2011’s Horrible Bosses was a surprise hit with both the critics and the audience, which is rare for the genre. Three men who have horribly flawed bosses decide to solve their problems by planning to murder each other’s bosses.
The movie was praised primarily for the performances of the main cast: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Colin Firth, Jason Sudeikis, Kevin Spacey, and Jennifer Anniston. Naturally, because the movie made a lot of money, a sequel was put into the works. While the cast is the same, this time there’s a different director and writers to take the bosses’ seat. Is Horrible Bosses better the second time around, or are you better off just seeing the first one?
The three protagonists of the first film, Nick, Dale, and Kurt, decided that they’ve had enough of dealing with bad bosses and decide to start their own business in the form of a product called the “Shower Buddy.”
They get an investor, acquire a loan to rent a warehouse and hire employees, when fellow businessman Bert betrays them by claiming he never signed the loan, leaving the three in debt. The three plan to fix the problem by holding Rex hostage with the help of the hitman from the last movie, Dean Jones. Like last time, a number of twists put the trio in serious trouble.
Horrible Bosses 2 as expected, suffers the comedy sequel cliché of having a plot practically identical to the first. People might be tired of this trend, but as 22 Jump Street shows, it’s fine to have similar plots as long as there is change within the characters and the writing is funny. Unfortunately, that’s not the case here.
Aside from some cameos by the previous antagonists, the main characters act is nearly identical to the first film, and there are no major changes in the plot.
As for the comedy itself, while there are a few good laughs in there, you’ll only really be laughing at the actors and not the jokes, as the jokes are stale and offensive at times.
Thankfully, the cast manages to be funny and charming without the script. While Christoph Waltz is downplayed more than usual, Chris Pine does an excellent job as the unpredictable Rex, and actors you liked in the first film are still good, though it is disappointing to have Kevin Spacey ireduced to a cameo compared to his role in the previous film.
Not much else can be said about Horrible Bosses 2. It has a great cast for a comedy, but ultimately falls flat by relying on unfunny or offensive jokes, the plot layout of the previous film, and all of the other cliché of a comedy sequel.
Chances are you might get a better kick out of this if you see it with a friend. However, if you’re alone and you’ve already seen the first one, then you’ve already seen a better version of this film.
-Brady Lass