilarious animated endeavor that plays to the strengths of its voice cast as well as being a entertaining cartoon heist escapades that’s well worth it. It may not beat out DreamWorks upper echelon of popular / memorable releases, but it certainly comes close to doing so…..and that’s a good thing!

The Bad Guys is directed by Pierre Perifel, who makes his theatrical feature length directorial debut with the film. Given his background as an animator for several DreamWorks projects such as Monsters vs. Aliens , Rise of the Guardians , and Shrek Forever After , Perifel seems like a suitable choice to helm the studio’s latest film project, especially since he has an understanding of how a DreamWorks movie is to be put together and executed. In this regard, I definitely believe that Perifel did a fantastic job in establishing (and almost leaving his mark) on the studio’s theatrical cartoon releases in The Bad Guys . How so? Well, while I can’t speak for Blabey’s work, I feel that Perifel has a great understanding of the basic premise and definitely runs with it…in the right direction. The movie (as a whole) feels like a callback to classic Hollywood iteration of heist movies…. almost like a “rolodex” of some of the heist films like Ocean’s Eleven , which heavily utilizes a select group of people with various traits and talents to pull off heist jobs and make a shift family / team in doing so. This, of course, is the primary setup for when The Bad Guys begins, with the initial first act introducing us (the viewers) to this viewpoint from Mr. Wolf as he has other “bad guy” associates pull off a caper that would set them up for life.

Perifel also plays into this notion by introducing some of the themes that are surrounded by the coin phrase “never judge a book by its cover”. This, of course, plays into the feature’s narrative quite a lot, but it’s done with a more tactful approach, thanks to the script handling by Etan Cohen as well as Yoni Brenner and Hillary Winston. Naturally, the themes of exploring stereotypes and perception are well-founded in the narrative structure of the movie, which definitely made me think of the main theme of Disney’s Zootopia , but rather than making a “carbon copy”, the script for The Bad Guys takes that prose of thematic messaging and makes it’s own and never pulls an “overkill” button when trying to get the point across. The script shapers as well as Perifel’s direction for the film keeps The Bad Guys from falling prey to heavy-handedness of drama and strikes a proper medium of cartoon fun and excitement with moments of reflections and understanding.

Looking beyond those points of narrative writing and thematic messages, Perifel makes The Bad Guys have an all-around great cartoon experience that has all the required and necessary moments to make it accessible for all ages. Even better, the film’s targeted age range will be able to understand (and digest) some of the more meaningful moments by getting its point across in a very straightforward and simplistic way. That’s not to say that The Bad Guys is too “kid-ish” for older viewers to enjoy as Perifel sets the tone for the film right the opening minute of the feature by letting its talented voice cast (more on that below) play to their strengths as well as having a plenty of action sequences and comedy. Oh, yes…the comedy is another big plus for the film, which utilizes a lot of verbal jokes as well as physical comedy gags that are actually pretty good and hit more of their intended levity target rather than missing it. Perifel keeps the feature light on its toes by offering a very breezy animated film that has a greater understanding of balances of action and comedy more so than other cartoon flicks nowadays. There are a few bumps here and there that I notice, but as a first attempt in doing a project like this…. I believe that Perifel gives more right than he does get wrong. Overall, I’m quite impressed with what Perifel was able to accomplish with his first full-length animated film, making The Bad Guys have such energetic and wonderfully tactful narrative that boasts plenty of laugh-out loud moments and a terrific animated endeavor for lighthearted entertainment.

In the presentation category, The Bad Guys looks quite amazing and definitely has a unique swagger that makes it stand out from its other animated feature film competition. Rather using the standard / straight approach style of computer generated rendering for this animated project, Perifel and his team make the film have a visual aesthetic and character design with an interesting twist of soft, art-like styles without being entirely two-dimensional…. something that (in my opinion) kind of reminded me of Netflix’s animated movie Klaus . Additionally, the art style that the animated endeavor produce takes a few cues and nuances from Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse , with a large emphasis on the comic book-like visual flair through its rendering and movements of characters / objects. Like Into Spider-Verse, it can be a bit jarring and getting use to it, but it definitely is a huge positive in my opinion, with the animation style of its presentation feeling refreshingly creative and has a keen sense of colorful palette that speaks for itself. Thus, the feature’s “behind the scenes” team, including Devan Key and Floriane Marchix (art direction), Luc Desmarchelier (production designs), Courtney Hoffman (costume designs), and all the movie’s CGI visual artists, should be commended for their efforts in making The Bad Guys have a wonderful and fantastic animation presentation that can (quite literally) trump any animated feature film that has been produced of late…. for its sheer brilliance of style and design. Lastly, the movie’s score, which was composed by Daniel Pemberton, is a great musical composition that has all the usual fanfare one would expect from animated children’s film, but also has the classic usage of the somewhat jazz-infused heist flick, which compliments the thieving heist format that the movie has to offer. All in all, it’s a great piece from Pemberton.

