Bad Boys For Life

Home Entertainment, Action/Thriller/Comedy/ Romance, available from May 11 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/ TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from May 25 on DVD

Starring: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Alexander Ludwig, Vanessa Hudgens, Charles Melton, Kate del Castillo, Jacob Scipio, Paola Nunez, Joe Pantoliano, Theresa Randle, Bianca Bethune.

Miami detective Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) barely survives a drive-by shooting.

When he has recovered from his injuries, Mike hungers for revenge.

Long-time partner Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence), who has retired from the force to spend more time with his wife (Theresa Randle) and daughter Megan (Bianca Bethune), warns Mike against playing judge, jury and executioner.

His wise counsel falls on deaf ears and Mike goes to war flanked by a team of freshfaced recruits named Ammo, led by old flame Rita (Paola Nunez).

Her three-strong squad of Dorn (Alexander Ludwig), Kelly (Vanessa Hudgens) and Rafe (Charles Melton) are hi-tech hunters, who identify Isabel Aretas (Kate del Castillo) and her son Armando (Jacob Scipio) as the architect of Mike's close brush with death.

Mike persuades Marcus to join him for a final hurrah across the border in Mexico to the chagrin of their antacid-chugging superior, Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano).

"Bad boys ain't really boys anymore," he reminds the pair.

Hard-wired to entertain fans of the series, Bad Boys For Life barks to the same tune as its predecessors, albeit without Michael Bay at the helm.

The directorial reins are firmly held here by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.

The Moroccan-born duo share Bay's penchant for blowing up anything that moves, punctuated by salty wisecracks.

A heady scent of nostalgia permeates as Smith and Lawrence work tirelessly to rekindle the sparky rat-a-tat banter of their badge-wielding buddies.

It takes a good half-hour for the old chemistry to show signs of recovery and when the laughs come, they are sporadic.

Rating: ***