Avelyn NgHow far does someone have to go for his employee to consider murder? Not even as far as Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, if you ask the makers of Horrible Bosses, who trot out 3 guy pals as examples.
Case study number 1: Nick Hendricks (Jason Bateman) is all for paying his dues to climb to the top. He dutifully takes on several shifts and even misses his last chance to see his grandmother for a chance for a promotion. But to save cost, his unappreciative boss, Dave Harken (Kevin Spacey), uses the excuse that Nick was 2 minutes late to keep the position for himself. Now poor Nick can’t even leave the company as Dave threatens to make him unemployable with nasty recommendation letters.
Bateman’s naïve and sometimes deer-in-headlights manner is exploited to the fullest, no wonder it’s said that the role is specifically written for him. Watching this clean-cut guy throw away the loyalty card and having mischief up his sleeves is like watching a nerd dressing up as a gangster – guaranteed to milk some laughter.
You’d think working alongside someone as gorgeous and hot as Dr. Julia Harris (Jennifer Aniston) and being repeatedly propositioned would be any heterosexual guy’s sex fantasy come true.
Not Dale Arbus (Charlie Day), who’s nuts about his fiancée. But his nympho dentist boss, obviously unused to being denied, is prepared to blackmail him with some compromising pictures of him taken when he’s unconscious.
Kurt Buckman (Jason Sudeikis), on the other hand, had the good fortune of starting off with a kind-hearted boss, only to see the contrast when the man’s son took over at his demise. Bobby Pellitt’s (an especially bad-looking Colin Farrell) politically incorrect idea of “trimming some fat” is sacking all fat employees, before moving on to the handicapped staff in the wheelchair. Oh and he also stashes cocaine in the office.
As the trio bitch about their superiors in a bar, the thirst for revenge that alcohol does a bad job of quenching leads them to agreeing to kill them all. Each tries to kill someone else’s boss to make it less suspicious just like Throw Mama from the Train but even that doesn’t prevent these amateurs from stumbling into one hurdle after another.
As you ride on the bumbling journey of their deadly mission, you may find the comedy similar to the outrageous The Hangover, albeit in a good way. Dale, especially, shares the preposterous personality of Alan and the toothy occupation of Stu. Not only did Dale accidentally snort Bobby’s cocaine during a break-in, he also hired a male prostitute instead of a hit man. Clear-headed Nick tries to fix the mess while Kurt can’t resist womanly temptation. He just can’t say no to Rhonda Harkens (Julie Bowen) (whose husband they’re going to kill), and Dr Julia.
Sadly, its humor still can’t beat The Hangover series. In fact, instead of staying true to its comedic intentions, it ends up with some serious moralizing. Are the good guys really going to become murderers? Is it true that what goes around comes around?
For something so lightweight, it’s amazing that the producers managed to secure some heavyweight actors behind it, like Kevin Spacey and Jamie Foxx, who plays murder consultant, Dean “Motherf*cker” Jones. The juxtaposition of the boss-employee tries to make the most of a funny situation- pairing a devious boss with submissive, play-by-the-rules Nick, a promiscuous boss with a one-woman-man Dale and a psychotic boss for a happy-go-lucky Kurt.
With its award-winning cast and revenge-inspired screenwriter, it’s worth the watch for the laughter, some of which will be inspired by the kind of crude jokes you find in Bridesmaids.
Movie: Horrible Bosses
Rating: 3.5/5
Duration: 98 minutes
Language: English
Genre: Comedy
In Cinemas: 4 August 2011
Director: Seth Gordon
Screenwriter: Michael Markowitz
Trailer: https://youtu.be/mh9cG5dzs-U