There are a few parts of The Bad Guys that I felt that could’ve been ironed out a little bit better, which caused the feature to have its fair share of criticisms. Perhaps the most apparent one that’s the easiest one to spot is in the overall predictable nature of the movie’s story and how everything plays out throughout the course of its runtime. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy watching the movie and I loved it for what it is…. a kid’s movie. That being said, I felt that the story for the film was way too simplistic. Yes, as I mentioned above, the movie is quite easy to digest and can be accessible to the younger juice box in way that they can follow along, with everything drawn out in a crystal clear way. This, of course, means that most (if not all) of the film has a real predictable nature from start to finish, with a formulaic plot that plays out like one would expect. The morals are translucent, and the roles are clear to what needs to happen and what will happen, despite the movie trying to lather its narrative in a few moments of surprises and twists. Thus, The Bad Guys is pretty formulaic to the touch and could’ve utilized a few more creative and innovate ways to bolster its narrative shortcomings.

In hindsight, I also believe that the movie could’ve utilized a bit more finesse within the heist / crime attempts. Of course, the film heavily emphasizes the various character traits and usage of the actual “bad guys” characters to make their job cohesive and part of the team aspect of pulling off a job together. That being said, the effect is only use in a few sparse areas and I, for one, would’ve liked to see more of this…. pulling off more elaborate heist that what was showing. Even the film’s ending, which pulls all the stops and punches in its showcases, runs the gambit of being a bit too long and tedious for its own good and could’ve benefited with a bit more restructuring of the feature’s themes and characters. In addition (and I’ll mention more on this below), I felt that the movie could’ve done a better job in fully fleshing out some of the main characters of the feature a bit more, especially some of the other “bad guys” characters. It’s not a complete deal-breaker as I felt like this was going to be a problem with the movie from first five minutes, but it would seem that a lot of emphasis is placed on Mr. Wolf and not so much on his other companions, which are there throughout the movie, but it becomes crystal clear where the script is going and who it favors the most.

What definitely helps overlook these points of criticism is the voice talents that The Bad Guys , which are top-notch and full of charismatic energy to bring these animated characters to life. Leading the charge in the film’s endeavor is actor Sam Rockwell, who plays the main protagonist of the movie of Mr. Wolf. Rockwell, who is known for his roles in Iron Man 2 , Moon , and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri has always been a gifted actor, spanning a good career that’s a mixture of mainstream releases, indie projects, and award-winning. While not a complete stranger to doing voiceover, Rockwell involvement in the movie is spot-on and makes for a great and believable performance in playing Wolf, with the actor’s laidback and easy-going attitude / bravado seeping into the character, who’s supposed to be sly and easy-going. As mentioned, the story arc for his character is quite well-represented in the movie (easy to follow and to digest), with Rockwell up to chance to give the classic “big, bad wolf” a run for his money and makes the character have a compelling arc. Thus, it goes without saying that Rockwell is almost the perfect match for voicing the character of Mr. Wolf in the film and makes for standout performance in the animated endeavor.

Likewise, actress Zazie Beetz is terrific as the character of Diane Foxington, the newly appointed governor of the city. Known for her roles in Deadpool 2 , The Joker , and Atlanta , Beetz, while not entirely a mainstream talent, has certainly made a name for herself over the past few years; slowly amassing a career catalogue that hones-in on her craft. Thus, her involvement in The Bad Guys is indeed a welcomed one, with Beetz having a lot of playful lines throughout the movie, which are great and makes Foxington an likeable character right from the get-go. Plus, Beetz is a fantastic foil for Rockwell’s easy-going voice, which makes the interactions between Diane and Wolf all the more worthwhile. To be quite honest, I was actually surprised by Beetz’s voice as Governor Foxington, which sounded a bit like actress Maya Rudolph, who I believe the voiced the character when I watch the film. That being said, Beetz certainly is great in the role, and I welcomed sight she brings with her character of Diane into the mix of the whole “bad guys” gang.

