Like many sequels, specifically comedic ones, 'Horrible Bosses 2' has a good amount of laughs and a lot of similarities to the first film. But it also has quite the assortment of ups and downs.
There are some things that work and some things that don't, and from a writing and acting perspective there are a handful of quality scenes. At the same time, there are copious amounts of ridiculousness, sporadic improvisation, and one attempt at comedic bits or chaotic antics after another.
'Horrible Bosses 2' features a likeable cast of old and new characters, and a mixed bag of tricks and plot points that closely mirror the original movie. In the end, it really comes down to whether you liked or disliked the first film and its style of humor.
Following the first film, 'Horrible Bosses 2' once again features three friends, Nick (Jason Bateman), Kurt (Jason Sudeikis), and Dale (Charlie Day), and their quest to find tolerable careers and take vengeance upon someone who has been unfair to them in the business world.
In this film, the gang has quit their previous jobs and has come up with their own invention, "The Shower Buddy," which acts like a car wash in your shower. After going on TV to try and attract potential investors, they have a run in with a big distributor, operated by CEO Burt Hanson (Christoph Waltz) and his son, Rex (Chris Pine). When a request for a large shipment of units is ordered and eventually canceled by the company for no reason, Nick, Kurt, and Dale decide to come up with a revenge plan to get back at Burt and Rex.
In many ways, the 'Horrible Bosses' franchise is much like 'The Hangover' movies. They both feature a group of guys, coincidentally being three in both cases, who find themselves in absurd, comedic, or dangerous situations and constant trouble. From start to finish, it's as if these guys are on some sort of mission to find something or someone, or in this case, seek payback.
Watching these characters fumble and fool around while on their quest is almost like watching slapstick comedy or major improvisation. Each installment follows a very similar plot and features many of the same characters. From the standpoint of having to recreate the same chemistry and style of humor, the sequels are usually not as good as the original.
But that doesn't mean there isn't good entertainment and quality cinema mixed in with the chaos. As previously mentioned, the comedy is all over the place. Slapstick, improvisation, and a handful of offensive, sexual, and racist humor; there's comedy in all areas. It's basically like watching a modern day version of The Three Stooges trying to pull off a major crime or heist. They get themselves in one sticky situation after another, bantering amongst each other and having conversations that are intended to be funny. Unfortunately, more times than not, the quality of the material feels a bit lazy or downgraded from the first film.
A good amount of credit for the comedy and entertainment is attributed to the cast, Bateman, Sudeikis, Day, Jennifer Aniston as the dirty-mouthed sexual dentist, Jamie Foxx as the unhelpful, want-to-be convict who gives terrible crime advice, Kevin Spacey as one of the mean ex-bosses, the original, who is now in jail, Christoph Waltz as an arrogant head of a large company, Chris Pine as the crazy, trouble causing son, and actor, Jonathan Banks. With a cast like that, there is no shortage of familiar, quality performers. Sometimes it feels as if these characters are used in the wrong ways or underused, but they all have a specific role to play in the make up of this film. Most characters that return from the first film are given more screen time, and their style of humor is very similar to other comedic films of theirs (especially the main cast).
It's an interesting idea to have three known comedic actors get into trouble and attempt to do everything from murder, to stealing, and countless other crimes, yet they are not very good at it. At the same time, these characters are really presented as more of the heroes of the story, or those who have been wronged, all the while breaking the law to seek revenge. The unfortunate and unrealistic situations these characters find themselves in make the audience feel for them and label the slightly more criminal or bad people as antagonists and the true villains of the story.
Overall, 'Horrible Bosses 2' has its share of entertaining, comedic moments, but also has more than a few weak spots. The film gives somewhat of a nostalgic feeling, while also providing new adventures for the characters. Some elements stay the same, and some differ or are taken in a different direction than the original film. Whether audiences like and appreciate what this sequel is going for heavily depends on viewers' desire to sit through something of this nature, or whether or not you saw and/or liked the first one. Either way, the three main characters are intriguing and humorous to watch on some level, and it wouldn't surprise me the least bit if they made a third movie.
This film opens in theaters on Wednesday, Nov. 26 and wouldn't make for the worst Thanksgiving getaway movie for guys, but it's not exactly family friendly.
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars.
'Horrible Bosses 2' is rated R for strong crude sexual content and language throughout. Running time is 1 hour and 48 minutes.
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