The Bad Guys

I watched The Bad Guys on a Tuesday evening while aggressively fighting a losing battle with a very stubborn clementine that eventually squirted juice directly into my left eye. Even through the stinging citrus haze, I found myself grinning like a lunatic at the opening scene. It’s a four-minute, one-take conversation in a diner between a wolf and a snake that feels less like a DreamWorks flick and more like a kid-friendly riff on the opening of Pulp Fiction. It’s a bold way to start a family movie, and it’s the first hint that you’re in for something much more stylish than your average talking-animal adventure.

The Tarantino of Toons

In an era where big-budget animation has often felt stuck in a race toward photorealism—where we can see every individual pore on a troll’s nose—The Bad Guys goes the other way. It embraces a painterly, illustrative look that feels like a comic book come to life. Director Pierre Perifel clearly took notes from the Spider-Verse school of thought: who says 3D animation has to look like plastic? The lines are sketchy, the "smear" frames are exaggerated, and the result is a film that has more personality in its pinky finger than most franchise entries have in their entire runtime.

The plot is a classic heist setup. We’ve got the crew: Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf (the charming lead), Marc Maron as Mr. Snake (the cynical safe-cracker), Awkwafina as Ms. Tarantula (the hacker), Craig Robinson as Mr. Shark (the master of disguise), and Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha (the loose cannon). They’re the "scary" animals society has written off as villains, so they decided to lean into the brand. After a heist goes sideways, they’re forced to undergo a "goodness" makeover under the tutelage of a narcissistic guinea pig named Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade).

The action choreography here is genuinely top-tier. There’s a freeway chase early on that moves with a rhythmic, frantic energy that reminds me of Lupin III or the best of Baby Driver. Daniel Pemberton’s score—fresh off his work on Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse—is a brassy, funky explosion that makes every car shift and safe-crack feel like a dance move. It’s a reminder that action in animation doesn't have to be "floaty"; it can have weight, momentum, and consequence.

A Voice Cast That Actually Works

We live in a time of "stunt casting," where studios shove the biggest TikTok stars into booths and hope for the best. Thankfully, this isn't that. Sam Rockwell brings that same effortless, slightly-shambolic swagger he perfected in Seven Psychopaths and Iron Man 2, making Wolf a guy you’d grab a drink with even if he was literally planning to lift your wallet. But the secret weapon is Marc Maron. His dry, gravelly delivery as the misanthropic Snake provides a perfect foil to the group's forced optimism.

The chemistry between these two is the film's heartbeat. Wolf’s tail wagging when he accidentally does something good is more emotive than half the live-action performances I’ve seen this year. It’s a small, character-driven detail that sells the internal conflict better than any monologue could. You actually buy into their friendship, which makes the inevitable "betrayal" beats of the second act sting a little more than they usually do in these movies.

Breaking the Box Office Mold

Released in 2022, The Bad Guys was a bit of a gamble. It wasn't a sequel, and while it was based on Aaron Blabey’s book series, it wasn't a massive household name like Shrek or Minions. However, it turned into a massive win for DreamWorks, pulling in over $250 million worldwide. In a post-pandemic landscape where theatrical releases were still finding their footing, this film proved that "original" style still has a place on the big screen.

The production trivia is just as fun as the movie. Pierre Perifel reportedly drew heavy inspiration from French graphic novels and Japanese anime, wanting to move away from the "standard" CG look. It’s also one of the few recent animated films to actually use hand-drawn 2D effects—like smoke and dust—overlaid on 3D models. It’s a technical flex that doesn't feel like a flex; it just looks cool. And let’s talk about that budget: at roughly $80 million, it cost significantly less than your average Disney or Pixar behemoth, yet it looks twice as vibrant.

The Bad Guys is a breezy, 100-minute shot of adrenaline that respects its audience's intelligence. It subverts the "ugly vs. pretty" tropes of family cinema while delivering car chases that would make George Miller nod in approval. It doesn't overstay its welcome, it doesn't pander with outdated pop-culture references, and it genuinely cares about its characters. If you’ve been feeling a bit of "franchise fatigue" lately, this is the perfect palate cleanser. It’s a heist movie with a heart of gold and a style that’s pure chrome. Just watch out for the clementines.