The other Bad Guys characters, including actor Marc Maron ( Maron and GLOW ) as the cynical Mr. Snake, actress Awkwafina ( The Farewell and Raya and the Last Dragon ) as the sharp-tongue Ms. Tarantula, actor Craig Robinson ( This is the End and Pineapple Express ) as the childish Mr. Shark, and actor Anthony Ramos ( A Star is Born and In the Heights ) as the short-fused Mr. Piranha, play more the secondary main characters in the movie, yet still shine through with their exuberant / larger-than-life voices. Each one is given their own unique heist skill set and distinct personalities that perfectly match the voice performer behind them, which are equally fun and amusing to watch whenever they are on-screen. That being said, what kind of lessened that impact is that the characters, especially during the middle portion of the film, gets pushed aside as Wolf’s personal narrative story arc takes center stage. As I mentioned above, it wasn’t too much of a problem for me, but I would’ve liked to see more of these characters have their own personal little story arcs a bit more or (at the very least) have a bit more characteristic development rather than the one personality trait. Still, for better or worse, these particular characters in the film are hilarious and their voice talents are solid across the board.

Additionally, actor Richard Ayoade ( The IT Crowd and The Watch ) is terrific as the voice for the pompous and good-natured Professor Rupert Marmalade IV, while the voice talents of actress Alex Borstein ( Family Guy and The Marvelous Ms. Maisel ) as the hot-headed chief of police Misty Luggins and actress Lilly Singh ( Ice Age: Collision Course and The Tube’s Hautest ) provided more minor supporting characters in the film, which are great in their limited, yet colorful screen time.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s good to be bad….is the sentiment feeling tagged in a movie where the commonplace bad guys get themselves mixed up in a situation where they must learn to be good guys to save their skins in the film appropriately titled The Bad Guys . Director Pierre Perifel’s first directorial feature-length debut film is surefire homerun win from DreamWorks Animation Studios; producing a wonderfully enjoyable animated heist capper flick that has wit, zip, and slick styles and swaggers throughout its runtime. While the movie has a few snags of predictable and formulaic natures within its narrative builds (as well as a few characters moments), the film raise to challenge and overcomes those points and presenting a creative cartoon feature thanks to Perifel’s direction, it’s play on the heist genre, the comedy, the animation style, the score, and the entire voice cast. Personally, I liked this movie. It was definitely something that I wasn’t expecting (as I mentioned that I had low expectations for this film) and I had a great time watching. It was fun twist on the classic “bad guy” stereotype and, although some elements were a bit predictable, the animation style was unique and the voice talents involved were solid across the board. All in all, an entertaining and hilarious animated endeavor from DreamWorks. Thus, my recommendation for this film is a very favorable “highly recommended” as the movie can be enjoyed all everyone of all ages and perfect choice for a family friendly movie night. Given the film’s ending is left open-ended, the general positive reviews that the movie has received, and how that Blabey has written an entire novel series surrounding these particular characters, it would seem like a Bad Guys 2 might be on the horizon in the near future and I, for one, would love to see sequel to this movie. Even if one doesn’t materialize, DreamWorks’s The Bad Guys is a cheeky, fun, and widely entertaining animated film that delivers on its premise and rises above the standard fanfare of animated endeavors by producing something uniquely creative and amusing within a heist format as well as its “never judge a book by its cover” theme.

4.3 Out of 5 (Highly Recommended)

Released on: april 22nd, 2022, reviewed on: june 26th, 2022.

The Bad Guys is 100 minutes long and is rated PG for action and rude humor

‘The Bad Guys’ is a good movie: A heist flick with humor and heart

The animated comedy about talking animals who try to give up the criminal lifestyle is like a family-friendly ‘Ocean’s 11’

Some animals are easier to love than others, whether they deserve it or not. Who wouldn’t want to cuddle an otter, though they are some of the most ruthless killers in the animal kingdom? Washington is a bastion of panda love, ignoring the fact that they are basically clumsy fur balls so dumb they have to be enticed to breed. And sure: Everyone loves the chittering of Flipper, until … well, Google “male dolphin gangs” — just not on your work computer.

“The Bad Guys” takes a look at the animals that make us want to scream, squeal and squash them, and asks why that’s the case.

Based on a series of graphic novels by Aaron Blabey, the animated comedy follows a group of animal criminals who are having a really great time stealing stuff. The leader of the pack is Wolf (voice of Sam Rockwell, continuing his streak of improving any movie by at least 10 percent). Wolf is basically Danny Ocean with a tail. In fact, much of “The Bad Guys” is a nod, a wink and a nudge to “ Ocean’s Eleven ,” down to the storytelling, visual style and some very specific jokes: Wolf puts the moves on a female fox by going “full Clooney.” (In this California-like fantasia, much of the population is human, while the main protagonists are animals. And some of them are species that shouldn’t be able to walk or breathe oxygen. Just go with it.)

