.....with my dear wife and we both liked it a bunch, saying it's easily the funniest movie either of us has seen in quite a while.
The Link
SOME SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!
While I watched, I was recalling both Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train" and Danny DeVito's "Throw Mamma from the Train," the first being a a thoughtful thriller and the second a dark comedy.
And I was thinking, as "Horrible Bosses" unfolded its story, how this entertaining flick possesses an original screenplay sufficiently different enough to notably distinguish it from either of those two excellent films, when suddenly the movie's main characters alluded to both of them by title, in passing.
I've seldom, if ever, had that happen to me before, in a cinema, but this was only a small part of the scripted cleverness which, IMO, made this particular film so good.
Think of the convoluted goings on witnessed in "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead," while definitely understanding that "Horrible Bosses" is written and played as a farce and not a melodrama.
Besides genuine excellence from the three main actors, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis each showing fast-moving or subtle comedic chops as needed and fine thespian chemistry, this movie benefited GREATLY from its supporting cast of Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Colin Farrell and Julie Bowen, all of whom were put to exceptionally good use throughout the film, plus Donald Sutherland and Bob Newhart, who appeared in memorable cameos at the very beginning and at the very end.
I've seen and enjoyed such recent movie comedies as "The Hangover I & II," "Office Space," "Clerks," "EuroTrip," "School of Rock," "Reality Bites," "Bubba Ho-Tep," "Along Came Polly," "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," "Napoleon Dynamite," "The 40 Year Old Virgin," "Nacho Libre," "Knocked Up," "Super Bad," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," "Tropic Thunder," "Wedding Crashers" and many, many, many other film favorites of movie goers more youthful than I and all flicks which I doubt that most, or even many, film fans in my generation (I'm 68) would find very funny or even worth their while.
Without such a wonderful supporting cast, the three excellent young male actors in "Horrible Bosses" still would probably have made a hit movie that their mostly younger fans could enjoy, quote and praise, but with that exceptional support this flick rises greatly in overall quality, should gain an immensely wider and older audience and, IMO, ought to have legs.
Woulda, coulda, shoulda, oughta, we'll see how that goes.
So, "Horrible Bosses" is a comedy that I recommend to mature viewers of all ages, if they aren't offended by or shouldn't be protected from the most obscene of words, a compound of which is used as a given name, plus several sight gags about simulated sex acts.
I do realize, will agree and warningly submit this does leave out a whole lot of potential viewers, both young and old, who shouldn't see "Horrible Bosses."
However, such raunchy and randy stuff doesn't bother either me or my wife, because we're pretty much inured to "bad talk and activity" at the movies or in real life and also because, for us, this very funny flick transcended boorish behavior and bawdy speech simply because of its almost constant hilarity.
It's hard to be offended when you're laughing.
And we were both laughing out loud, having often heard the equal or worse at Vegas shows or in comedy clubs.
And I don't believe this screenplay would have rang very true without that explicit language being present.
All these words are colorfully and colloquially used throughout the dialog, however no actual sexual acts are shown even though Jennifer Aniston's character is a panty-exposing nymphomaniac, Charlie Day plays a registered sex offender (he protests this is a gross, situational misunderstanding), perky Julie Bowen plays a whorish wife and Colin Farrell portrays a cocaine snorting playboy and general d **che bag.
I think Kevin Spacey might garner one of the ten nominations for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar that are now available each year.
His perfectly cast and delivered performance was that good, IMO.
And the editing and performances seemed so seamless to my eye that all the rapid action and fast speech looked as if they had been filmed in unbroken scenes of acting, until a gag reel showing when the actors actually did break up in laughter was shown behind the closing credits.
My wife and I heartily recommend this film with the caveats I've given you.
The only thing I didn't completely dig was when my aging ears couldn't always make out all the funny things being said, but I'll certainly enjoy discovering all that whenever I watch this funny flick again at home with subtitles.
Anyone seen it?
Your thoughts?
BTW, "Horrible Bosses" and "Larry Crowne," which I reviewed here earlier, are the two best comedies, each requiring the right audience, that I've seen back to back in theaters in a really long time.
Gig 'em, FAST FRED '65.
