Tear Jerker / The Bad Guys (2022)

The Bad Guys may be a fun heist movie starring a group of Villain Protagonists, but don't let that distract you from the fact that it can have some surprisingly heartstring-pulling moments.

Examples for the book series go here.

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• Mr. Wolf and the rest of the Bad Guys play the villain card not because they want to, but because it’s how they’ve been treated their whole lives, just because of what species they are on the outside instead of who they are on the inside. From the diner scene to later scenes in flashbacks, the gang can't go anywhere without people freaking out.
  Mr. Wolf: Do I wish people didn't see us as monsters? Sure, I do. But these are the cards we've been dealt, so we might as well play them.
• The scene where Mr. Shark distracts a scientist by pretending to be his father and play catch with him is hilarious... until you think about it and realize what exactly it says about the scientist. This line says it all:
  Scientist: I've been waiting my entire life for this moment!
  • And think about what his reaction will be when he finds out the truth...
  • A deleted scene makes it even worse. When the scientist returns to find his "dad" gone, his only response is a downtrodden "Oh no, not again".
• When Wolf first introduces himself to the audience, he jokes about how he's "the villain of every story", followed by a clip of dozens of books featuring a monstrous Big Bad Wolf. But in later dialogue with Diane after the failed Sunnyside mission, he vents about how he's always seen as a monster and no one would believe him if he changed for real. Those stories were part of his formative years and left an emotional scar that he covers up by acting like a smug, cocky criminal.
  Mr. Wolf: I’m the villain of every story! Guilty until proven innocent, and even if by some miracle we did change, who’s gonna believe us?
• When Wolf attempts to save the cat up the tree for the second time, the cat is terrified of him, and Mr. Wolf sees it and gives out a defeated "Yup, I get that a lot...". Then he asks the kitten to "just give [him] a chance." in an almost pleading tone. It's painfully, painfully clear this isn't the first time Wolf has wanted someone, anyone, to just give him a chance.
• After Mr. Wolf saves the cat from the tree, Marmalade pulls him aside and tells him his friends might be "baggage" weighing him down and preventing him from living a better life. Mr. Snake overhears this, and starts to worry Wolf will abandon him. For someone who jokes about hating his friends, he's deeply insecure about his place in Wolf's life if Wolf decides to reform for real. His conversation with Wolf that night has him desperate for reassurance that Wolf won't leave him.
• While he still tries to go forward with the heist, Wolf tries to avoid Diane during the Gala, clearly guilt ridden at having to betray her. During the crucial moment, he sees Diane smiling kindly at him. Realising Diane fully trusts and supports him becomes too much for Wolf and he aborts the plan.
  • The shocked reaction from the rest of the gang, realising Wolf has gone rogue. Snake in particular just looks dumbfounded and horrified, having already had concerns his best friend was being dragged away from him.
• The theft of the meteorite. The gang has successfully wooed the crowd, Mr. Wolf and Diane have bonded, and even though Wolf suddenly deviated from the plan to steal the Golden Dolphin, Diane was seconds from giving them a full pardon. Everything seems to be too good to be true, until it is. The lights go out despite Wolf not pushing the button, and when they turn back on, the meteor's gone. The gang is framed for its disappearance. In seconds, all the goodwill they had earned was gone, and despite no direct evidence of them having done it, they are immediately assumed to be guilty. Hearing Wolf desperately plead his genuine innocence while Chief Luggins throws him in the armored transport doesn't help.
  Tiffany Fluffit: Tonight's headline: change is impossible. You should always judge a book by its cover, and all stereotypes have been affirmed.
  • Even more tragic, the first thing Wolf did after deciding to abort the plan is volunteer to hand Marmalade the Golden Dolphin himself, the thing the gang had coveted this whole time and he personally gave it to him. Much like Diane with her ring, Wolf had wanted to demonstrate his appreciation and trust to Marmalade as well, making his betrayal sting even more.
  • When Marmalade enters the armored transport, Wolf desperately pleads with the guinea pig that it wasn't them, hoping he'd believe them. What does he say in response?
    Marmalade: There, there. Of course you didn't do it, how could you? After all... you're such a good boy.
  • Marmalade finally shows his true colors to the gang by dropping that Wham Line, and when Wolf connects the dots (when he realizes that the old lady that said the same line was really Marmalade in disguise), it just rubs it in. He never cared about reforming them, and was only using them as a means to an end to steal the meteorite while being above suspicion. He gave Wolf hope for a better life, only to take it away and rub it in his face. And when Wolf lashes out after reaching his Rage Breaking Point, Marmalade throws the doors open, showing all the guests Wolf threatening him. Everyone that had been cheering for him moments ago is now terrified of him all over again.
    • Made even worse when Diane sees his behavior. She looks absolutely heartbroken, and when Wolf sees this, he barely manages to shake his head with a Little "No" before he and the others are hauled off to prison.
    • The fact that Diane had become so close to Wolf by this point. While she was quick to be suspicious and voice her pure contempt for the Bad Guys originally, when she sees this display she can only gaze silently in utter shock and heartbreak. He'd genuinely won her over.