Wolf’s comrades are the curmudgeonly Snake (Marc Maron); the master of disguise Shark (Craig Robinson); Piranha (Anthony Ramos), a fish with an anger management problem; and the tech whiz Tarantula (Awkwafina). They’re at the top of their game when the movie starts. People are so scared of them that they can pretty much saunter into the bank of their choice, point at the money and walk out without threatening anyone. Life is good.

Of course, every heist movie needs one last job, and this one targets an award given to the state’s most do-gooding creature — in this case, a guinea pig named Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade). Wolf and the rest of the gang want to enter their names into the criminal hall of fame by snatching the trophy. The heist goes wrong, naturally, and the gang ends up on the receiving end of Marmalade’s rehabilitation instincts, with the professor — Henry Higgins-like — betting that he can remake these bad guys into model citizens.

The film addresses an intriguing question: Why are the bad guys bad? They have no choice, according to Wolf. Every story has a villain: the serpent in the Garden of Eden, the great white in “Jaws,” the wolf in “The Three Little Pigs.” What’s the point of trying to get on anyone’s good side? It doesn’t matter how nice Tarantula is; whenever she shows up, people start looking for a heavy book to flatten her with. Might as well monetize the fear.

Still, as Wolf learns more about the benefits of being good, he kind of likes it. That opens a rupture between him and his longtime accomplices, and eventually he’ll have to make a choice.

The animation — particularly during the plentiful action sequences, and especially during the car chases — is sharp and fast and wonderful to watch. As in the “Ocean’s” movies, there are some nifty edits that bring sophistication to the look of the film, despite some stumbles. Case in point: Wolf, like other characters with fur, has a very fuzzy body, but the rendering of his face is so smooth, it looks like he’s gone a little overboard with the Instagram filter. DreamWorks Animation is known for cutting corners when compared with, say, Pixar: It’s easier and faster to render facial expressions if you don’t have to worry about every whisker. But it’s unnerving. There’s also a lack of emotion in the protagonists’ eyes. The uniformly excellent voice acting helps compensate for that, but the cast can only do so much.

The moral of the story doesn’t pack a huge wallop. Not that it needs to. (We can’t all be “ Encanto .”) Still, it’s clever, visually interesting and very, very funny. Even when the humor goes lowbrow, it makes narrative sense. A joke about flatulence is a lot funnier when it’s essential to the plot. “The Bad Guys” gets that.

In fact, “The Bad Guys” gets a lot of things. It knows precisely what it is — and what it sets out to do, it does well. It’s a heist film with heart and humor, and where’s the crime in that?

PG. At area theaters. Contains action and rude humor. 100 minutes.

THE BAD GUYS (2022) – Review

As Spring slowly arrives (really, April snow), the multiplex makes way for a new family-friendly animated feature film (and contrary to what the Academy said, that medium can tackle the more mature subject matter, like FLEE). Now, this one’s got an interesting twist, a “spin” on a firmly established trope of the “cartoon conflict’. Well, it’s not a “skewed’ satiric fairy tale or fable but rather goes further back, before the features, to those “much-missed” theatrical shorts. Very often they dealt with a chase, usually a pursuit with a predator animal trying to capture its (not so defenseless) prey. In the world of Looney Tunes, Sylvester is after Tweety while the Coyote was always several steps behind that Roadrunner. But what about shifting the focus from the “heroes” to the “villains”, to a team of “nogoodniks” who somehow want to change? Or do they? Can they really “flip” their “nature” or must they remain THE BAD GUYS?

This “cartoon caper” begins with a casual diner conversation between the gang’s leader, Wolf (voice of Sam Rockwell), and his “second in command” and BFF Snake (Marc Maron). After exiting the “greasy spoon”, the duo begins a “bank heist’ with the help of the rest of the “crew”: computer-hacking whiz Tarantula (Awkwafina), master of disguise Shark (Craig Robinson), and the tiny but powerful Piranha (Anthony Ramos). After barely escaping capture by their arch-nemesis, Police Chief Luggins (Alex Borstein), the gang return to their secret lair and begin to plan their next “job”. A TV news report informs them that the valuable Golden Dolphin award for Samaritan of the Year will be presented to Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) at a “fancy-schmancy” museum event. For Wolf, the “icing on the cake” is that the award will be given by newly elected Governor Foxington (Zazie Beetz). The gang complains that many criminals have failed to nab the Dolphin, but Wolf insists that this will be their greatest “score”. Of course, the plan doesn’t quite go smoothly, as Wolf helps a much-older matron who nearly trips down a staircase. He has an odd sensation, a twinge of euphoria inside sparked by doing good and causing his tail to wag. This helps lead to the gang’s capture, but security footage of Wolf’s selfless act inspires the Prof to plead for the gang, insisting that he can change their ways and do a better job of reforming them than any prison. Can the “bad guys” go good or is this just part of a bigger scheme? And what about that spark between Wolf and the Guv?

