Another indie review, this time Bad Man starring Seann William Scott. We had the trailer recently, and it looked like fun, and I’m happy to report, it was fun.
Bad Man stars William Scott, Rob Rigle, Chance Perdomo, Johnny Simmons, Kaitlin Doubleday, Marcelle LeBlanc, Lovi Poe, and Ethan Suplee. Michael Diliberti directs and co-writes with JJ Nelson.
The Story
The story was based on true events, but that was a point that didn’t need to be made.
In Colt Lake Tennessee, Sam Evans tackles a meth epidemic. He is sidelined on arrival of Bobby Gaines an undercover agent. Despite Evans local ties, Gaines is hailed as hero. Suspicions arise on Gaines which unravels a complex narrative.
Late in the night, a deal has gone bad, and someone is run over and killed. The local law on the case, but then in walks Bobby Gaines, of the Special Police Squad (or something like it), and he’s there to kick ass and chew gum…and he’s all out of gum.
The man who was killed seemed to be involved with a local drugs gang, and Gaines has been sent there to sort the mess out. There is a lot more to the story than that, but that’s the main part of it.
Bad Man is a darkly comic tale about the local cops being outdone by a big timer from out of town. It’s a satisfying story, and the characters are cool.
The Cast
You can’t help but love Stiffler, although he’s also known as Seann William Scott. He’s one of those people that you know you’re going to have fun watching. I still love him in Evolution.
In Bad Man, Bobby is a really good character. Fine, he’s playing the cop who’s going to bend the rules, but he does it well. You can tell he’s having a blast, and it really comes over in the character.
Rob Rigle was an odd one in this; he usually plays the ‘bully’ type, but here, he’s just an honest cop out to do his job. I was pleasantly surprised by him in this and laughed when he said a short prayer before going on a bust.
I’m not overly familiar with the rest of the cast, apart from Suplee, who again, I find very entertaining. I still remember one of his best lines was from My Name is Earl:
“I’m worth my weight in squirrels!”
It was nice to see him as the bad guy in this, and he’s underrated. The rest of the cast are all very good, and there are some really funny performances. When going on patrol, one of the new deputies calls Shotgun.
Bad Man, Bad Man, Watcha’ Gonna Do?
Fine, Bad Man isn’t all that original, but the story is solid. Having it ‘based on real events’ didn’t really mean much to be honest. Fine, something like this story might have happened, but overall, the writing is good, and you can’t help but like the characters.
I did love how Bobby ‘copped’, as in how much he bent the law. At one point, he goes into a bar, pays the bouncer to start a fight, just so he can befriend one of the bad guys. It’s not the type of thing I would do, but it was funny.
I also like that the local cops weren’t stupid, just naive, maybe, but not your usual dumbed-down cops. They all did their jobs by the book and did it well, until Bobby showed up.
Overall
I’ve done my best not to spoil the story of Bad Man because it’s decent. You can tell the cast is having a ball, there’s great chemistry between them, and, as I said, the story is good enough to follow.
Seeing William Scott playing the asshole was good. Early in the movie, he threatens to put a hamster in a garbage disposal.
I don’t want to be a prude, but I felt there was too much swearing. It must be my old age, but I just didn’t like it, and most of it was, I felt, unnecessary. I don’t know why it irked me; it just did.
Bad Man is one of those movies that you can sit back, have a few beers, a few laughs, and just enjoy. There’s nothing high-brow about it; it does get dark, but not pitch-black, and there are some funny moments.
I’m giving it a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars, as it’s not a movie I would return to, but it was fun.
Bad Man will be on digital on the 22nd of September.