    • There's also the fact that the old woman was actually a disguised Marmalade, and what exactly Mr. Wolf could be thinking with that revelation in mind. There seemed to be someone who actually saw good in him, and now he's discovered that she never actually existed.
• The tension between Mr. Wolf and Mr. Snake finally reaches its tipping point in the S.U.C.M. prison. After Wolf explains the situation with the "old lady" he saved (Marmalade in disguise), Snake reveals he knows about Marmalade's conversation where the professor called Snake and the rest of the gang "baggage", and now believes Wolf was trying to backstab the gang for his own benefit, despite Wolf trying to reassure them he only wants them all to have better lives.
  Mr. Snake: Y'know, I heard what the pig said to you, about cutting us loose. [beat] But I never thought you'd actually do it. [...]
  Mr. Wolf: Hey, hey, hey, hey, I would never. I was trying to... I was trying to find us a better life!
  Mr. Snake: Our life was PERFECT! Until you decided to ruin it!
  Mr. Wolf: I didn't! You guys felt it at the gala — the clapping, the cheering — we were more than just scary villains! They loved us!
  (the others give uncertain looks)
  Mr. Snake: Oh yeah?! If they "loved us" so much, how come we're in prison for a crime we didn't commit?
  (Mr. Wolf hesitates.)^note It doesn't help this confirms his earlier rant on how nobody would believe they'd really change.
  Mr. Snake: You know what? I'll give Marmalade this. At least he sees the world for what it is: a place where some people are scary, and some people are scared.
  Mr. Wolf: ...Oh yeah? Well I'm tired of being scary. I'm... I'm tired of being an outcast. Maybe I don't wanna be a—
  Mr. Snake: What, a Bad Guy? Don't wanna be a Bad Guy anymore, huh? Say it, Wolf!
  (Mr. Wolf glares at him, unable to bring himself to say the words)
  Mr. Snake: Yeah, I thought so. And us... your lifelong friends... we're just holding you back?
  Mr. Wolf: Yeah, MAYBE YOU ARE!!
  • After Wolf's last comment, Snake recoils and looks genuinely hurt. For a brief moment, the sour exterior is gone and we see the real Snake — someone terrified of losing the one person in the world he trusts.
    • When he lunges at Wolf in fury, he does not scream something along the lines of "I hate you". He screams at Wolf to take back what he said.
  • When Snake suggests Wolf had planned to abandon the gang, Shark goes, "Wait, us? As in, us us?"
  • Remember those goofy mugshots of the crew in the trailers? This is where that scene takes place, and it is not at all Played for Laughs. It does nothing to remedy the situation, nor can it break the tension.
• The entire scene on the beach after being broken out of the prison island. Still reeling from the earlier argument, Snake, Piranha, Webs, and Shark all selfishly abandon Wolf, thinking that he betrayed their friendship, punctuated with Snake finally confessing why he resents birthdays so much: he was always alone on his birthdays, another reminder of how the world sees him. It's also a Cerebus Retcon of the opening, with Snake being grumpy about his birthday there being shed in a much different light.
  Mr. Snake: You wanna know why I hate birthdays, Wolf? Do ya? When you grow up a snake, nobody shows up to your party. Birthdays are a constant reminder that out there, I'm just a scary, good-for-nothing... monster. Yeah. But nothing compares to having the one guy, the one guy I thought I could trust... stab me in the back.
  • Prior to Snake's speech, each member of the gang walks away from Wolf, and reacts differently when Wolf calls out to them. Piranha scowls and storms off, and Tarantula can only utter a quiet, defeated "Sorry, Wolfie..." before walking away. Shark looks back at Snake, then at Wolf, then hangs his head as he follows the others. Sam Rockwell nails Wolf's heartbreak in the moment; the suave, cocky criminal façade is shattered, and Wolf is desperate, scared, and alone.
    Wolf: Guys? ...Guys?
  • While Diane is in the background the whole conversation, she emotes effectively, going from excited, to confused, to saddened, almost guilty-looking as the other Bad Guys Refuse the Call. Diane had assumed that all the Bad Guys had reformed along with Wolf, only to find out that by reaching out only to him before, that the others were left Locked Out of the Loop and feeling betrayed by the turn, leaving Wolf alienated from them and facing his redemption in the same lonely terrifying position that she went herself (see below).
  • The scene after of Wolf and Snake going their separate ways has no sound effects or dialog, just a sad piano rendition of the gang's theme song. Wolf, sitting in Diane's car, is visibly distraught. All he can do is smack his hands against the console and sulk, and doesn't speak again until they reach her house. It is the perfect emphasis of Show, Don't Tell, just letting the somber piano and bleak visuals say the mood of everyone right now.
    Diane: Hey... you okay?
    Mr. Wolf: No. I'm not okay! I'm very, very un-okay! I've just left the only friends I've ever had... What am I doing?
