Bad Boys (1983) - 5 stars out of 10
Although no prison movie can match the realism of Shawshank, "Bad Boys" offers a unique portrayal of prison life by displaying it through the lens of juveniles. A bit of this movie is over the top, particularly the opening events of the film. I never grew up in inner-city Chicago but it just seems a bit too much, although the car accident is the driving force of the second half of the movie. Sean Penn gives a great young performance at the age of 23 and for the most part, I could buy that the characters were teenagers. Although his acting cannot match "I Am Sam" and "Mystic River," the final shot of him shows the potential that he would achieve over the course of his carrer. The highlight of the movie for me is Eric Gurry as Horowitz. The whole prison society typified the drama between high school boys, only in a very extreme way, and it was nice to see the nerd stand up for himself and win over the bullies for once. The first half of the movie tends to be slow but it is worth it for the fight sequences.
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