Dreamworks Animation theatrical features have been “hit and miss” of late, often releasing uninspired sequels (the last SPIRIT horse-flick was true horse…y’know) and tepid original ideas, but put this effort in the plus category. This may be due to the source material, a popular series of children’s books by Aaron Blabey, adapted with playful glee by screenwriters Etan Cohen and Yonni Brenner who have included several nods to the old “let’s steal something in the most intricate way possible” movies. The familiar setting of the first scene gives us a “head’s up’ as they recreate the eatery from the “bookends” of PULP FICTION. The other plus is the inspired direction of first-time feature director Pierre Perifel who balances the engaging character interchanges with action sequences that take a welcome satiric swing at the excesses of many blockbusters (consider this a “palette cleanser” to the insufferable AMBULANCE). Cameras swoop above and around the speeding vehicles before slowing down for us to appreciate a subtle visual “nugget”, then “revving up’ for some bit of F&F gravity-defying nonsense. Happily the flick also employs some really inspired, funny character designs, “filling-out” Blabey’s comic-strip imagery, while not going overboard on the “too busy” detailing of many CGI renderings, though I did enjoy the darkened lines about the eyes and lips which bring out the expressions. Now, this is a bit of a human/animal mix, unlike say ZOOTOPIA or the KUNG FU PANDA series, humans interact with the critters on the same level, much like Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny, so there’s the “fur-less folk” who are every bit as exaggerated but seem to owe much to the “anime” wide-eyed and “open-mouth” tropes we’re seeing more frequently, from LUCA to TURNING RED. Perhaps this is done to make the animals “stand out” a bit more, though I wish the Police Chief and her crew looked as appealing. What does work is the use of this terrific vocal cast led by Rockwell who is pure laid-back “Clooney cool” as Wolf while Maron conveys a different side to his wiseguy stand-up comic (and podcaster) persona as the irritable, curmudgeonly Snake (thinking his “bucket hat” is a nod to Carl Reiner in the OCEANS trilogy) . Oh,, and extra kudos to the artisans who have recreated the sun-drenched LA streets that are a backdrop to the frenetic mayhem. With so much to offer in the way of animated entertainment, audiences of any age should have fun spending a good 100 minutes with THE BAD GUYS.

THE BAD GUYS opens in theaters everywhere on April 22, 2022

Jim Batts was a contestant on the movie edition of TV's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" in 2009 and has been a member of the St. Louis Film Critics organization since 2013.

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Bad Guys, The (United States, 2022)

At one time not all that long ago, Dreamworks Animation was churning out such exciting, well-loved projects as Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon . Of all the major studios, only they were able to challenge Disney on its home court. The Bad Guys , loosely based on a graphic novel series from Aaron Blabey, is indicative of a precipitous decline in the quality of American animation (one that has infected even Pixar). A lazily-plotted heist comedy, the directorial debut of Pierre Perifel (an animator who worked on many of the Kung Fu Panda installments) may find favor with children while causing more than a few adults to doze off. Aside from a few barbed quips and a delicious opening scene that riffs on Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction diner sequence (with a little Reservoir Dogs vibe thrown in for good measure), The Bad Guys is most notable for the way it wastes a premise and ends up feeling like a second-rate Zootopia wannabe.

Perhaps the salient question when considering a child-centered product like The Bad Guys is whether it matters what anyone over age 11 thinks of the end result. It’s made with younger kids in mind – this is easily determined by its bright, vibrant visuals and the morally upright themes about doing good deeds and not judging others by how they look. The “adult” elements subtly incorporated into the best animated films are mostly absent, making the movie disappointingly bland for anyone who watches without offspring in tow.

Like many child-focused movies, The Bad Guys works when the brain is dialed down, allowing the viewer to experience moments divorced from the whole. The movie’s narrative twists are neither surprising nor interesting and the emotional weight of the story and characters is feather-light. It is, however, engaging in a disposable fashion, offering occasionally entertaining instances (such as the aforementioned Tarantino homage) and an animation style that seems less plastic than many of today’s generic offerings. I wonder whether anyone involved in the film’s creation would object to it being called a “cartoon?” Because, putting aside all pretensions associated with a $75M production budget and a big-screen release, that’s what The Bad Guys really is.

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Flickering Myth

Geek Culture | Movies, TV, Comic Books & Video Games

Movie Review – The Bad Guys (2022)

May 2, 2022 by Robert Kojder

The Bad Guys , 2022.

Directed by Pierre Perifel. Featuring the voice talents of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Awkwafina, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, Lilly Singh, Alex Borstein, Barbara Goodson, and Walt Dohrn.