Before the world wide web, village idiots usually stayed in their own village.
The Link
SOME SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!
While I watched, I was recalling both Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train" and Danny DeVito's "Throw Mamma from the Train," the first being a a thoughtful thriller and the second a dark comedy.
And I was thinking, as "Horrible Bosses" unfolded its story, how this entertaining flick possesses an original screenplay sufficiently different enough to notably distinguish it from either of those two excellent films, when suddenly the movie's main characters alluded to both of them by title, in passing.
I've seldom, if ever, had that happen to me before, in a cinema, but this was only a small part of the scripted cleverness which, IMO, made this particular film so good.
Think of the convoluted goings on witnessed in "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead," while definitely understanding that "Horrible Bosses" is written and played as a farce and not a melodrama.
Besides genuine excellence from the three main actors, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis each showing fast-moving or subtle comedic chops as needed and fine thespian chemistry, this movie benefited GREATLY from its supporting cast of Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Colin Farrell and Julie Bowen, all of whom were put to exceptionally good use throughout the film, plus Donald Sutherland and Bob Newhart, who appeared in memorable cameos at the very beginning and at the very end.
I've seen and enjoyed such recent movie comedies as "The Hangover I & II," "Office Space," "Clerks," "EuroTrip," "School of Rock," "Reality Bites," "Bubba Ho-Tep," "Along Came Polly," "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," "Napoleon Dynamite," "The 40 Year Old Virgin," "Nacho Libre," "Knocked Up," "Super Bad," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," "Tropic Thunder," "Wedding Crashers" and many, many, many other film favorites of movie goers more youthful than I and all flicks which I doubt that most, or even many, film fans in my generation (I'm 68) would find very funny or even worth their while.
Without such a wonderful supporting cast, the three excellent young male actors in "Horrible Bosses" still would probably have made a hit movie that their mostly younger fans could enjoy, quote and praise, but with that exceptional support this flick rises greatly in overall quality, should gain an immensely wider and older audience and, IMO, ought to have legs.
Woulda, coulda, shoulda, oughta, we'll see how that goes.
So, "Horrible Bosses" is a comedy that I recommend to mature viewers of all ages, if they aren't offended by or shouldn't be protected from the most obscene of words, a compound of which is used as a given name, plus several sight gags about simulated sex acts.
I do realize, will agree and warningly submit this does leave out a whole lot of potential viewers, both young and old, who shouldn't see "Horrible Bosses."
However, such raunchy and randy stuff doesn't bother either me or my wife, because we're pretty much inured to "bad talk and activity" at the movies or in real life and also because, for us, this very funny flick transcended boorish behavior and bawdy speech simply because of its almost constant hilarity.
It's hard to be offended when you're laughing.
And we were both laughing out loud, having often heard the equal or worse at Vegas shows or in comedy clubs.
And I don't believe this screenplay would have rang very true without that explicit language being present.
All these words are colorfully and colloquially used throughout the dialog, however no actual sexual acts are shown even though Jennifer Aniston's character is a panty-exposing nymphomaniac, Charlie Day plays a registered sex offender (he protests this is a gross, situational misunderstanding), perky Julie Bowen plays a whorish wife and Colin Farrell portrays a cocaine snorting playboy and general d **che bag.
I think Kevin Spacey might garner one of the ten nominations for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar that are now available each year.
His perfectly cast and delivered performance was that good, IMO.
And the editing and performances seemed so seamless to my eye that all the rapid action and fast speech looked as if they had been filmed in unbroken scenes of acting, until a gag reel showing when the actors actually did break up in laughter was shown behind the closing credits.
My wife and I heartily recommend this film with the caveats I've given you.
The only thing I didn't completely dig was when my aging ears couldn't always make out all the funny things being said, but I'll certainly enjoy discovering all that whenever I watch this funny flick again at home with subtitles.
Anyone seen it?
Your thoughts?
BTW, "Horrible Bosses" and "Larry Crowne," which I reviewed here earlier, are the two best comedies, each requiring the right audience, that I've seen back to back in theaters in a really long time.
Gig 'em, FAST FRED '65.
Before the world wide web, village idiots usually stayed in their own village.
