‘ Horrible Bosses 2’
B
It seems this film was written to offend me in almost every way. There was blatant and unapologetic sexualization of women, an uncomfortable race joke, crude fetishizing of homosexuality, and scenes that repeatedly made light of sexual assault and sexual harassment.
But I laughed.
In “Horrible Bosses 2,” Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day return as their respective characters, Nick, Kurt and Dale.
This time around, the trio is trying to become their own bosses .
Their road to success is through a shower gadget they’ve developed.
Things are looking good until a shady businessman, Burt Hanson, turns on them.
Now their business is at risk. They’re going to lose rights to their invention, and they’re half a million in the hole.
So what clever idea do our three heroes come up with to save the day?
Kidnap Burt Hanson’s son, Rex.
This plan leads the trio down a hilarious path, where we run into our old friends Motherfucker Jones, played by Jamie Foxx, and Dr. Julia Harris, played with uncomfortable menace by Jennifer Aniston.
The only reason I’m not signing a petition to end screenwriter and director Sean Ander’s career is because the film was written so cleverly it would be ridiculous to be truly offended by “Horrible Bosses 2.”
There’s a sense of sarcasm woven into the comedy that reassures you Anders and his producers aren’t condoning sexual assault or encouraging an audience to plot a kidnapping.
Bateman, Sudeikis and Day make up a solid team with each of their individual comedy styles complementing the other two.
Day’s over-the-top naivete would be hard to digest for 108 minutes without Bateman’s deadpan, emotionless delivery and Sudeikis’ spot-on jerk persona.
While Bateman, Sudeikis and Day keeps the comedy strong, it was Chris Pine, as Rex Hanson, who steals the show.
Pine steps out of his typical heartthrob, action hero role to show his crazy side — and not the reckless, witty kind of crazy we see in him as Captain Kirk.
Pine’s performance as a raving lunatic is so solid it’s almost unnerving. And though his character is the initial antagonist, Pine makes him hard to hate.
His performance further drives the point that “dramatic” actors have a place in comedy.
“Horrible Bosses 2” is a cleverly written film with a great range of actors.
It’s sure to press some buttons, but you’ll probably be laughing too much to care by the end.
Lexia Banks
