Review: 'Horrible Bosses 2' is a Surprisingly Successful Comedy Sequel

Kellie Rainville ’17 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer

Chris Pine, Charlie Day, Jason Bateman and Jason Sudeikis in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
Chris Pine, Charlie Day, Jason Bateman and Jason Sudeikis in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
Surprisingly, the comedy sequel Horrible Bosses 2 did not disappoint. Nick (Jason Bateman), Kurt (Jason Sudeikis), and Dale (Charlie Day) come back together on the big screen for this truly entertaining sequel. This time around they are joined not only by the star supporting characters from the first movie (namely Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx and Kevin Spacey) but also by Chris Pine and Christoph Waltz.
This time around Nick, Kurt, and Dale are no longer employees. In fact, there are no actual bosses in Horrible Bosses 2. They have decided to venture into business together as entrepreneurs with a new product that streamlines a showering process called the “shower buddy.” The film starts with the trio preparing to make a talk show appearance to publicize their innovative shower product. The laughs really do start right from the beginning with a hilarious scene where Kurt (Sudeikis) does a demo of their product on the talk show.
Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day and Jason Bateman in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day and Jason Bateman in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
Somehow, the trio’s product manages to attract the attention of Burt Hanson (Waltz), a well-known business mogul. Pine is introduced here as Burt’s son—well, as Burt’s disliked, noticeable edgy, and possibly even a bit crazy son, Rex. After being screwed over by Burt and Rex on a huge order of these shower buddies, Nick, Kurt, and Dale devise a plan to get back at the Hanson’s which inevitably goes horribly wrong.
One particularly funny scene was when Kurt, Dale, Nick, and Mother F***** (Foxx) are waiting for the police to catch up to them. It is truly one of the most hilarious and generally entertaining car chase scenes in the past few years in film. The four of them are just sitting there silently eating Twizzlers for a solid minute and it is completely brilliant. Jamie Foxx’s character, Mother F*****, in general such a hilarious character, is definitely a fan favorite. Whenever the film was starting to get a bit slow, Mother F***** would show up for a scene and keep the laughs going strong.
Charlie Day and Jennifer Aniston in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
Charlie Day and Jennifer Aniston in Horrible Bosses 2. Photo Credit: John P. Johnson/Warner Bros. Pictures.
There was only one aspect of the film that didn’t exactly fit in. Throughout the movie there were a series of rape jokes between Dale (Day) and Julia (Aniston), much like in the first film. The movie assumes audiences will forgive these jokes because it’s female to male rape, which seems to be viewed as “less terrible.” Simply, that is not true and the film continues the mistake of including these jokes. However, with the audience this movie is targeted and written for, these joke will be enjoyed. Also, in a comedy movie like this we have to make exceptions for the inevitable dark humor. So while the rape jokes took a little bit away from the full comedic experience, overall the humor was on point.
After seeing terrible comedy sequels like The Hangover Part II and the shudder inducing Hangover Part III, there was not a lot of hope for a Horrible Bosses sequel. But this film genuinely provided a great movie-going experience and, therefore, comes with a recommendation. If audiences liked the first movie, they are sure to enjoy Horrible Bosses 2.
Overall Episode Grade: B

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One Comment

  1. I think a huge social problem is that we don’t have nearly enough occasions in which male rape victims are humiliated, laughed at and made to feel even worse than they already do. Could you get on that, Hollywood? These people have been having it too easy for far too long.

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