Several reformed yet misunderstood criminal animals attempt to become good, with some disastrous results along the way.

Full disclosure, I was somewhat dreading The Bad Guys . I try not to do that, but once in a while, something slips in that feels destined to be bad. Based on a series of books by Aaron Blabey, my first impression of The Bad Guys suggested another lowest common denominator (that insults children’s intelligence just as much as adults) story about talking animals that would result in a mishmash of singing and toilet humor and uninspired plotting. To be fair, some of the comedy is relatively simple and cringe, but the script itself from Etan Cohen (writer of such infamous thinkers as Holmes and Watson , only strengthened my skepticism of the quality before watching this) surprisingly doesn’t shy away from weightier elements such as addressing stereotypes, the fact that people need a chance to thrive in life to bring out the good sides, criminal reform, and how outgrowing certain personality traits can cause some dysfunction in a larger friend group. It is by no means a great script, but it’s definitely not a lazy one

If the ultimate message of The Bad Guys is to not judge a book by its cover, it’s almost fitting that an enjoyable experience for all ages would come from a writer most associated with embarrassingly juvenile comedies. You go in judging the movie; you walk away wanting to further apply those lessons to the way you approach cinema as a whole.

The titular band of thievery bad guys at the center of the narrative also knows what it’s like to be judged. Nameless aside from their species, they are led by Wolf (Sam Rockwell having a blast), a conflicted career kleptomaniac seriously considering shifting to a lifestyle of good after a brief rush of flattery following unintentionally saving an old lady from falling down some stairs (he was trying to pickpocket her for jewelry). His partners in crime are Snake (a cruel and self-loathing Marc Maron finding an abundance of diabolical chemistry between his voiceover co-stars), Tarantula (a tech expert and hacker voiced by the reliably eccentric Awkwafina), Shark (a master of disguise voiced by Craig Robinson), and Piranha (a short and ill-tempered brawler voiced by Anthony Ramos). Their next mission: a heist of a good samaritan award set to be pretended to the endlessly kind guinea pig Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade), who has stopped wars and united the world following the crashing of a love crater meteorite and several fundraising charity events.

There are some hiccups on the job, mainly because Wolf is caught up in tail-wagging and feeling like a “good boy” for the first time. His crush on Governor Fox (Zazie Beetz) only inches him further toward the path of good, as she turns out to have a soft in her heart and secrets of her own (as she says, foxes and wolves are not so different). As a result of the botch, they are busted by local police officer Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein of Family Guy fame and more), who is so hell-bent on putting them away that it’s essentially her life goal. Suddenly, Professor Marmalade comes up with an idea offering a chance at reformation; he will take the rebels under his wing (or fur, I guess) and teach them the ways of nobility and honor.

It would be as deceptive as some of these anthropomorphic animals themselves to say that The Bad Guys isn’t easy to read and predict, but it does find an irresistible charm through impressively blending animation styles (Pierre Perifel makes his narrative length directing debut, having previously worked as an animator on respectable projects such as the Kung Fu Panda series) that lends a graphic novel touch to some of the action sequences (especially the fast-paced hand-to-hand combat segments). It’s also not afraid to acknowledge and teach children about stereotypes and how people should be judged for their actions, and how acts of generosity are something an individual does to feel good about themselves just as much as selfless behavior.

The character models are also highly expressive throughout, which only livens the banter and disagreements between the crew, specifically the engaging performances from Sam Rockwell and Marc Maron. Daniel Pemberton’s original score also has a moving melodic touch that works despite the inherently basic plot structure. The Bad Guys might not last forever and go down as a cinematic achievement in animation, but it has talking points on its mind that are useful for both children and adults. Sure, it’s a bargain bin Zootopia , but considering the devious camaraderie between the voiceover ensemble and commendable artistic direction, there’s enough good to come away smirking and smiling.

Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★

Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd , or email me at [email protected]

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Will Smith & Martin Lawrence Run From the Law in New ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’ Teaser

The boys are back in action.

The Big Picture

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence return as detectives turned fugitives in the action-packed Bad Boys: Ride or Die.
The new teaser showcases high-octane action and chemistry between the lead actors, promising a thrilling tone for fans.
Directed by Adil & Bilall, the movie delves deeper into character moments while delivering big action set pieces.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are almost here with Bad Boys: Ride or Die , the fourth film in the franchise. The fan-favorite franchise has tickled fans around the world for decades and is taking a massive turn as the detectives turn into fugitives this time around. To intrigue fans further, a new teaser has been released that sees Smith and Lawrence engaging in high-octane action and signature humor as the boys go on a run. While the teaser doesn’t give away much it showcases the slick action set pieces and the amazing chemistry between the lead actors. It promises a thrilling tone and a formidable foe and sets the right tone for the next installment.

