Horrible Bosses

It’s a sure-fire premise – everyone’s had a boss they can’t stand. Take the premise and multiply it by the three-dude formula from The Hangover, add one saucy woman, throw in a few surprising appearances by reputable stars and it’s bound to be a summer blockbuster. Especially when The Hangover 2 was such a disappointment. Congratulations, Hollywood! Another one in for the record books.

I saw Horrible Bosses at a free preview before its wide release last week. Yeah, it was a week ago. And I still don’t know what to say about it. The movie is exactly what you expect, entirely predictable and almost boring in its trajectory. Bateman is half-hearted throughout the film, Jason Sudeikis fails to amuse the way Ed Helms does, and Charlie Day steals what moments he can as the meekest of the three. It’s hard for me to find Spacey funny as Bateman’s boss. His utter seriousness almost transcends the comedy. Some input from Michael Showalter or David Wain (both of the comedy trio Stella and the movie Wet Hot American Summer) might have come in handy, maybe seeing Christopher Meloni as Bateman’s megalomaniacal boss would have been hilarious. As it is, one of the funniest bits features Brian George being brilliant (if physically absent) as GPS contact Gregory/Atamanand.

The press circuit Jennifer Aniston has been It Girl and received great word-of-mouth if not great reviews for her performance as “maneater” dentist Julia Harris. But here’s where my utter disappointment with the film begins. Persistent sexual harassment despite expressed disapproval isn’t funny. Rape humor isn’t funny. I don’t care if it is America’s Sweetheart Jennifer Aniston making the advances rather than battling them.

While it has its funny moments, I came away feeling half-heartedly amused by the film as a whole. If it’s mindless summer comedy you’re looking for – Horrible Bosses may be just the ticket you’re wanting.