The Boss (C) Movie Review
The Boss stars Melissa McCarthy as Michelle Darnell, a Donald Trump-ish business mogul who finds herself in jail after being convicted of insider trading. After her eventual release, she finds herself without money, friends, and a place to stay. Desperate, she goes to her ex-assistant Claire, played by Kristen Bell, for help.
The second collaboration between one of Hollywood's favorite comediennes Melissa McCarthy and her husband, director Ben Falcone (their first being the universally panned Tammy, a film that I saw half of), the film is entirely McCarthy's vehicle. Falcone's direction is nearly nonexistent but McCarthy's charisma, delivery, and knack for physical comedy give the film whatever spark it has.
While not measuring up to Paul Feig's Spy, The Boss is not as awful as critics are painting it to be. There's an energy here, a quick pace, and some laughs. While the film is only sporadically hilarious, it's amusing throughout due to McCarthy's talents. The Boss only genuinely earns a few belly laughs but there are plenty of chuckle-worthy moments to go around. Fans of McCarthy will be pleased here with the raunchy material she so excellently delivers. It's crass for sure but McCarthy's delivery is so masterful that even the most crudest and meaningless of jokes have some gravity.
For every joke that lands, there's one that doesn't. A good amount of the jokes fall flat here and there are some lengthy stretches where nothing particularly funny happens. McCarthy's charm is enough to ease you through these stretches without boredom setting in but it opens your eyes to the surprising lack of plot or plot strength.
And McCarthy is really the film's crowning glory. She's doing her classic shtick which involves saying crude and horrible things to people but it's funny because she's Melissa McCarthy and she's got excellent timing, and the vulgar things that come out of her mouth are so gleefully creative. The Boss is completely elevated by Michelle Darnell, McCarthy's wonderfully absurd, just-wacky-enough creation. Darnell is a character with some basic emotional complexity. The attempted depth in the film is admirable but completely mishandled. More on that later. Darnell has a charismatic trainwreck quality to her; she's just so cruel and odd that it's impossible to look away.
The Boss mostly succeeds from a comedic standpoint. It has a bit of a weird sense of humor, but it works for the film. Where the film falters is in its attempt to be about something more. Of course, The Boss could've been something more than just Melissa McCarthy cursing and punching and getting into crazy hijinks. But the execution just wasn't there. We're introduced to Darnell when she is a child. As an orphan, she bounces around foster homes, always being returned by her foster parents. Because of this, she develops a fear of family. This is an engaging aspect to McCarthy's character because it attempts to create a three-dimensional character for McCarthy to play. Unfortunately, this is dropped after the first ten minutes and suddenly reappears in the last thirty minutes. Now, we're supposed to care. If more effort had been made to flesh out this quirk in Michelle Darnell, this could've made for a more compelling third act, rather than the unearned, gooey one we're given.
Fans of McCarthy's work will really enjoy The Boss. She's stellar in the film, but Ben Falcone and her co-writers can't match her talent. The most frustrating part is that there are flashes of a better film. It's not that this brilliance was lost on the cutting room floor, it is only unrealized potential. Still, The Boss is effectively funny and a glorious showcase of McCarthy's talents.
FINAL GRADE: C
MPAA RATING: R for sexual content, language and brief drug use
The second collaboration between one of Hollywood's favorite comediennes Melissa McCarthy and her husband, director Ben Falcone (their first being the universally panned Tammy, a film that I saw half of), the film is entirely McCarthy's vehicle. Falcone's direction is nearly nonexistent but McCarthy's charisma, delivery, and knack for physical comedy give the film whatever spark it has.
While not measuring up to Paul Feig's Spy, The Boss is not as awful as critics are painting it to be. There's an energy here, a quick pace, and some laughs. While the film is only sporadically hilarious, it's amusing throughout due to McCarthy's talents. The Boss only genuinely earns a few belly laughs but there are plenty of chuckle-worthy moments to go around. Fans of McCarthy will be pleased here with the raunchy material she so excellently delivers. It's crass for sure but McCarthy's delivery is so masterful that even the most crudest and meaningless of jokes have some gravity.
For every joke that lands, there's one that doesn't. A good amount of the jokes fall flat here and there are some lengthy stretches where nothing particularly funny happens. McCarthy's charm is enough to ease you through these stretches without boredom setting in but it opens your eyes to the surprising lack of plot or plot strength.
And McCarthy is really the film's crowning glory. She's doing her classic shtick which involves saying crude and horrible things to people but it's funny because she's Melissa McCarthy and she's got excellent timing, and the vulgar things that come out of her mouth are so gleefully creative. The Boss is completely elevated by Michelle Darnell, McCarthy's wonderfully absurd, just-wacky-enough creation. Darnell is a character with some basic emotional complexity. The attempted depth in the film is admirable but completely mishandled. More on that later. Darnell has a charismatic trainwreck quality to her; she's just so cruel and odd that it's impossible to look away.
The Boss mostly succeeds from a comedic standpoint. It has a bit of a weird sense of humor, but it works for the film. Where the film falters is in its attempt to be about something more. Of course, The Boss could've been something more than just Melissa McCarthy cursing and punching and getting into crazy hijinks. But the execution just wasn't there. We're introduced to Darnell when she is a child. As an orphan, she bounces around foster homes, always being returned by her foster parents. Because of this, she develops a fear of family. This is an engaging aspect to McCarthy's character because it attempts to create a three-dimensional character for McCarthy to play. Unfortunately, this is dropped after the first ten minutes and suddenly reappears in the last thirty minutes. Now, we're supposed to care. If more effort had been made to flesh out this quirk in Michelle Darnell, this could've made for a more compelling third act, rather than the unearned, gooey one we're given.
Fans of McCarthy's work will really enjoy The Boss. She's stellar in the film, but Ben Falcone and her co-writers can't match her talent. The most frustrating part is that there are flashes of a better film. It's not that this brilliance was lost on the cutting room floor, it is only unrealized potential. Still, The Boss is effectively funny and a glorious showcase of McCarthy's talents.
FINAL GRADE: C
MPAA RATING: R for sexual content, language and brief drug use