Bad Boys is a 1983 American coming-of-age crime drama film set in a juvenile detention center, starring Sean Penn, Esai Morales, and Clancy Brown, Alan Ruck and Ally Sheedy in their film debuts. The film is directed by Rick Rosenthal. The original music score was composed by Bill Conti.
Video Bad Boys (1983 film)
Plot
Mick O'Brien (Sean Penn) is a 16-year-old Irish-American hoodlum from Chicago. While most of Mick's crimes involve snatching purses, vandalism, and getting into brawls, he aspires to bigger and meaner things, which leads him to attempt ripping off a Puerto Rican rival, Paco Moreno (Esai Morales). Everything goes wrong: Mick's partner and best friend Carl (Alan Ruck) is killed, and Mick, while trying to escape the police, accidentally runs over and kills an eight-year-old boy who happens to be Paco's brother. Mick is sent to the Rainford Juvenile Correctional Facility rather than a state prison for adults. Most of the wardens and counselors seem to have lowered themselves to the role of zookeepers. The only exception is Ramon Herrera (Reni Santoni), a former gang member who talks tough to the inmates, but holds out hope for some of them, especially Mick.
Mick's cellmate is Barry Horowitz (Eric Gurry), a small, wiry, brainy Jewish kid who firebombed a bowling alley after some boys there severely beat him (for flirting with their girlfriends). Their cell block is dominated by a pair of brawny sadists named "Viking" Lofgren (Clancy Brown) and Warren "Tweety" Jerome (Robert Lee Rush), who take an immediate dislike to Mick. Mick puts up with them at first, but after he witnesses Tweety kill a small boy by throwing him off the catwalk (the small boy tried to stab Tweety in retaliation for raping him), he refuses to be intimidated by them. When Tweety and Viking go into Mick's cell to attack him, Mick beats them bloody with a pillowcase full of soda cans. His victory over Viking and Tweety earns him the respect of the block and recognition as the new "barn boss". Meanwhile, to avenge his brother's death, Paco rapes Mick's girlfriend J.C. (Ally Sheedy). After hearing of the rape, Mick is desperate to see her, so he and Horowitz escape the double perimeter fences during football practice through the use of a corrosive paste placed on the fences, making the fences weak enough to kick open. Mick escapes, but Horowitz falls on barbed wire and is then caught where a counselor beats him up for calling him names and escaping. Ramon believes that Mick had gone to J.C.'s house, and soon picks him up. He then takes him on a trip to a maximum-security prison to show what's in store for him, should he continue down the path of crime.
After Paco's arrest upon the police finding out about the rape on J.C., he is sentenced to the same dormitory at Rainford that Mick is in. The staff are fully aware of this potential danger, but no other reform school has a vacancy. Paco attempts to provoke Mick into a fight, but Mick avoids the confrontation as he has a chance of early release if he stays out of trouble. However, he also loses the respect of many of the inmates, who now want to see Paco put Mick away. Meanwhile, in an attempt to injure Paco for Mick, Horowitz plants fertilizer into a radio that he has placed in Paco and Viking's cell. When the charge explodes prematurely and only injures Viking, Horowitz is condemned to solitary confinement, a fate he fears more than any other.
Eventually, Paco's transfer is arranged, so he plans his showdown with Mick for the night before. While Herrera was on night patrol, Paco fakes a ruptured appendix so Herrera comes to his aid. Herrera is assaulted, then caged in the office. The door into the cells is then barricaded, and the entire dormitory is aroused by the brawl. Eventually, Mick comes out on top, and the film ends with him very nearly killing Paco while being encouraged by the others to do it. However, resisting at the last second, he doesn´t do it. He then drags a beaten Paco in front of the caged Ramon and other detention officers and heads back to his cell, crying in remorse.
Maps Bad Boys (1983 film)
Cast
Distribution
Universal Studios originally released Bad Boys in 1983, and Thorn/EMI released it on its videocassettes in 1984, but in 1999 Artisan Entertainment took the rights and released the DVD. In 2001, Anchor Bay Entertainment took its DVD rights and re-released it, and in 2007 Facets Multimedia Distribution re-released it on its DVDs. Bad Boys was released on Blu-ray by Lionsgate Home Entertainment for the first time on February 1, 2011, presented "complete and uncut." It is also available for online streaming video rentals and digital download files purchases through Amazon Video and Apple iTunes Store.
Critical reception
Bad Boys garnered generally positive reviews; review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes currently holds an 89% "Fresh" rating based on 19 reviews. David Denby of The New Yorker magazine argued, "Bad Boys is never less than tense and exciting, but it's coarse and grisly, an essentially demagogic piece of work".
In his original review, Roger Ebert praised the direction and cinematography in particular and wrote, "The direction, by Richard Rosenthal, is sure-footed, confident and fluid; we are in the hands of a fine director". In her review for The New York Times, Janet Maslin wrote, "Sean Penn's performance is the chief thing that separates Bad Boys from mere exploitation". Perry Seibert of All Media Guide said "Bad Boys proves that great performances can overcome routine story lines."
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of the film comprised some late, eccentric funk tracks, as well as Billy Squier and Iron Maiden.
- "Get Dressed" by George Clinton
- "Superstar" by T-Connection
- "Tonight's the Night" by T-Connection
- "Too Hot To Be Cool" by Ebonee Webb
- "Everybody Wants You" by Billy Squier
- "In The Dark" by Billy Squier
- "Mr. Hate" by The Tubes
- "Check Us Out" by Light of the World
- "Street Corner" by Ashford & Simpson
- "One More Time" by McFadden & Whitehead
- "Give Me Your Love" by Peabo Bryson
- "Prodigal Son" by Iron Maiden
- "Purgatory" by Iron Maiden
- "Don't Go Away" by Melba Moore
- "Night Owls" by Little River Band
- "Man on Your Mind" by Little River Band
- "Crime Wave" by Prism
- "Run to Her" by Jennifer Warnes
- "Pelo de Alambre" by Bobby Capó
- "Guillermo y Maria" by Bobby Capó
Cultural usage
The name of the Croatian ultras group Bad Blue Boys (who support NK Dinamo Zagreb) is said to have been inspired by Bad Boys.
References
External links
- Bad Boys on IMDb
- Bad Boys at AllMovie
- Bad Boys at Box Office Mojo
- Bad Boys at Rotten Tomatoes
Source of article : Wikipedia
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