However, Bad B*tch does warrant a viewing, primarily due to the cast. Boozer, looking remarkably like Hayley Atwell’s sister, is terrific. Jojo runs the gamut of emotion from perturbed to peaceful, happy to angry, enthusiastic to fearful, and many more. The actor nails every single one and makes them as authentic in the moment as possible. Field is pure energy and fun as the playful bestie. Judson is very intimidating yet charismatic. Wetherell might actually be unhinged in real life, considering how effortless she is here. While a few of the one sceners are so-so, all the major supporting characters and leads are dynamite.
“Boozer, looking remarkably like Hayley Atwell’s sister, is terrific.”
But Judson is a shrewd enough writer to include something unexpected yet wholly welcomed. There are flashes of humanity and warmth in a few scenes involving Colt. Colt, Harland, Finn, and Jace enter a restaurant and demand the woman cleaning the table “bring them one of every drink” very rudely. While scoping the place out, Colt runs across a woman he’s known since childhood and clearly had a small crush on at one point. She just got back to town to help her family through a loss. Their back-and-forth humanizes Colt, who almost instantly pushes those feelings back down once he realizes his gang is judging him. Also, at the library scene (which, despite its repetitive nature, is an absolute highlight), Colt and the thugs display camaraderie with each other. This isn’t a gang based on instilling fear in others, but they are friends. They also show deference to the librarian as she quiets them after they get too disruly. Such moments emphasize that the horrible act that happens comes from someone who could be good if he really wanted to and had ever paid a consequence in his life. The fallout from the act just pushes the last remaining good out of Colt, which could be a pretty cool villain origin story, honestly.
Bad B*tch is over 2 hours long when it should be an hour 40, max. Several moments are repetitive, causing boredom to set in. However, the humanity glimpsed in the villain throughout adds a much-needed dimension to what is seemingly a stock character at first glance. But the reason to sit through the film is the cast. With the minor exception of a few characters with just a line or two, all the actors are not just good but great. There is a really good movie here; it’s just buried in a narrative that needs a scalpel. Still, as a debut feature, Judson proves he knows how to work with his cast to bring out their best. Plus, he throws in enough new character elements to show strong promise as a screenwriter.
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"…Judson proves he knows how to work with his cast..."