• Diane telling Wolf about the moment she lost out on stealing the Golden Dolphin, her final mission as the Crimson Paw. Everything had gone perfectly, she had the trophy in her hands, and she had a clear escape path... and then saw her reflection in a mirror. Overwhelmed with shame and regret for giving in to the "tricky fox" stereotype for so long, she abandoned the trophy and fled. Her changing to be a politician wasn't just to help improve the lives of people, but also to atone for being the Crimson Paw.
  Diane: All I saw in the end was the tricky fox they always told me I was. It changed everything...
  • Her body language when she puts the Golden Dolphin back in its place is especially heartwrenching. A few seconds earlier, she was a confident criminal with, apparently, even a bit of a menacingly triumphant expression under her mask as she reaches for her prize. Then, when she realizes what she's become and returns the trophy, she looks completely vulnerable and meek due to the sheer shame she's feeling, and she handles the trophy with extreme care, as if she was afraid of hurting the thing.
  • It also puts her earlier actions in the film in a new light. She may have seen too much of herself in the Bad Guys than she was willing to admit, and was taking out her resentment for her criminal life on them. When she realizes Wolf is dealing with many of the same feelings she had, she backs off the icy treatment and shows compassion instead.
  • According to director Pierre Perifel, she's living with guilt over not having really taken responsibility for what she did as the Crimson Paw, and had no one to guide her out of her criminal lifestyle. By holding Mr. Wolf's hand through his journey, she's giving him the guiding light she wishes she had so she can finally heal and redeem herself. Becomes heartwarming by the end, where it is clear that Diane has been adopted into the Bad Guys' dysfunctional family and has some confidants at last.
    • This info also really puts extra weight on her intimacy and personality change around Wolf. He is likely the first proper friend she has had that knows the real her since her Heel–Face Turn, someone she knows was willing to throw away his way of life, ambitions and even risk turbulance with his own current friends to stick by her (a sentiment she returned by risking her new life and reputation to get him out of jail). See her elation when Wolf bonds with her at the Gala, and her total heartbreak when Marmalade sets him up and for a brief moment it all looks like a lie, this means a lot to her. Given her lonely backstory, Diane likely isn't just being nice when she says the others should understand how lucky they are to have a friend like Wolf, especially since he actually offered them a path to redemption that Diane had to take alone.
    • While it's a subtle detail, just about everything about Diane's lifestyle besides her hi-tech secret lair is given a rather bleak and lonely aesthetic to support this backstory. She has a tiny two-seater car, and a small dreary looking bungalow, as observed by Wolf. All compliment the idea that she doesn't regularly have company around. It does well to imply why Diane loved to put so much into her professional life (first as a cat-burglar, then as Governor) because it was a clear way to get a burst of excitment and social activity before meeting Wolf.
• Snake, Shark, Piranha, and Webs make it back to the hideout, only to find all of their loot gone. Wolf giving the map to the hideout to Diane as a sign of goodwill meant the police were able to raid it and seize the loot while they were imprisoned. None of them take it well, especially Shark, who's reduced to a sobbing, blubbering mess.
  • When they realize a bit later that Wolf was right, that they can be more than what they are, that they can and want to change, when they feel the tingling for the first time, even Snake starts feeling it... and angrily, hatefully, rejects it.^note Except not really.
    Mr. Snake: No. No! NO! WE'LL!! ALWAYS BE!!!! BAD GUYS!!!!!!!!
    • The moment hurts less on a second viewing, where you know that Snake won't be long in changing his mind.
• When Wolf discovers that Snake joined Marmalade, there's no shock, denial, or tears. He has nothing but cold anger. To see how much their lifelong friendship is dead...
  • Again, it hurts less in a second viewing, where you know that Snake is a Fake Defector and putting on an act to trick Marmalade. But Wolf doesn't know that...
• The gang have successfully stopped the charity trucks and stolen the meteorite back, and are about to deliver it to Chief Luggins to regain their goodwill, only for Piranha to mention cake... and they realize who's not with them, looking over and seeing Snake's crumpled party hat on the seat. As much as they're all yearning for a better life now, none of them can bring themselves to do it without Snake.
  Mr. Wolf: We can't do this without him...
  • Wolf realizing what he has to do to save his Snake: he has to betray Diane's trust after everything they've just went through. He looks over at her, sighs, hangs his head between his arms, and dejectedly slaps his hand against the steering wheel.
• Snake reveals that he was only pretending to side with Marmalade because he felt good doing good. It's all revealed in a climactic, explosive way, but look back at the circumstances. He pulled the same thing Wolf was doing earlier — immediately after discovering that he was willing to put his needs before others, he got his tingle. He then started planning behind the gang's backs for their sake, and he was willing to sacrifice himself for it. The fact that he's shocked to see them come back adds more to the scene where they come together and embrace in tears.
• When Diane pleads that the gang didn't steal the meteorite, Chief Luggins insists there's no way Diane could know that for sure unless she herself was collaborating with them. Diane looks visibly shaken... then takes off her glasses, about to confess to being the Crimson Paw. Despite all the work she's done to atone for her past, she's willing to sacrifice everything for the gang so they won't go to jail for a crime they didn't commit. Thankfully for her, Wolf won't let her do that.

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