What to Expect from ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’

The movie reunites Detective Mike and Marcus as they investigate corruption within the Miami PD . When their late Captain Conrad Howard is accused of being involved with drug cartels, a setup turns them into fugitives, forcing them to work outside the law. Directed by duo Adil & Bilall , the movie will be full of big action set pieces and a thrilling mystery at the core.

Speaking to Collider previously , the duo revealed that with Jerry Bruckheimer movies, fans always tend to think about all the “action and the crazy explosions. But actually, it’s the characters of his movies that are the reason why the audience loves to watch them.” The returning directors further elaborated, “So, we went further and deeper on those character moments. But everything that we learned, in terms of camera movements and just directing on set, we tried to push ourselves and go even further. Sometimes we had some funky moments and funky shots that we didn’t try on the last one because it was maybe a little more classical. This time, we go more funky and more loco on this one.”

The movie also cast Vanessa Hudgens as Kelly, Alexander Ludwig as Dorn, Paola Núñez as Captain Rita Secada, Eric Dane as the villain, Banker, Ioan Gruffudd as Lockwood, Jacob Scipio as Armando Aretas, and Melanie Liburd as Christine. Further rounding off the cast are Tiffany Haddish , Joe Pantoliano , John Salley , DJ Khaled , Rhea Seehorn , Dennis Greene , Joyner Lucas , and Quinn Hemphill among others. Furthermore, Tasha Smith replaces Theresa Randle as Marcus's wife, Theresa.

Bad Boys: Ride or Die will crash into theatres on June 7 in the US. You can check out the new teaser below and get more details about the buddy comedy with our guide here .

Bad Boys: Ride or Die

Fourth installment of the 'Bad Boys' film series.

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The Bad Guys (2022)

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THE BAD GUYS MOVIE REVIEW 2022
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The Bad Guys (2022) Prison Scene
THE BAD GUYS (2022) Discover all the behind the scenes magic

