2011: The Year in Film: "Horrible Bosses" Review

This is one of those flicks that I had completely mixed feelings about. I love a lot of the talent involved, but silly comedies can go either way, and I typically wait until reviews come back to determine whether or not I'm going to see a comedy, no matter how much I love the talent involved. Well, the reviews here were pretty good and I didn't have much to do on a weeknight, so why not check it out? Sudekis is slowly but surely becoming one of my favorites on SNL (he has a certain earnestness that endears his clownish behavior), Bateman does his schtick well (the regular dude caught up with crazies) and Charlie Day's manic routine has made him the favorite of many Always Sunny aficionados. This flick is unique in that the titular "bosses" are significantly bigger stars than the protagonists involved. Kevin Spacey plays Bateman's boss, Jennifer Aniston is Day's and Colin Farrell (mid-level "boy" of this blog) is Sudekis' nemesis. So let's get on with this review, shall we?

So Kurt, Dale and Nick are old high school pals who enjoy varying levels of success at their chosen professions. Nick (Bateman) is a white collar cubicle dweller, putting in extra long workweeks in hope of an oft-hinted at promotion from his boss, Mr. Harken (Spacey). Dale (Charlie) is a dental hygienist who works for a sex-crazed dentist (Aniston). Kurt (Sudekis) finds himself working for an uber-douche (Farrell) who seeks to run his father's company into the ground for coke and hookers. After their bosses' antics become increasingly psychotic, our worker bees decide that there truly is no other option, and that killing or otherwise disposing of their bosses is the absolute only option for removing themselves from the day-in-day-out hell that has become their lives. Their attempts and plots at going through with this ridiculously morbid and over-the-top scheme take them to a variety of places and end up involving a colorfully named Jamie Foxx, who may or may not be a murder professional.




In the end, this is a dark, profane, very funny movie. I laughed out loud quite a bit and all of the primary players are very strong and very funny. Aniston is surprisingly funny as a sex crazed cougar and Colin Farrell rachets up the weird to play a cokehead douche. Our comedic leads more than meet their matches with their respective bosses, and as the plot devolves into chaos, more laughs ensue. (Plus: The Bunk!)

So this is a good time at the movies, well worth your $10 if you feel like laughing for an hour and a half. 7.5/10.