Story
The villains in every story, wolves have always had a bad reputation. Wolf (voice of Sam Rockwell) is no exception, so why be good when everyone thinks you’re bad?
Wolf and his friends Snake (voice of Marc Maron), Shark (voice of Craig Robinson), Piranha (voice of Anthony Ramos) and Miss Tarantula (voice of Awkwafina) are a highly skilled and successful team responsible for countless robberies and notorious thefts. The ‘Bad Guys’ believe they’re invincible, but the new mayor, Diane Foxington (voice of Zazie Beetz), uses a news broadcast to describe them as insecure and unhappy. To prove her wrong, they set about stealing a highly coveted golden trophy that has never been stolen before.
Caught in the act and unable to escape, the bad guys are offered the chance to take part in a social experiment run by a highly honoured good guy, Professor Marmalade (voice of Richard Ayoade). If he can show that the Bad Guys can learn to be good, he’ll get the golden prize and they’ll get their freedom.
For the Bad Guys, changing who they are certainly seems thankless and impossible. They soon learn that there’s more at stake than changing people’s perception of them or even gaining their freedom.
Themes
Crime; negative stereotypes; corruption; mind control; betrayal; animal testing
Violence
The Bad Guys has some violence. For example:
- Bank customers scream and flee as Wolf and Snake hold up a bank. They blast through a wall to get money, and people crash through a window.
- There are many car crashes during a wild police chase.
- A bus nearly hits and kills a police chief.
- Shark attacks Snake, trying to strangle him for an ice-block.
- Armed security guns shoot at a statue while the Bad Guys are trying to steal something.
- Piranha attacks some security guards.
- Shark grabs and strangles Snake before eating him. Snake is later regurgitated.
- A speeding bus hits Wolf.
- The Bad Guys try to rescue a scared cat from a tree. It scratches Wolf in the face.
- Snake smashes into a window repeatedly.
- Snake eats thousands of guineas pigs instead of rescuing them. He’s swung around and around until all the guinea pigs are regurgitated.
- Trucks run over some of the guinea pigs.
- A character’s face is stepped on.
- Professor Marmalade makes it look like Wolf is attacking him.
- A ninja attacks prison guards. The ninja throws, kicks and punches the guards. Some of the guards have teeth knocked out.
- As the Bad Guys escape prison, numerous explosions are heard in the distance.
- Possessed guinea pigs attack truck drivers, throwing them out of their vehicles, causing cars to smash around them and stealing all the money in the cars and trucks.
- Possessed guinea pigs try to stop the Bad Guys from returning a meteorite.
- Professor Marmalade kicks Snake in the face so that he falls out of a helicopter.
Sexual references
There are no sexual references in The Bad Guys.
Alcohol, drugs and other substances
The Bad Guys shows some use of substances. For example:
- Martinis are served at a party, and Shark drinks a couple of them very quickly.
- Champagne is also served and consumed at a gala event.
Nudity and sexual activity
The Bad Guys has some nudity and sexual activity. For example, Wolf has a wardrobe malfunction while trying to escape from a gala event. He ends up in his underwear in front of all the guests.
Product placement
There’s no product placement in The Bad Guys.
Coarse language
There’s no coarse language in The Bad Guys, but one character calls himself a ‘scary, good-for-nothing monster’. There’s also some crude humour involving repeated farts and butts.
Ideas to discuss with your children
The Bad Guys is an animated adventure with a fast-paced but predictable plot. It also has positive messages about the power of second chances and the goodness inside everyone. This movie will appeal to children of all ages, and you can enjoy it as a family movie with all but the youngest of viewers.
These are the main messages from The Bad Guys:
- Change is possible.
- Stereotypes don’t have to stick.
- Being good brings greater happiness and riches than stealing and being bad.
Values in The Bad Guys that you could reinforce with your children include friendship, loyalty, helpfulness, compassion and ingenuity.
The Bad Guys could also give you the chance to talk with children about the real-life consequences of behaviour like:
- stealing
- using animals as test subjects
- making poor choices
- betraying those you love
- letting society’s perception of you determine your life
- believing everything the media tells you.