COMMENTS

The Bad Guys movie review & film summary (2022)
Based on the kids' graphic novel series by Aaron Blabey, "The Bad Guys" follows a group of fun-loving criminals who lean into their rap as the villains of the animal kingdom for thrills and profit. Wolf (voiced by a smooth Rockwell) is their charismatic leader, with unmistakable shades of Danny Ocean. (In case the similarities weren't ...
The Bad Guys
The Bad Guys PG Now Playing 1h 39m Kids & Family Comedy Adventure Animation TRAILER for The Bad Guys: Trailer 2 List View All /m/the_bad_guys_2022/videos videos The Bad Guys: Featurette - Bad Life ...
The Bad Guys (2022)
The Bad Guys: Directed by Pierre Perifel. With Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson. To avoid prison, a gang of notorious animal criminals pretends to seek being rehabilitated, only for their leader to realize that he genuinely wants to change his ways.
The Bad Guys
Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Aug 16, 2022. Jennifer Heaton Alternative Lens. An adaptation of the children's novels by Aaron Blabey, The Bad Guys is a return to form for DreamWorks ...
The Bad Guys Review
The Bad Guys Review ... By Ryan Leston. Posted: Apr 21, 2022 4:00 pm. The Bad Guys is in theaters April 22, 2022. ... The Bad Guys is a slick, hilarious heist movie with buckets of laughs and a ...
The Bad Guys Movie Review
Parents need to know that The Bad Guys is a fun animated comedy heist based on a popular graphic novel series.Delivering a memorable message about the harmful impact of stereotypes, it follows a wolf (voiced by Sam Rockwell), shark (Craig Robinson), piranha (Anthony Ramos), snake (), and tarantula who've formed an infamous crime ring.There's cartoon violence -- characters being hit by a car ...
The Bad Guys review: an animated heist movie that steals from the best
The animated heist movie The Bad Guys steals from all the right places. ... By Jesse Hassenger Apr 22, 2022, 12:35pm EDT If you buy something from a Polygon link, Vox Media may earn a commission.
'The Bad Guys' Review: Smirking All the Way to the Bank
This inane, juvenile animated comedy, directed by Pierre Perifel, is about a thieving clan of talking animals forced to reform after an elaborate heist goes wrong. They steal, they banter, they ...
The Bad Guys Review: DreamWorks Animation Is Energetic, Stylish & Fun
Ultimately, The Bad Guys is a good time at the movies, with a little bit of everything to satisfy moviegoers of all ages. Next: Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Review: Knuckles Steals The Show In Fun But Stuffed Sequel. The Bad Guys released in theaters on Friday, April 22. The film is 100 minutes long and is rated PG for action and rude humor.
The Bad Guys
Never have there been five friends as infamous as The Bad Guys—dashing pickpocket Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell), seen-it-all safecracker Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), chill master-of-disguise Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), short-fused "muscle" Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos) and sharp-tongued expert hacker Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), aka "Webs." But when, after years of countless heists and being the ...
The Bad Guys review: A fun, animated crime comedy romp
By Alex Welch April 22, 2022. The Bad Guys is, in many ways, a fairly typical animated family movie. It's got a group of charming and snarky talking animals, a bright animation style, fast-paced ...
The Bad Guys (2022)
Already one of the best films of the 2020 decade and one of Dreamworks' best films in a long time. The animation is beautiful, the characters are all likable and the message is a good one. Dreamworks should use this style more often for more variety in their content. Which already fit w/ their style of humor.
'The Bad Guys' Review: Criminals Go Straight
'The Bad Guys' Review: Criminals Go Straight — In a Roundabout Way — in a Fun, Frenetic Kids' Caper Reviewed at Hackney Picturehouse, London, March 27, 2022. Running time: 100 MIN.
The Bad Guys
The Bad Guys, at its core, mixes the nature vs. nurture debate with the problem of societal stereotyping. Most people in the city, the Bad Guys included, subscribe to a generally universal acceptance of the nature side of the debate, leading to the Bad Guys being stereotyped as the villains of the story.
The Bad Guys (2022)
The Bad Guys, 2022. Directed by Pierre Perifel. Featuring the voice talents of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Awkwafina, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, Lilly Singh, Alex ...
The Bad Guys (2022) Review
It's good to be bad….is the sentiment feeling tagged in a movie where the commonplace bad guys get themselves mixed up in a situation where they must learn to be good guys to save their skins in the film appropriately titled The Bad Guys.Director Pierre Perifel's first directorial feature-length debut film is surefire homerun win from DreamWorks Animation Studios; producing a wonderfully ...
'The Bad Guys' movie review: A criminal gang of talking animals tries
'The Bad Guys' is a good movie: A heist flick with humor and heart ... Review by Kristen Page-Kirby. April 19, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. EDT. Listen. 4 min. Share. Comment. Add to your saved stories ...
The Bad Guys Review
The Bad Guys hits U.S. theaters on April 22, 2022. Review by Ryan Leston.The Bad Guys is a slick, hilarious heist movie with buckets of laughs and a lot of h...
The Bad Guys (film)
The Bad Guys is a 2022 American animated heist comedy film loosely based on the children's book series of the same name by Aaron Blabey, produced by DreamWorks Animation Studios and distributed by Universal Pictures.The film was directed by Pierre Perifel (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay by Etan Cohen, and stars the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig ...
THE BAD GUYS (2022)
Oh,, and extra kudos to the artisans who have recreated the sun-drenched LA streets that are a backdrop to the frenetic mayhem. With so much to offer in the way of animated entertainment, audiences of any age should have fun spending a good 100 minutes with THE BAD GUYS. 3 out of 4. THE BAD GUYS opens in theaters everywhere on April 22, 2022
Bad Guys, The
Bad Guys, The (United States, 2022) April 21, 2022 A movie review by James Berardinelli At one time not all that long ago, Dreamworks Animation was churning out such exciting, well-loved projects as Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon .
The Bad Guys (2022) Movie Reviews
Buy a ticket to Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Save $5 on Ghostbusters 5-Movie Collection; ... The Bad Guys (2022) Critic Reviews and Ratings Powered by Rotten Tomatoes Rate Movie. Close Audience Score. The percentage of users who made a verified movie ticket purchase and rated this 3.5 stars or higher. Learn more. Review Submitted. GOT IT ...
The Bad Guys (book series)
The Bad Guys. The Bad Guys is an illustrated children's graphic novel series written by Australian author Aaron Blabey. It revolves around a gang of anthropomorphic animals known as the "Bad Guys", who attempt to perform good deeds to change society's perception of them as criminals.
The Bad Guys (2022)
The Bad Guys, 2022. Directed by Pierre Perifel. Featuring the voice talents of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Awkwafina, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, Lilly Singh, Alex ...
Back to Black (2024)
Back to Black: Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson. With Marisa Abela, Jack O'Connell, Eddie Marsan, Lesley Manville. The life and music of Amy Winehouse, through the journey of adolescence to adulthood and the creation of one of the best-selling albums of our time.
'Bad Boys: Ride or Die' Teaser
The movie reunites Detective Mike and Marcus as they investigate corruption within the Miami PD. When their late Captain Conrad Howard is accused of being involved with drug cartels, a setup turns ...