Two observations about Bad Boys: Ride or Die (Sony, 6.7.04).

(1) I appreciate that both Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are known for having gone through periods of emotional volatity, and that this feeds into the hyper, wild-ass adventures of Detectives “Mike” Lowrey and Marcus Miles Burnett. But Smith and Lawrence were young bucks when they made Michael Bay‘s Bad Boys (’95) and now they’re in their mid to late 50s — Lawrence will be 58 next month and Smith is 55. It’s potentially funny when young guys do stupid, crazy shit, but when the same wild-ass guys are approaching 60….maybe not so much.

(2) I interviewed Lawrence in ’99 or thereabouts. I think it was connected to Ted Demme‘s Life, a prison comedy in which Lawrence costarred with Eddie Murphy. We sat at a metal dining table in the back yard of his Burbank home, shielded from the sun by a huge cloth umbrella. Lawrence was very cool to hang with, although I sensed that he was giving me pre-prepared schtick rather than spontaneous answers. I didn’t mind. He was settled and relaxed and “a good guy” as far as it went. I was happy to be there.